Local hospitals welcome first babies of 2013

A Washougal couple on Tuesday welcomed the first baby born in a Clark County hospital in 2013.

Jacob Tyler Schindler entered the world at 5:25 a.m., born at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver. The boy weighed in at 8 pounds, 10 ounces, and measured 21 1/2 inches long.

It was the third child for Washougal residents Sherry Ingram and Jeffery Schindler, but first son. The couple also have two daughters, 8-year-old Mikayla and 6-year-old Lillian, Ingram said.

Ingram said she wasn’t anticipating a New Year’s Day delivery, as her due date was Jan. 11. Jacob, however, had other plans.

“It was a surprise,” Ingram said. “I wasn’t expecting my water to break this early.”

The first baby born at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center on Tuesday came at 8:49 a.m., said Legacy spokeswoman Alisa Cour. Ashley Nicole Mercado-Morales weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces, measuring 19.25 inches long.

Both baby and mother Luz Mercado-Morales were reported to be doing fine, Cour said.