DES MOINES, Iowa — The first baby born in Des Moines on New Year's Day was a new beginning for her parents, too.
The first time Abraham Urbina and his wife, Erika Lopez, went to the hospital to have a baby, they knew the day would end in tragedy.
The baby boy growing inside Erika had malformed organs on the outside of his body. Doctors told the couple the child would not survive long outside the womb.
The boy lived 13 hours.
After adopting a 5-year-old boy, Abraham and Erika were cautious about having another child.
“Especially with COVID-19 and everything going on, it was scary,” Abraham said. “I did not want my wife to go through that experience again because, you know, it’s losing a child … hurts a lot.”
Erika suffered a bout with the coronavirus during the pregnancy. She struggled to stay hydrated and felt a lot of pain, her husband said.
But when the couple’s daughter arrived at 1:25 a.m. on New Year’s Day 2021—a healthy six pounds 15.3 ounces—mom and dad felt the power of new beginnings.
They named her Genesis, after the first book in the Bible.
“I think Genesis was a name that kept popping up,” Urbina said. “We kind of came to an agreement that Genesis was the perfect name.
"I think it’s perfect, you know, for 2021.”