On 12-12-12, local hospitals see a baby bonanza; some planned, some not

The baby delivery ward at Glendale Adventist Medical Center was a hub of activity Wednesday, with nine babies having been born by mid-afternoon on the very rare date of 12-12-12 — the last time such a triple-date sequence will be on the calendar this century.

The hospital expected to see 14 births by the end of the day, said spokeswoman Alicia Gonzalez, adding that the average number of deliveries a day is eight.

Four of the births were by Cesarean by midday, with another scheduled for later on, Gonzalez said.

Jesse John Martinez Jr. was the first natural birth, arriving at 4:59 a.m.

He was supposed to be born on Christmas Day, but his mother, Nicole Medrano, 18, went into labor around 5 a.m. Tuesday.

Medrano said she wasn’t particularly surprised by the early arrival.

“I was born a week early and my Mom was born two weeks early,” she said.

The baby’s father Jesse Martinez, 18, said he didn’t expect his baby to be born on such as special day.

“I guess we were just lucky,” he said.

The couple, who are engaged, live in Highland Park. Medrano is a recreation leader at the Monrovia Community Center and Martinez works at Domino’s Pizza.

Verdugo Hills Hospital had a C-section delivery at exactly 12:12 p.m., but it wasn’t scheduled in advance.

Valerie Cornell had gone to Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena at around 1 a.m. Wednesday because she thought she was going into pre-term labor. The baby was expected to arrive on Dec. 17, she added.

Cornell was monitored for about an hour. Doctors then released her and told her to see her physician in the morning.

After an examination, Cornell’s doctor sent her to Verdugo Hills Hospital, which is across the street from his office.

Doctors there decided to perform a C-section after they determined it was medically necessary and it worked out that Cornell’s first child, Michelle Elizabeth, arrived at 12:12 p.m.

Cornell and her husband, Cris, both in their 30s, have been married for five years and live in La Crescenta. Valerie Cornell is a teacher and Cris Cornell is an engineer.

At Glendale Memorial Hospital, a baby was delivered at noon — just shy of the special arrival time.

Daniel Margousian was born to Linda Torosian and Rafik Margousian of Glendale, the couple’s first child, said hospital spokeswoman Angela Giacobbe.

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