Okotoks’ New Year’s baby was ready to ride into her parent’s lives a little early.

Little Ryder Anabelle Soucy was born at one minute to 1 p.m. on Jan. 1 at the High River Hospital.

Soucy’s mom, Rebecca Raymond, said her and her boyfriend Ken Soucy had joked about a New Year’s baby because she was due on Jan. 4. However, the joking turned serious on New Year’s Eve when Rebecca started to feel like she was getting the flu.

“I was getting the chills, but I was still hungry – it was weird,” she said.

While taking a nap Raymond’s water broke and that’s when plans to attend a get together at her brother’s place were axed in place of a trip to the High River Hospital.

However, the couple was sent home to see if Raymond would go into labour overnight. She did and was back at the hospital at six in the morning. It would take five more hours for Ryder to make her appearance, but that was still in time to become Okotoks’ first baby of 2013.

Raymond said it’s an unusual birthday, but it will be easy to remember and a lot of fun.

“There will always be fireworks on her birthday,” Raymond said.

Future birthdays should be less exciting to the days leading up to this one though.

Raymond worked at her office job at a Calgary trucking company until mid December. She then wrapped up one of the courses she was taking in petroleum land management with a final exam on Dec. 19. Then Raymond and Soucy moved into their Cimarron home on Dec. 27.

“It was quite a crazy Christmas,” she said.

With Ryder now here Raymond is learning a whole new set of skills.

“I had never changed a diaper before,” she confessed. “Well maybe once or twice.”

However, Ryder isn’t a tough teacher.

“She is so good,” Raymond raves as Ryder sleeps serenely in her car seat in the living room. “She lets me get six hours of sleep a night.”

Even when the family dog Harley goes for a peek at the baby, Ryder doesn’t flinch.

“I keep wondering when it is going to get hard,” Raymond mused.

Time management is also a whole new experience.

“Trying to do anything outside the house is hard,” she said. “If you have something to do at 1 p.m. you have to start getting ready at eight in the morning. And you can’t be out too long because you have to feed her.”

However, being at home with her new baby is exactly where Raymond wants to be.

“Its been hard to get used to, but I love it,” she said. “I’d do it over a million times to be with her.”

Dad Ken feels the same, Raymond said.

“He’s been amazing,” she said. “He loves her more than anything.”

Ryder is the first girl grandchild for his family so everyone is excited to have her, Raymond said, especially daddy.

“He wanted a girl,” she said. “I think its like daddy’s little princess.”

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