'The baby's coming now!' Morris mom delivers surprise with New Year's birth at home
Galaxy Veronica Mave Skolsky was not the first baby of 2023 to be born in Morris County. But her unscheduled and expedited arrival early Sunday morning certainly started the new year with a bang for her stunned family in Rockaway Township.
Jennifer Skolsky went to bed early on New Year's Eve, feeling the discomfort of a pregnancy that was expected to conclude on Jan. 10. Waking the next morning to contractions at 6:50 a.m., she realized she would soon give birth.
Less than an hour later, while in the bathroom, "I stepped away from the toilet and reached down and held her head as my body expelled her into my hands," Skolsky said. "It was easy and painless. I pulled her up to me as Kyle [her husband] rushed over to wrap us in a towel."
The plan had been for Skolsky to deliver her third child at the Mount Olive birthing center of Midwives of Morris County, which had also delivered her daughter. But as her water broke and contractions intensified, Skolsky knew they would not make it in time from their home in the White Meadow Lake neighborhood.
"She hardly cried, but whimpered enough to let me know she was breathing clearly," Skolsky said. "She was a beautiful pink color and latched easily."
Rockaway EMTs arrived to check on the mother and her 7-pound, 15-ounce, 19.5-inch child. They stayed with them until the midwife arrived.
Her husband, Kyle, summed up his response in one word: "Panic."
"I was in full panic mode," he continued. "Jen was yelling from the other room, 'The baby's coming now!' I literally opened the door and the baby was delivered. The baby flew out of her and she caught her in the air literally as I opened the door to the bathroom. It was crazy."
He finally relaxed when he saw that the baby was moving and eventually made a little whimper.
"She opened her eyes and was moving around, and started nursing right away, so I figured she was OK," he said.
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His wife was OK, too.
"The adrenaline made me feel like I could run a marathon right after," Jennifer Skolsky said. "I still feel great."
The family, including Jennifer's son, Anikan, 10, and daughter Journie, 7, remained home for the remainder of the holiday weekend. By Tuesday, the couple were back to work as a real estate sales team for Century 21 Christel Realty in Rockaway.
"Because we are partners and work together, we never really stop," Jennifer Skolsky said. "I can do most of my work from home, and my husband can go out on appointments."
Galaxy Veronica Mave, quick to arrive, has already gained a nickname as well.
"A book we were reading had a name, 'Galaxy,' which was unique but had a more common nickname, 'Alex,' which we thought was cool," Kyle Skolsky said. "We came up with the nickname Lexi, which we like a lot."
For the record, at least one new baby beat Lexi into the new year in Morris County: a girl born at 12:31 a.m. on New Year's Day at Morristown Medical Center. Mother Vinoschandrika Gnanasekaran and father Sri Harsha Bokka of Budd Lake have not yet named their new child.
Saint Clare's Hospital in Denville did not immediately respond to an inquiry about its first baby of 2023.
William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com
Twitter: @wwesthoven
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: Rockaway NJ: New Year's baby home birth a surprise for family
