Fractal Mic had just arrived at his job at the Best Western in Homer on Wednesday morning, four days into the new year, when his partner, Tenaya Boone, walked in.
“She was coming up to have some pancakes and bam,” he said. “I clocked in so I could get ready to do prep and breakfast and she was like, ‘Yeah, my water broke.’”
Fractal Mic and Boone welcomed their first daughter Michaya about 10 hours later at South Peninsula Hospital — the first baby to be born this year in Homer.
The parents were surprised with her early arrival, more than two weeks before her due date. Boone said just that morning she was explaining to their six-year-old son that his baby sister would arrive in 16 days.
“And he’s like, ‘16, Mama?’ And I said, ‘Yes, but she can come at any point because babies come whenever they want to,’” Boone recounted. “And he's like, ‘Oh, so you're gonna have her today?’ And I was like, ‘No, let's not jinx us.’ And well, he did. About half an hour after we dropped him off at school, my water broke and it was on!”
Nearly the whole family shares New Year's birthdays, with Fractal Mic’s on New Year’s Eve, baby Michaya on Jan. 4 and Boone on Jan. 6.
Michaya was named for her parents, a combination of both their names.
“It's a little bit of each of us,” Fractal Mic said. “It's part of my name, it’s part of her name. We wanted her to know that she’s a little piece of each of us.”
The second baby of 2023 was welcomed just five hours later, according to SPH Spokesperson Derotha Ferraro. She said there are nine more deliveries expected in January.
