NEW Year’s Day 2011 will be particularly memorable for Oxfordshire parents who welcomed much-awaited new arrivals.

As millions of people across the UK celebrated with fireworks and Champagne, others were busy celebrating the births of new babies.

Among the delighted parents at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital were 30-year-old Jennifer Ekeland, from Oxford, who gave birth to new son Fredrik at 4.53am.

Mrs Ekeland said: “I think New Year’s Day is a great day to have your birthday on.

“He’ll probably get the day off work every year anyway.”

Fredrik, weighing 8lb 7oz, was welcomed by his mother and father, Jesper, 31, after six hours of labour.

First-time parent Mrs Ekeland said: “I think it went really fast. It feels fantastic to be a mum, though a bit like I’m dreaming.”

She added: “He was two weeks overdue – he obviously wanted to be famous and hang on for all this attention.”

Also celebrating, on what nurses said was a “hectic” night of births, was third-time mum Annabel Bosher, 39, from Long Wittenham.

She welcomed a new baby daughter to her family with husband Dan, 42, and sons Louis, five, and Hobie, three.

Mrs Bosher said: “We haven’t given her a name yet, I’ve only ever had boys so we’ll have to have a think about it.

“But she was 18 days late, which is quite unusual.

“Everyone kept saying we’d have a Christmas baby on our hands, but we laughed that off – we never expected she’d be born at New Year instead.”

The baby girl weighed 9lb 3oz, and was fast asleep as Mrs Bosher held her.

She said: “I think it’s really cool to be born at New Year. You’ll always get a free party wherever you are.”

The first baby born in 2011 at the JR was Adalyn Lehmuth, who arrived at 1.05am.

First-time parents Elizabeth, 28, and Austyn, 27, from Buckingham, said they were “over the moon”.

Mr Lehmuth said: “It’s kind of crazy she was born on New Year’s Day – we never thought that would happen.

“But it is very nice to finally get to meet her.

“I just can’t put her down, she’s already a real daddy’s girl.”

Mrs Lehmuth said: “It feels so great, but will probably feel even better after we’ve all got a bit of sleep.”