Jess Hardiman
A mum has told the story of how medics gasped as she gave birth to her baby, who came out of the womb looking like the ‘size of a toddler’.
Ruby Eden, 24, was told by doctors that her son Teddie was likely to weigh around 9lbs before he arrived on 1 August last year.
But when he was born, he quite literally tipped the scales at 11lbs 13oz – having almost knocked them over as nurses tried to weigh him.
Mum-of-two Ruby, of Warrington, Cheshire, said: "I was extremely shocked when I saw Teddie for the first time.
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"He was like a toddler. He was massive. My husband saw him and just said ‘he's a chunky boy’ as he was stunned.
“All the midwives gasped when they saw Teddie come out and I wished I had filmed my family members expressions when they met him for the first time.”
Ruby and her husband Chris, 27, ended up having to put their newborn son into outfits designed for three-month-old babies, as others were simply too small.
She continued: “Everyone was just so shocked and confused as to why Teddie was such a big baby.
“Whilst pregnant with him, my bump was smaller than it was with my daughter’s. He must have been hiding the weight somehow.
“I took a newborn size hat in for Teddie to wear at the hospital and there was just no chance it was going to fit his head.
“It was the size of a small honeydew melon, and the nurse had to fetch me an extra-large baby one.
“When he was put on the scales in the operating room after he was born, he almost tipped them. Despite being a newborn he seemed too big for them."
Teddie arrived last summer eight days after the due date, having been born at 5.45pm on 1 August at Warrington Hospital.
Full-time mum Ruby had been told that her baby would likely be ‘slightly bigger’ than average infants at her final scan – having previously given birth to daughter Delilah-Rose, who weighed 9lb - but was shocked when her son was born via emergency C-section.
She went on: “Even though the midwife had told me to expect a slightly bigger baby this time round, she only meant 9lbs.
"I had come to terms with that as my daughter was born three ounces off this when she was born. I was never expecting to have a child that was almost 12 pounds."
She then added: “I’m glad I had a C-section and not a natural birth."
Teddie was born with a condition known as polyhydramnios, which occurs when there is too much amniotic fluid around the baby during pregnancy.
He was in and out of hospital at six weeks and lost a lot of weight due to issues with his liver, but is now a happy, healthy seven-month old who loves playing with his two-year-old sister.
“At six weeks old he was really ill and was in and out of hospital,” Ruby said.
"His liver couldn’t turn the calories he was getting from breastfeeding into glucose. Luckily, he has made a huge recovery since then and is back laughing and playing with his two-year-old sister.
“He is such a happy smiley baby and me and my husband are so proud of him. He's still considered an extremely large baby for his age.”
Ruby – who has since shared her story on TikTok and attracted 1.5 million views and more than 207,000 likes – said she’s perfectly happy with a family of four and won’t be having any more children.
However, she can’t help but wonder how big her next baby would be if she planned to have another.
“Me and Chris don’t want any more kids but I would not be surprised if it was another big baby or even bigger than Teddie if we were to have another,” she added.
“There seems to be a pattern in it and they keep getting bigger each time.”