Rachel Peters Is ‘First Baby’ of 2011

Five minutes after Thom Peters came home from work on January 11 and gave his wife, Elaine, a kiss, her water broke.   ’I was frantically trying to gather all of our supplies for the hospital,’ Thom said. ‘Little did I know that it would be 24 hours before we saw [our baby girl].’   Elaine eventually had to have a Caesarean section, and Rachel was born at 3:12 p.m. on January 12 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Rachel, the couple’s first child, weighed 7 pounds 15 ounces and measured 19.5 inches.   ’The birth was a little more complicated than we anticipated, but what matters is that she is healthy,’ Elaine told the Palisadian-Post at their home in the Marquez Knolls neighborhood.   Rachel arrived a week before her due date of January 19, and Thom speculates it’s because she wanted to win the Post’s First Baby of the Year contest.   She and her family will now receive 20 gift certificates from Palisades merchants. The Post launched the First Baby of the Year contest in 1954 and has honored a new baby every year since. Last year’s first baby was Natalia Capri Johnson, who was born on January 7.   The Peters moved from Santa Monica to Pacific Palisades in May 2010. They are members of the Marquez Knolls Property Owners Association and the Pacific Palisades Historical Society. They chose to live in the Palisades because ‘it’s like a small town, and people really care about each other,’ Thom said.   Thom has worked as a plaintiff’s attorney for the past 19 years and is now with the law firm Ringler Kearney in downtown Los Angeles. Elaine worked as a plaintiff’s attorney for 17 years before becoming a judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court in 2009. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed her to the position.   Elaine, who grew up in Los Angeles, earned her bachelor’s degree in history and art history at UCLA and attended law school at UCLA, while Thom earned his undergraduate degree in philosophy and history from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, and attended law school at Duke University.   They met in 1996 while serving on the board of the Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles (CAALA). After years of friendship, they started dating in fall 2006 and were married in June 2007 at the Beverly Hills Hotel. They love to travel and honeymooned in Portugal.    Elaine and Thom chose the name Rachel for their daughter because it starts with the letter ‘R’ and therefore would honor their grandfathers, Reuben and Robert, respectively.   Thom’s parents, Bruce and Nancy of Colorado Springs, and Elaine’s parents, Len and Bea of West Los Angeles, all attended the birth. Rachel is the fifth grandchild for Bruce, a retired physician, and Nancy, a retired nurse and bereavement counselor. She is the first grandchild for Len, a retired lawyer, and Bea, an active volunteer.   ’Everyone was very excited to meet her,’ Elaine said, while smiling at her daughter resting in her arms.   Since coming home from the hospital, the Peters are enjoying spending time with their daughter. ‘She is extraordinarily alert and extraordinarily strong,’ Thom said, noting that she can really kick her legs.   ’She likes to party at night with daddy,’ Elaine chimed in, noting that in the months ahead, ‘we are looking forward to learning about her personality and who she will become.’