Oh, baby! Mom’s labor started at Lake Stevens Costco

LAKE STEVENS — The warmth and aroma of rotisserie chickens lures many Costco shoppers.

Even those in utero.

What’s up with that?

Jona Sarmiento, 31, pregnant with her first child, was walking by the roasted birds when her water broke on May 25.

To be clear, her water didn’t spill onto the floor. This wasn’t a cleanup-in-the-rotisserie-aisle event. It was a contained trickle of amniotic fluid, a sign that delivery is on the horizon, not in the next aisle.

“I felt pressure in my stomach, then water,” she said. “I wasn’t having contractions and was in disbelief really because I was only 37 weeks.”

She was feeling good after working a 14-hour shift as a medical assistant at a walk-in Everett Clinic when she swung by the Lake Stevens Costco near her home around 8 p.m. It was the Thursday before a camping trip planned over Memorial Day weekend with her husband, Angelo, 35. A last hurrah before they became parents.

This mother-to-be was on a mission and wasn’t going to let damp pants get in her way.

“I was wearing black scrubs so it didn’t show,” she said.

She got the rest of the items on her Costco list: beef bulgogi, Oreo ice cream, canned cold brew coffee.

“It started to get worse,” she said. “I did the self-checkout.”

She didn’t panic. She loaded the groceries and drove home.

“My husband freaked out,” she said.

She hadn’t warned him.

“I opened the door to help her get the groceries out, and she said, ‘My water broke,’ and I was like, ‘Whaaat?’” Angelo Sarmiento said.

After contractions kicked in, the couple dropped off the dog at her parents’ house and headed to the hospital for a long labor. Carlisle Reyes Sarmiento was born the next evening.

He weighed 5 pounds, 14 ounces. (A rotisserie chicken weighs about 3 pounds.)

A week later, the proud mom pushed Carlisle in the stroller through the rotisserie section and took his first Costco photo of what is many to come.

She posted it on the Lake Stevens Costco Facebook page, with the caption: “Costco, remember me? It’s been 1 month since my mom’s water broke here.”

The page, started by Costco fan Heidi Smith when the store opened in December 2022, has 13,500 followers sharing their finds and tales.

“Rotisserie chicken will do that to ya,” a comment said.

The post drew more responses about childbirth than chicken. Breaking water is a maternal bonding event.

“My water broke in the Lynnwood Costco!!! It is a magical place,” read one.

Another said: “I work at the Aurora Village Costco in membership and I joke to my co-workers that it’s going to break there.”

Others told of water breaks at the Costcos in Everett and Smokey Point as well as other places, including theater 12 at Galaxy Theatres in Monroe.

For another mom, it was T.J. Maxx: “I had to decide if I buy the shoes in my hand or head to the hospital.” (She left the shoes behind.)

On March 25 in Michigan, a baby was born in the parking lot of a Costco on the couple’s way to a hospital. The baby, Dominic, was featured in the Costco Connection magazine, with a care basket and a hat and a badge with his name.

Costco has yet to recognize baby Carlisle.

“I tag them in the posts,” Jona Sarmiento said.

The Costco corporate office did not respond to a media request from The Daily Herald.

Carlisle has been on a dozen Costco trips since that watershed day.

“Every time we pass the rotisserie chicken it’s like, ‘This is where your story started,’” Angelo Sarmiento said.

Carlisle’s first month birthday was marked by his photo with a Costco pizza, a single slice missing to represent the age.

“I plan to do specific Costco items and have so many items with how many months he is,” she said.

A photo of Carlisle with two food court hot dogs is planned for his 2-month mark Wednesday. Future milestone props include Costco muffins, pinwheel sandwich wraps and rolls of paper towels. A first birthday party with a Costco theme is likely.

“We’re thinking he could be a Costco worker for Halloween,” she said.

Maybe Costco will give him a name badge by then.

Is there a person, place or thing making you wonder “What’s Up With That?” Contact reporter Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @reporterbrown.