CEDAR CITY — Intermountain Cedar City Hospital’s first baby of the new year arrived on Monday evening.
“It’s only fitting that a strong and handsome Knight be the first to ride in to our community to officially take us into 2023,” Becki Bronson, Cedar City Hospital’s director of marketing and communication, said in a written statement emailed to news outlets Tuesday afternoon.
Knight Daniel Kern, son of Scout Osborn and Ryan Kern of Minersville, was born Monday, Jan. 2, at 6:27 p.m., weighing in at 9 pounds, 6 ounces, and measuring 21 inches long.
“The delivery went very well, and mom and baby are doing great,” the hospital’s statement said. “Mom says Knight is a cuddler already.”
Knight has a 3-year-old big brother named Ranger waiting to welcome him home, the statement also said.
Scout reportedly first started going into labor around 3 a.m. Monday.
“We live in Minersville, and it was really snowy, so we drove 25 miles an hour the whole way here,” Ryan said.
Added Scout: “When I got to the hospital, it was kind of the expectation, ‘Oh, we’ll have this baby in a few hours,’ and a few hours later, ‘Oh, we’ll have this baby in another few hours,’ but it wasn’t until 15 hours later he was born.”
Noting that Knight’s mom’s name, Scout, comes from the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird,” Bronson asked the parents if there was a special reason they chose the name Knight.
“They say it was something that just came to them on their way to the hospital,” Bronson wrote in the statement.
“A while ago, we had three names we were trying to decide between, but for some reason, on the drive to the hospital, we decided none of the three worked, and we both decided on Knight,” Scout said.
The birth of a New Year’s baby brings with it plenty of smiles and love. Knight’s arrival is no different.
“It’s always exciting to welcome our first baby of the year,” said Jenny Call, women and newborn services manager at Cedar City Hospital. “Knight is absolutely darling and we love being able to support our local moms with the very best care as they deliver their babies.”
Cedar City Hospital’s statement noted that its Women and Newborn Department was recently recognized by U.S. News and World Report as one of the nation’s Best Hospitals for Maternity Care for 2022.
Knight’s parents received a prize basket from Intermountain Healthcare to celebrate the New Year’s birth, which included generous donations from three Utah-based baby product vendors Minky Couture, Loulou and Company and Over the Moon.
By way of note, 852 babies were born at Cedar City Hospital in 2022, Bronson added.
Photo Gallery
New Year's baby Knight Kern with his parents Ryan Kern and Scout Osborn, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 3, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Cedar City Hospital, St. George News / Cedar City News New Year's baby Knight Kern with his parents Ryan Kern and Scout Osborn, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 3, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Cedar City Hospital, St. George News / Cedar City News New Year's baby Knight Kern, son of Scout Osborn and Ryan Kern, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 3, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Cedar City Hospital, St. George News / Cedar City News New Year's baby Knight Kern is held by his mother, Scout Osborn, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 3, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Cedar City Hospital, St. George News / Cedar City News New Year's baby Knight Kern with his parents Ryan Kern and Scout Osborn, and OB nurses Jessica Miles and Michelle Glover, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 3, 2023 | Photo courtesy of Intermountain Cedar City Hospital, St. George News / Cedar City News
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