Nashville's New Year's Baby: Healthy, Happy and Born Three Minutes After Midnight

NASHVILLE, TN — Kingston Ashby came into the world six weeks early, but just in time to be Nashville's New Year's baby. Mother Mykyla was delivered of the baby boy at 12:03 a.m., welcoming her son just as the city welcomed 2017.

Despite leading the state in deliveries every year, St. Thomas Midtown — née Baptist Hospital — has been on a bit of a losing streak when it comes to bringing in Nashville's New Year's baby, but the 2017 title looks to be theirs.

Kingston weighed 4 pounds, 4.5 ounces and was born just a few weeks after Mykyla, 22, graduated from Tennessee State University with an accounting degree.

"It was just kind of up-and-down, going back and forth to the doctor and going to school," Mykyla told The Tennessean. "I wanted to just be like, 'No, I can’t do this.' ... but I just knew I had to get it done for him. I needed to get this out of the way before he got here."

Kingston wasn't due until the end of the month.

"I was so unprepared because I was thinking he was going to wait until the end of January, but he was ready to come on out here," his mom told WSMV.

While in labor, Mykyla thought her son would come just before midnight and her doctor jokingly asked if she could hold on a few minutes, but as she made her final push, she could hear the city's fireworks going off nearby.

Neonatal nurses at Nashville hospitals call around on New Year's Day to determine who had the New Year's baby. Centennial's first delivery came just before 2 a.m. and Vanderbilt's just before 5 a.m.

Image via St. Thomas Midtown/Ascension Health