Thurston County’s first baby of 2019: Oakley Murphy-Dickson
Mother and father are doing well, and so is Oakley Murphy-Dickson, the first baby of 2019 in Thurston County.
The world welcomed Oakley, a girl, at 3:43 a.m. Tuesday at Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia.
She weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces and is the first child for new parents and Shelton residents, Alexandra “Alex” Murphy-Dickson and her husband, Matt.
Alex, 27, works for a Shelton area credit union, while Matt, 31, is an engineer for the state Department of Corrections.
Both knew they were having a girl. Matt was busy painting the nursery on Monday when the it’s-time-to-go-to-the-hospital moment arrived. They showed up at Providence at 3 p.m. Monday and about 12 hours later Oakley was born.
“It still feels unreal, like she’s not ours,” Alex said.
About the name: Baby Oakley is named for Annie Oakley, the former American sharpshooter. Both parents said they wanted to give her a name that reflects a strong woman.
They’re not done having children. They want four kids: Two of their own and two they want to adopt.
It was another busy year for births at Providence. Nearly 2,300 babies were born at the hospital in 2018, up from 2,098 in 2017, according to hospital spokesman Chris Thomas.
