Happy Birthday Joy!

Today is a very special day as it marks the day 27 years ago when I had a baby in the car! It was such a memorable experience and now so many years later, I still remember it like it was yesterday.

I had a very traumatic pregnancy with my 4th child as I went through tests to determine if this baby had Downes syndrome. It took such an emotional toll on me and I anxiously waited to deliver this child. An ultrasound at 4 months had pin pointed March 21st as my due date. I already had three daughters and I knew that although it might be close to that date it wasn’t realistic to think it would actually happen.

However, when I woke up that morning I just knew of a certainty that I would have a baby that day. I never asked my husband to stay home from work on my account but that day I did. I literally ran errands with him all morning. He owns his own business and had many irons in the fire that day that needed tending to.

We arrived back home around 1pm and I decided to try and sleep for awhile. When I woke up it was about 240pm. I awoke with a really earth shattering contraction. I calmly called the hospital which was 45 minutes away and told them I wanted to come and be checked. They agreed to see me.

I grabbed my friend’s coat that I had borrowed for the winter as mine didn’t fit. It was a blustery cold windy March day. The very minute I got in the car and fastened my seat belt, I started having hard contractions. All I could think about was that it was a really long drive to the hospital!

After just 15 minutes of driving I told my husband he was going to have to pull over. We were on a very busy highway, the only highway that runs the entire length of Michigan. He took one look at me and pulled over. My daughter was born so quickly, John never took his foot off the brake and put the car in park! All I could think about was that I hoped no one would stop and help us! No one ever does! When you have car trouble people tend to ignore you. I was praying that would be the case.

I was only in labor for 15 minutes total from when we had left the house. John handed me my new baby daughter and said ” here is Joy”. She was our 4th daughter and named after my paternal grandmother. So Joy Katherine entered the world on a busy highway in Michigan.

I wrapped her in my friend’s coat and we proceeded to the hospital. John very calmly walked in and told them his wife had just had a baby in the car!. Seven people came flying out of the building and raced past our car. John pointed to our car and told them they passed it! They said I looked too calm to have just had a car baby! They cut the cord and placed bracelets on both of our wrists. They took us into the hospital and proceeded to document the birth.

The hospital very generously cleaned our car and I told john to make sure he took the coat to the dry cleaners. I have always wondered what they thought?

When Joy was born that day I knew I would never have another baby in a hospital. I never did, my next 3 were born at home with a midwife.

It is a joyful memory I have of that day. There was absolutely no fear in that car. A very sweet presence and we knew the Lord was with us. Our daughter  Joy has been a true Joy to us all these years and we cherish that day she arrived in this world. Happy birthday Joy!!!!