What's the only thing worse than trying to get anywhere in the midst of a bad snowstorm, like the one that just hit part of the country this week? Trying to do so while in labor! Just ask mom Shirley Kim Bonanni.
On Wednesday, the Philadelphia woman woke up with contractions and rushed to get ready to go to the hospital. But her steep, snow-covered street made it impossible for her to walk down to her car or for anyone to drive the car closer to the house. So her husband sat her in their toddler's plastic sled and decided to pull her down the hill to the vehicle. Pretty quick thinking, right?! Despite their best efforts though, they couldn't quite make it in time!
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Bonnani's contractions began speeding up and soon, she realized she wasn't going to make it to the car, let alone the hospital. With the help of neighbors and a 911 dispatcher providing instructions over the phone, she ended up delivering the baby on the sled on the side of a road! Wow! Clearly, that baby just didn't want to wait any longer.
Thankfully, both mom and her new daughter, Bella, are OK. The baby was wrapped in blankets and taken back up to the house, while family members and neighbors helped carry Bonanni on the sled, back inside to keep warm while medics tried to make their way there.
Talk about a memorable labor! I mean, giving birth under the supervision of a doctor or midwife is scary enough, but to do outside, with no professionals, in freezing cold temperatures? Crazy! Thank goodness that everything went (relatively) smoothly and that both the child and parent are now doing just fine. And hey, though they obviously bought that sled for entertainment purposes, it did end up coming in handy! Now, they can keep it and show it to little Bella when she gets older.
Image via Thinkstock
In the Holland Tunnel
Twenty-five-year-old New Jersey mom Soukaina Nekhlaoui was on her way to the hospital when the baby decided it wanted to come out in the middle of the Holland Tunnel! A Port Authority Tunnel & Bridge officer with medical training assisted her and helped her give birth to a healthy baby boy.
On an airplane
Passengers and crew members on a plane had to help deliver Katherine Oyedoh's baby after she unexpectedly went into labor in the middle of an international Delta flight.
In an art gallery
Last October, performance artist Marni Kotak said that giving "birth" is the higest form of art and delivered a baby inside a New York City art gallery. About 20 people were present for the delivery, which took place in a birthing pool.
Live on the web
In October 2011, Ottawa, Canada, mom Nancy Salgueiro gave birth live over the Internet, with more than 2,000 people registered to watch. Her 2-year-old son cut his new brother's umbilical cord.
In a 7 Eleven Parking lot
Just a couple of weeks before the company celebrated their annual Free Slurpee Day, Florida couple Chad and Tye Malley were forced to deliver their baby in a 7-Eleven parking lot after they were unable to make it to the hospital on time!
During a traffic jam
This summer, a Boston mother went into premature labor while sitting in gridlocked Route 16 traffic. She had to call the state police for help!
At a wedding
In July of this year, a woman gave birth to her baby just minutes after tying the knot! She made it through her wedding ceremony but went into labor while taking pictures outside the church.
Two Long Island highways
After going into labor a full week early, Siobhan Anderson was in the car on the way to the hospital when she ended up giving birth to her twin baby boys on two separate Long Island highways!
In the hospital parking lot
Two women in an Alabama hospital were forced to give birth outside in the hospital's parking lot after the building was evacuated over a bomb threat. Tessa Kilgore gave birth underneath an oak tree in the parking lot, as did the other mother. Thankfully they both had healthy babies and easy deliveries.
Train Platform
Last August, 23-year-old Shavonnte Taylor was on her way to an obstetrician's appointment when she started having contractions–2 weeks too early! She ended up giving birth on a platform in the L'Enfant Plaza Metro in Washington D.C.
