Couple celebrates ‘miracle’ daughter after wife suddenly delivers baby at home

IDAHO FALLS — Angela and Lane Stevenson never planned to have a baby at home.

Their two other boys, now 5 and 2, were born at hospitals and the plan was to have their first daughter delivered the same way. But early Thursday morning, little Evelyn had her own idea.

“I was in our master bathroom and felt her coming out,” Angela says. “I yelled, ‘This is serious! This is the real deal!'”

Angela began having contractions Tuesday morning around midnight. They continued all day and into Wednesday when she called her doctor. She was told to monitor the contractions and that she did not need to go to hospital until they became more regular.

“The baby’s due date was today, Oct. 18, and 30 minutes into the day, the contractions started coming a lot closer together,” Lane tells EastIdahoNews.com. “It was around 1 a.m. when she woke me up and told me we better get to the hospital.”

As Lane got out of bed, Angela went into the bathroom and says she felt Evelyn coming out.

“I reached down and felt her head. I yelled at Lane and we wondered if we should call 911,” Angela recalls.

Lane rushed into the bathroom and remembers Angela “literally stood up, caught the baby and then I hurried and got under her for support.”

Evelyn had mucous in her mouth and nose and was not breathing. Fortunately, just a few days ago, Angela thought to put a bulb syringe in the master bathroom.

“That was such a tender mercy. We usually take care of the kids in another bathroom but in my nesting, I felt I should put a bulb syringe in our bathroom,” Angela says. “Thank goodness that was there so I was able to clear her nasal and throat airways.”

The baby burst into a “loud, healthy cry” as Angela’s father arrived to watch the older boys. The Stevensons live five minutes from Mountain View Hospital and figured they could get there faster than waiting for an ambulance.

“I did not cut the cord because we didn’t really know what to do,” Lane says. “We wrapped her up in towels, the placenta slid right out, and we tried to get to the hospital as quickly as we possibly could. I was helping her – umbilical cord still attached – and we booked it.”

The Stevensons arrived at the hospital a few minutes later. Lane parked in the emergency lane and left Angela and Evelyn in the car while he ran to get some help.

“A team of three or four nurses came outside with clamps and scissors,” Lane says. “They let me cut the umbilical cord in the car before we all went inside.”

Healthy little Evelyn weighed in at 7 pounds 13 ounces and measured 20 inches long.

As the family got settled into their hospital room, Lane and Angela realized the hard part was over – no pushing, no walking for hours, no epidural. Their baby was here and it all happened so fast.

“It was surreal. It felt more like a doctor’s checkup than a baby delivery,” Angela says. “This is something you hear about in the movies and you’re not really prepared for this. We were really blessed to have everything go so smoothly.”

The Stevensons are excited to welcome Evelyn into their family and believe her unexpected, exciting, safe arrival is a miracle.

“So many things could have gone wrong and everything went right,” Lane says. “We’re so grateful she arrived safe and sound. It’s still hard to believe she’s here but everything went the best it possibly could have for our little miracle baby.”