GRESHAM, Ore. — A Cascade Locks couple received quite the surprise early Tuesday morning. Their baby daughter was born in their SUV just minutes away from the hospital.
"On one hand it was amazing, on the other hand it was terrifying," said Valerie Gordon.
Valerie knew she was going into labor around 4:15 a.m., so she and her husband Matthew gathered their 3-year-old daughter and dog and left for Portland, where they planned to deliver their daughter at a midwifery center.
The Gordons met Matthew’s parents at the Troutdale Outlook Mall, off Interstate 84. His parents planned to take care of their granddaughter and the dog.
“It was in the mall parking lot we decided to change plans and instead drive to the nearest hospital to deliver our baby,” said Valerie.
The nearest hospital was Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center in Gresham, which was about five minutes way.
“Just as we drove out of the mall parking lot, my body just took over, and I felt a huge pressure to push, right there in the car,” Valerie said. “I could feel the baby’s head crowning and knew I didn’t have much time before she would be born.”
Matthew and Valerie said they were driving when Valerie started to give birth in the SUV.
"I'm like OK, I'm alright. I'm holding the baby in my lap we're gonna get there, that's all I remember during the drive," Valerie said.
“We knew right then we weren’t making it to the hospital to deliver the baby,” said Matthew.
Within a few minutes, baby Clare’s head came out, and she started crying. She was born minutes later. Matthew drove straight to the hospital where nurses rushed to the car, where they cut the baby's cord and moved the mother and baby inside.
"To hear her cry for the first time while you're driving to the hospital for her birth was the most surreal thing ever," Matthew said.
Clare weighed in at 7 pounds, 4 ounces.
Both Valerie and Clare are healthy and doing fine. They went home Wednesday.
Note: If you have to give birth alone, there are a few things you need to know. Read more about what to do here.