According to Fit Pregnancy, in 2011, only 1 baby out of 80,000 arrives in its amniotic sac. But Ean Jamal Jr. (“EJ”) decide to make an even grander entrance — by being born in his mom’s car too. The odds on a car birth? Just 6,600 babies a year. So kudos on the impressive (and double-rare) arrival, EJ!
EJ’s mother, Raelin Scurry, thought she was having Braxton Hicks contractions at 29 weeks pregnant. But the contractions wouldn’t ease up, and 45 minutes of unrelenting pain convinced her and her fiancé, Ean Vanstory, to bolt to the car and drive to the hospital.
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One little hitch: EJ wasn’t about to wait. Fourteen minutes into their drive, Scurry gave birth to a teeny-tiny preemie — EJ was just 3 pounds, 1 ounce (smaller than some kittens).
The Pittsburgh mom posted the harrowing story of EJ’s birth to Instagram on Aug. 24.
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“I knew it was time to push. I called 911 because I was so scared. They couldn’t understand me between the screams with contractions,” she said. Scurry then passed the phone to Vanstory and took matters into her own hands.
“I pulled my pants off and reached down and sure enough his head was right there,” she said.
Scurry (a total and complete rock star in our book) gave one more push before EJ slipped out completely in the front seat of the car. She was shocked to see that EJ was en caul — the phrase for a child born while still within an intact amniotic sac (during most vaginal births, the membrane is torn or ruptured).
The pictures that Scurry has posted on Instagram of her amazing baby boy — in the car and in the NICU — have knocked us out.
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“At first the baby was still and all I do was pray he would be okay,” Scurry wrote. “And then I rubbed his face with my thumb and he pulled his little hands and feet up to his face as if he understood my prayers and wanted to reassure us he was okay.”
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Turns out the caul had a very significant purpose in this preemie’s birth.
Scurry explained to Us Weekly that the caul may in fact have saved EJ’s life.
“It was a relief,” she said. “I knew his lungs wouldn’t be mature enough to breathe on his own.”
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The experience was terrifying, but fortunately EJ is doing beautifully in the NICU, and now weighs almost 4 pounds, 4 ounces. He’ll join his sister, Amya, 5, very soon. (And Amya will no doubt get very sick of her brother’s super-cool birth story in no time at all.)
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“He is doing amazing,” Scurry told Us Weekly. “He’ll come home closer to his October due date.”
We’re thinking Scurry and Vanstory should brace themselves for a life of excitement with EJ. This little guy definitely does things on his own time and in his own way.
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