Fallon couple delivers baby en route to hospital

Naming their daughter Clair would make sense for Kim and Mat Boni of Fallon.

After all, the new baby girl made her surprise entrance into the world on Saint Clair Road.

Instead, the Bonis name their new baby Lillyanne Ester, and she has proven from the start that she will chart her own course. Rather than wait for her due date, Lillyanne was born at about 8:50 a.m. on May 10 in the front seat of her parent’s Toyota Sequoia.

The Bonis intended to deliver their baby at a Reno hospital as they had done with their son. Those plans changed.

“The night before, I had contractions, but it was nothing major,” Kim, 30, said. On Wednesday morning she called her husband to come home from work because things had become more intense.

“I called and had my mom come over to take care of our 16-month-old son. I had an appointment in Reno and figured they would go ahead and admit me because I was going to be induced Friday,” Kim said. “I had my bag packed.”

When Kim’s mother arrived followed by her husband, Kim stood up and her water broke.

“The only person that started panicking was my mom,” Kim said. “She was worried we were going to drive to Reno.”

Instead, Kim and Mat, who live 3-4 miles from Banner Churchill Community Hospital, headed that way. Only a few minutes from home, Kim felt the baby begin to emerge.

“I don’t know if it was fight or flight, but I knew to get on my back. I felt for her shoulders and on the next contraction I gripped her shoulders and pulled her out,” Kim said. Lillyanne later measured 9 pounds, 7 ounces and was 20 inches long.

As they continued to drive, Mat, who has emergency response training, coached Kim on rubbing the baby and getting her to cry and breathe. He called 911 and worked with dispatchers to meet up with an ambulance.

When Kim transferred from the Toyota to the ambulance, BCCH paramedic Beth Riley made her feel like she was getting the best hospital post-partum care.

“She was amazing. She asked if I wanted to breastfeed and then helped me do skin-on-skin contact and get my daughter to latch on,” Kim said. “I don’t know if it was her mother instincts or her training. She took good care of us.”

Mother and baby had an overnight stay at the hospital and are now home with older brother, Reece.

“He’s our calm, relaxed good little man,” Kim said, noting that labor with Reece was 14 hours long. “I have a feeling that (Lillyanne) is going to be this ‘Here I am!’ little spitfire.”

Banner Health obstetrician Karen Rodeffer-Evans, MD, said Kim’s labor experience wasn’t totally rare. When a woman has had a baby before, labor can change rapidly.

“Most don’t have the baby in the car,” she said. “They usually get here in time.”

The Bonis want to thank the Churchill County Sheriff’s Office, the emergency department and ambulance staff and the labor and delivery nurses who cared for them even though the delivery was not a traditional one. “I want to make sure they know how thankful and grateful we are.”