TULSA, Okla. — The road conditions on Jan. 21 made for a difficult — and slow — trip to the hospital for the Manuel family.
Robyn prepared to deliver their son, and her husband, Landon, carefully navigated the icy streets.
Robyn felt her water break and started to get contractions, but she felt like she had enough time and they didn't need to rush. As a nurse and having gone through childbirth before, she told Landon not to worry.
They got their daughter in the car and loaded up their hospital bags, but after looking at the driveway, they decided to switch to their Jeep with four-wheel drive.
"She's playing Disney songs for Raelynn our daughter, we got her loaded up in the backseat," said Landon. "Calm collected, you know, just nothing really to worry about, the biggest stressor is the road, and so we're traveling along, I'm focused on being saved 25 to 30 miles an hour, sometimes 35. Just once we got to the highway, it's sanded down pretty good, but the bridges and overpasses were completely frozen. There's plenty of black spots."
They dropped their daughter off at a grandparent's house and started for the hospital. But slowed speed meant more contractions and Robyn getting farther along into labor.
"Then we got down the road and we weren't out of Owasso yet, and I was like 'okay, they're starting to come a little quicker,'" said Robyn. "Once we were at 11th, I was like, 'there's a lot of pressure.' But I think just every single time I looked at the time and the speed he was going, I was like, I don't know if we're gonna make it."
Landon spotted a well-lit QuikTrip, headed there, and dialed 911.
"[The operator] kind of just walked me through what to do and she did a real good job keeping the situation calm," said Landon. "That was the biggest thing, is someone in the background just, you know, there as support, and from there, it's just reacting."
With the slick roads, first responders also traveled at significantly slower speeds. Landon worked through the different options, unsure if they had the time to make it to the hospital or if they should meet responders halfway.
"I was like, 'how quick can you get to me?' and she was like 'I don't know I can't tell you the weather's too bad right now to really get there very quickly,'" said Landon. "She was like, 'We can't chase you.'"
At this point, Landon knew he likely needed to deliver their son. With the frigid air, the pair kept the doors closed, leaving Landon to maneuver delivery from inside the car.
The operator walked him through it, and their son Rowan quickly entered the world, with dad catching him in his jacket. As soon as he arrived, though, they realized the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck three times.
Out of instinct, Landon stuck two fingers in between the umbilical cord and his son's neck to be sure he could breathe.
"The wife and I both tag-teamed it," he said. "She was able to help me a bit as I had my fingers in between the neck and the cord, and baby was breathing fine, crying."
First responders arrived quickly after that to cut the cord and get the three of them to the hospital. From start to finish, Robyn gave birth in about an hour.
"For giving birth in a QuikTrip parking lot, it honestly went real smoothly," said Robyn. "It's gonna be one of those stories that he's probably gonna be very tired of because everyone's gonna tell him every year on his birthday, 'You couldn't wait, and you were born in an ice storm."
Baby Rowan and mom are happy and healthy, recovering in the hospital.
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