A little 'PCH' is born

NEWPORT BEACH — When she grows up, Piper Hunt's parents one day will have to tell her the story behind her birth certificate. It doesn't read like most.

Delivered by: Steve Martin. Place of birth: Pacific Coast Highway and Dover Drive in Newport Beach.

No, not Steve Martin, the actor, but Steve Martin, the nine-year paramedic for the Newport Beach Fire Department. The location, though, that's as accurate as it can be.

As Piper's parents learned, their 5-day old daughter, who was delivered on Monday, is a patient listener. But as with all babies, there is a limit and she reached hers in Newport Beach.

Piper's limit came at 11:28 a.m. Monday, when she couldn't wait any longer and was born in the passenger seat of a 1994 Toyota Highlander idling at the bus stop at Dover and Coast Highway.

"We joke about the fact we can't believe that we're those people," said Laguna Beach resident Brian Hunt, who was driving his wife, Megan, to Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, when they had to pull over and deliver their daughter instead. "You kind of hear about these crazy stories of people having something like this happen to them."

This is one of those stories.

It started Sunday night, when Megan Hunt started having her first contractions. Having already given birth to two daughters — Hadley, 3, and Eloise, 2 — Hunt had a steady gate when her third child announced to her she was ready to emerge into the world.

It was Eloise's birthday on Saturday, so Hunt asked the baby inside her if she could wait till after the birthday party.

Piper listened.

Then the contractions started on Sunday. They were closer together Monday morning, but again, Hunt asked Piper if she could wait until after she took Eloise to a visit to the pediatrician.

Again, Piper listened.

As soon as Hunt returned to her Laguna Beach home, she said she knew it was time to head to the hospital to deliver.

"I kind of feel like she actually listens, but she won't wait any longer than she was asked," Megan Hunt joked.

The Hunts moved from Chicago to Laguna Beach in May, when Brian took a job in Newport Beach.

With Megan Hunt scheduled to have induced labor Wednesday, her parents were in town to help out. The plan was to have Megan's dad drive her to Brian's work at Fashion Island, while her mother got the kids together back at the house. Then Brian would take her from Fashion Island to Hoag and Megan's dad would go back to Laguna to help with the girls.