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The only words Maryville resident Amy Converse could find to describe how she felt last week when she unexpectedly went into labor at home were -- "Oh, my gosh."

"I was scared to death," she said. "I was in shock. It felt like my insides were tearing out."

Nearly a month away from her due date, Amy, 28, said she didn't think much of cramps she felt the morning of Nov. 18. But soon she was in a lot of pain and called her husband -- Joe Converse -- home from work.

Joe said he dropped everything and rushed toward his house.

"I had so many different emotions," he said. "My family is everything to me and thought something may have gone wrong considering our baby boy wasn't due until Dec. 16."

On the way home, Joe tried to call Amy, but she couldn't answer. He got in touch with 9-1-1 operators, who talked with both Joe and Amy and helped keep them calm, Joe said. Eventually, the couple's 3-year-old, Lexi, brought her mother the phone while Joe was on the line.

Joseph Elroy Converse was born at about 12:30 p.m., and weighed four pounds, five ounces. He was 16 inches long.

Joe arrived home at about the same time as the ambulance, he said.

"I ran to the back of the house and (Amy) was sitting on the floor holding the baby. He wasn't crying or anything. My daughter was saying, 'Baby, baby.' It was actually one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen."