The Ducote Family: Welcome to the world, Charlotte Grace!!

Since Charlotte looked like she was going to stay put for awhile longer, my doctor and I decided that we would schedule an induction since she was continuing to measure big and I really was hoping not to push out a ten pound baby. The induction was scheduled for September 3rd at 8:00 a.m. We dropped the kids off at my parents around 7 that morning and as we were doing so, I received a call from the hospital that they were full and that I wouldn't be able to come in until that afternoon...so, we hung out and had breakfast at my parents and then Rich and I went back to the house and I actually took a two hour nap which was probably just what I needed!
Here is our last picture of a family of 5!!

I received the call from the hospital around 2:00 p.m. so we headed in and got all situated. I was really hoping to go into labor naturally since I haven't been able to experience it with any of my pregnancies; however, at this point I was definitely ready to meet this little girl. I have been blessed with easy pregnancies; however, I was pretty uncomfortable by the end of this one-much more so than I remember being with any of the others. My feet and legs were swollen (which has never really happened before), I couldn't breathe especially at night and was barely sleeping (most likely due to the feeling like I was never able to breathe.) I put on about ten more pounds than I did with my other pregnancies and got to a point to where it just really didn't bother me...I was still exercising but not as intense as the previous pregnancies, but was walking or lifting weights at least 5 days a week but I guess it just didn't cut it. I was still trying to eat relatively clean but was pretty consistent about sneaking in some late night desserts and plenty of peanut butter on a spoon-that probably did it ;) Anyways, I was definitely ready to have this baby and felt confident and at peace with the decision to induce...so, here we are a little after 2:00 p.m. on Saturday the 3rd waiting to get hooked up to pitocin and to get things going.

Overall, my labor was great. A few bumps in the road, but overall it was very smooth. When I got to the hospital I was still only 1 cm dilated and only 50% effaced which was frustrating because I was positive that the baby was just going to fly out since she felt so low and I was feeling so much pressure. Once the piton started at 3:30 p.m., I seemed to progress pretty slow in the beginning and was stalling out at 3 cm. I ended up getting the epidural when I was still at only 3 cm since I was feeling some pain and since Julia came so fast (less than 4 hours from start to finish), so my doctor suggested that I do so just in case I progressed as quickly as I did with Jules. I did not progress as quickly, so tried to relax for a bit while the pitocin was doing its job. I do remember constantly watching the clock wondering how much longer it would be. My nurse originally was supposed to leave at 7:00 so was hoping to have the baby by then, which obviously didn't happen, but then she took on another shift so would stay until 11:00 and we figured she would definitely arrive by then...only time would tell!
Around 7:30 they turned the pitocin up to a level 9, which caused my blood pressure to go really low. I quickly dropped from 130/80 to 82/70 and I felt really nauseous and sweaty and Rich told me I looked like a ghost but after a quick dose of medication and oxygen I was good to go. My nurse was in the middle of telling me a very long, drawn out story about the death of her father (of all things!) so at least it got me out of hearing the rest of it! Ha. My pitocin was turned down to a 7 after that. At 8:30 p.m. I was still only at3 cm, so the doctor broke my water. There was a bit of meconium in it but they said not to worry because it was a really small amount. They moved the pitocin down to a level 4 once they broke my water hoping that my body would start progressing more on its own, which thankfully it did, so they didn't have to increase it again and eventually ended up turning it off. The biggest issue was that my epidural started to wear off once the contractions really kicked in and just couldn't get it back to where it needed/I wanted it to be at! It was only on my right side and basically started in my groin area and every time I had a contraction it was just a stabbing pain right in the groin. At first my doctor was concerned that it could be c-section scar and actually said, "Well, I don't think we need to go to an emergency c-section at this point but we will monitor it" and I assured him that it was NOT my c-section scar and since the pain only came when I was having a contraction he was ok with continuing with the vaginal birth. I had a quick moment of panic when he mentioned the c-section but I think it lit the fire to get this baby out soon so I didn't have to go that route and sure enough things started moving quickly after that. The next time he checked me I was at an 8 but the pain was getting really intense and I was feeling the urge to push. At 11:00 p.m. he checked me again and I was still at an 8 but the pain was even more intense (still only on the right side but I definitely was feeling it!!) so the doctor just hung out in the room thinking that things were going to move fast from there. He was right! Going from an 8 to 10 flew by and then I was ready to push. My nurse (Kristina) was off of work at 11:00 so we said goodbyes and right after she left things really started moving, so at 11:20 I was elated to find her back by my side-she said that she had just finished her charts and another nurse told her that I was getting ready to push so she came back in! It totally made my night and she actually really helped me...I will admit that I was SCREAMING!! I was not ready/prepared to be feeling what I was feeling and was not happy about it-ha! Kristina guided me through the breathing so I was able to get myself under control and not wake the people down the hall! I did have the room of people giggling a few times with the things that came out of my mouth though-nothing vulgar but did give a play by play of what I was feeling and let everyone know multiple times that this is not what I signed up for! Thankfully, I didn't have to push long and in less than 10 pushes Charlotte Grace entered the world at 11:39 p.m. on September 3rd. The first thing I heard was "Wow, she's big!" but we didn't know how big she was for over an hour since they let her stay with me and nurse, which was great. She snuggled right up and our hearts grew bigger for the fourth time. We are so thankful for another healthy baby.

Dr. Damon Cobb was the doctor that delivered her and we were really happy with him throughout the entire pregnancy. He is very laid back, supportive of the mother's wishes and an advocate for vbacs.

Rich has never wanted to cut the cord for any of the kids and hasn't done so until Charlotte (so Charlotte if you ever feel like you get the shaft for being the 4th child, here is something that you have that nobody else has!) Rich is a great support during the birth but he has always said that cutting the cord just seemed like a little too much for him but this time the nurse asked him and he at first said, "No, thank you." and she started to give him kind of a hard time and then I remember saying, "Come on, I just pushed her out and felt way more than I wanted to, you can surely cut the cord of your last baby!" He's a trooper and did...although these pictures still have him looking a little hesitant!

That's mascara all down my cheek...probably from a combination of sweat and tears.

She didn't love the bath!

We were anxiously awaiting finding out how much she weighed and were in disbelief when we saw, NINE pounds, FOURTEEN ounces!! Um, that is almost TEN pounds!! The ultrasound technician at 36 weeks wasn't joking...she was big!! I think what I am most impressed with is that I didn't tear at all (thankfully!!!!) She was 21 inches.

Snug as a bug after the bath and weight torture.

Look at those eyes!! They look like they are blue so we'll see if they stay that way.

I don't think she slept in the bassinet at all during the entire two nights in the hospital. She did not want to be put down, which I didn't mind, for the most part. By night two I was definitely tired but we made it through it and thankfully once we got home she took to the swing immediately so we have all been able to get some rest. She wanted to eat nonstop in the hospital and since my milk wasn't in yet, I think she was pretty hungry but she did ok and once my milk came in she's been great, basically giving me three hour stretches from the first night it came in so I can't complain at all!

On Sunday morning, my mom and dad brought the kids in to meet their new baby sister. They were so sweet and so excited! Julia was a bit taken aback by the hospital room and was almost in tears walking in because of the machines and unfamiliarity with the room but she asked to hold "Baby La la" immediately and was full of kisses for her. Ella didn't want to leave her side and Joseph was excited but lost interest quickly, as he was more interested int eh gift that Charlotte brought for him. She brought the girls dolphin stuffed animals and brought Joseph a Ninjago book and figurine. The nurse was sweet enough to bring them all stethoscopes and handmade puppets. The girls didn't take the stethoscopes off and continue to play with them regularly.

Julia doesn't look thrilled in the picture but I love how her hands are out wanting to hold Charlotte-she kept saying, "Hold baby La La"

LOVE!!!! Sweet sisters.

Charlotte had the newborn hearing screen performed while everyone was there and Ella was such a big help.

A great picture showing the reality of life with a newborn!

Proud older siblings

Meeting Nani and Poppa! Charlotte is their seventh grandchild in less than six years!

"Baby Julia" is no longer the baby which is bittersweet but we are so thankful and excited for our new baby.

Our new family!

Kisses goodbye for Charlotte. My parents took the kids back to their house for the rest of the day and then brought them to our house that night after dinner where Rich met them and he spent the night with them at home. I was hoping to spend only one night in the hospital but the newborn screenings had to be done at 24 hours old for Charlotte and since she was born so late at night we had to spend two nights. By Sunday, the second night, around 7 p.m. I was definitely ready to get out of there but made it through the night and Rich and the kids were back in the morning around 10:00 and we left the hospital a little after 11:00 a.m.

Relaxing on Sunday afternoon.

Rich and the kids had a busy morning-he took the kids to McDonald's for breakfast (which was the first thing that I heard about!-"Daddy took us somewhere not healthy for breakfast but he said breakfast was kind of healthy there so its ok!" Ha) and then to the store to buy us flowers and to the park to play for a bit, before they came to bring Charlotte and I home.

Ella was so happy to have us home!

A few hours after we got home, the Ozeck family, along with my mom, Lindsay and Finn came by. Sydney and Cole were both so sweet with her and are going to be such great older cousins to her!

Finn seems so big now!

Auntie Katie came by, too! With having Katie there with both of my sisters and my mom, I was really feeling that we have come full circle since they were all present for the birth of Joseph. It is definitely so special to be back in San Diego for her birth.

Thankfully everyone was still excited that she was still here on Tuesdays morning. As soon as Ella woke up she wanted another turn to hold her!

Jules, too!

She loves the swing!!! I put her in the bassinet once the first night we were home and she woke up within 15 minutes so since then I've just been putting her in the swing and she sleeps so well. I know she can't sleep there forever but since my sleep is pretty important for me to be able to function during the day, we are going to go with the swing for as long as we can! The first night was a little rough as my milk still wasn't in but by Tuesday afternoon it was in and she was eating great and sleeping so much better.