And finally, I had a baby.

I had the most awesome doctor ever.  He listened at every appointment, to every bit of history, concern, desire and ideal and wrapped them all into something he could work with.  Because of all of my history of different birth experiences we felt an induction at 39 weeks was our best bet.  So we moved forward with an induction on Friday, the 13th, a lucky day for Oscarsons.
PAUSE THAT THOUGHT!! He offered to induce me on the 12th until I remembered that Abby was in her first school play - and since we couldn't miss that, we attended opening night on November 12th where she played Lady Rosetta in The Glass Slipper.  She did fabulously! And she had fun - I see more plays in her future.

OK, NOW we can have a baby.  The next morning we got the call to head on in.  I got hooked up and everything got moving.  I have to say I approached this birth with much more trepidation than in the past- I was tired, so so tired.  The thought of going through labor was almost too much.  I just had no umph left so when I felt that first painful contraction (before the pitocin even started) I panicked a little and thought, "nevermind, I don't want to do this."  At which point, it was a little late.  So proceeded we did.  I wasn't interested in a natural birth, I just wanted to be there and comfortable enough to enjoy it. 
I have spent a lot of time thinking about our family and just where we are in the grand scheme of things.  I will be honest that the last couple of kids have been somewhat of a harder notion to grasp - more kids, more chaos, more stress, yadda yadda yadda.  I love my infants and so naturally I have dwelt  a lot on whether or not this was "it" for us. From the moment we checked in, I was already having those reassurances that this was in fact, it, our last, our final Scharman baby.  It made the experience all the more special.  I really tried to take in and appreciate this experience, one last time.  The pitocin was going by 7:30am.  By 12:30 I had the anesthesiologist in to place the epidural so that the doctor could break my water before heading to another delivery he had scheduled.  I was comfortable, I was progressing.  I spent much of the day just resting with my headphones on and listening to a little Chopin.  My mother in law and sister in law were there hanging out and ready to help/capture the moment but gave me space and quiet for most of the time.

They were there to take pictures so we don't miss anything - like how fun it is for Clark to hang out while his wife is in labor.  Clark was in charge of social media until the big moment arrived.  He had text streams going with friends and family - on Facebook, Instagram and WhatsAp.

Then it was suddenly time to "suit up".  When they wheel that table of supplies in, is when things get real.  It has been Clark's dream for years, to deliver a baby.  He didn't care if it was on the kitchen floor or on the side of the road - I personally, preferred a hospital so it was a dream come true to work with Dr. M who agreed to let Clark do the delivery.  He made sure before hand that Clark was OK with holding his hand and being "close" to which Clark replied that he had been a submariner for 13 years with no respect for personal space.  They made a good team.

As they were sitting me up to start pushing, my blood pressure and heart rate plummeted so they took a moment, gave me a shot of something to send them back up, handed me the oxygen and we were on our way.  They gave me plenty of time between pushes to breathe deep and gather strength knowing that a big kid was on his way.

The last several weeks of my pregnancy I was having ultrasounds to keep an eye on his size, his weight and his shoulders which appeared particularly "wide".  I was really worried about being able to deliver him and for things to go smoothly but my wonderful Dr. reassured me that all would be fine and he had confidence that things would go as planned.  Clark had his hands on the baby from the moment he crowned.  Dr. M was there with his hands on Clark's to manipulate where needed, a little twist, a small tug, but Clark really was there to catch - I helped a little :)

Things could not have gone better.  I pushed for 25 minutes max.  It was hard but what labor isn't? Things were perfect.  I cannot express the sight of my husband holding that brand new son - it was one of the most spectacular, beautiful things I had ever seen.  He put that baby on my chest and I took it in - there is nothing like the warm weight of that brand new soul on your chest.  And their skin is soft and warm.  My sister said it best when she described their cheeks like a warm breath, it's so soft.
It was incredible.

And when they put him on the scale we just about died.  I couldn't believe that I had just birthed a 10+ pound baby.

I mean, look at him! He was huge! We like to joke that he checked himself out of the hospital, as soon as he was done shaving and filling out college applications.

But he is perfect and beautiful and so incredibly sweet.

I am kicking myself for not prepping the camera better before the kids walked in.  I missed Jonah's first reaction which was absolutely priceless.  He ran in and just giggled for the first two minutes.  He perfectly understood and was excited that baby brother was out and waiting for him.

These kids are amazing.  They adore each other when they are not bickering.  I desperately want them all to realize the blessings of this big, crazy family of ours while they are still young enough to enjoy living with one another!

Since Abby still had her play going on, she missed the initial meeting so Aunt Megan was kind enough to bring her up later in the evening, play makeup and all.

I was happy to let Clark take the reins on naming his last son.  Meet

Ezra Oscarson Scharman

November 13, 2015

10 pounds 3 ounces

23 inches

and adorable.

And there we are. 
Scharman, party of 8.