Real Housewives Alum Gretchen Rossi Gives Birth to Baby Girl

Gretchen Rossi has given birth to a baby girl!

The 40-year-old former Real Housewives of Orange County star welcomed her first child with beau Slade Smiley on Wednesday, People confirms. The couple named their daughter Skylar Gray.

“Skylar is born and mama and baby are doing well,” a rep for Rossi shared with the outlet.

Hours before the birth, Rossi posted videos of herself on a hospital bed, sporting a face full of makeup.

“After a lot of contemplation, crying, struggling, (and based on the medical pros and cons) the Doctor, Slade and I have decided a c-section is going to be the safest thing for me and baby tomorrow,” she wrote on social media on Tuesday. “Doctor said I am only dilated 1cm and I guess I have a ‘cervix of steel’ so it’s not really cooperating at this point and just my pelvic exam yesterday was so beyond painful that I almost passed out, then started to hyperventilate because of that, which then lead to a panic attack! Needless to say I was a hot mess!”

“When you have this vision of how you want your labor and delivery to go and it doesn’t turn out the way you imagined, there is this sadness and internal struggle with ‘why isn’t my body cooperating’ or am I making the right decision etc.,” she said. “So after crying it out, and being sad about not having a ‘vaginal birth’ yesterday, I asked God to give me a sign that this is the best decision, and he did!”

Rossi first announced her pregnancy in December during an episode of The Doctors. At the time, the reality star shared that the pregnancy still didn’t “feel real.” Smiley also joked that the couple was “freaked out but in a good way.”

“All of this has been such an overwhelming journey,” Smiley said of the pregnancy. “And so when you get to those little milestones and you know you’re hearing the heartbeat, it’s so exciting but it’s also a relief.”

Rossi also opened up about her fertility struggles, discussing the couple’s “emotional journey” together.

“After the first round of IVF, when we lost 14 embryos, I looked at Slade and said, ‘I just need to take a pause,'” Rossi said during the episode of The Doctors. “This is beyond anything I had ever expected to experience. It literally took a good year and a half for us to even get to a point where I was willing to talk about it again.”

Throughout her pregnancy journey, Rossi has kept her fans updated, sharing photos and videos on social media.

Earlier this year, Rossi opened up to E! News about her “really tough” first trimester. 

“My first trimester almost kicked my a–, I mean that was really tough on me,” Rossi shared. “I was so sick, I could barely get out of bed. I was struggling so much, but then the second trimester has been incredible, so, so much better.”

“I don’t think you’re ever ready for a baby, right? I’m a little nervous, but I think I’m more nervous about my sleep,” she told E! News. “Everything else, Slade’s been a dad twice, he’s gonna be a pro already. I think I’m literally just more nervous about not having my beauty sleep.”

Congratulations to the couple on their bundle of joy!