Well, I don't know how "official" official is until finalization. But Heather and John (the birthparents) signed the relinquishment papers this afternoon, and then I signed the placement papers saying he is officially placed with us for adoption! It is so exciting to know he's ours, but it's sad too -- that means Heather and John had to sign away their rights to him today, which has to be hard. However, we don't have a typical adoption at all ...
About 3 hours before Heather went to sign her papers, she came to the hospital to check on Isaiah. The two of us sat in his room in the NICU together, taking turns holding him and chatting about the adoption, traveling, cooking, and anything else that came to mind. We laughed a lot and talked a lot. It's as if we have been friends forever. Then we both decided we were hungry, so there we were, walking down the halls of the hospital together, headed to the cafeteria to eat lunch together. How amazing is that?! I don't think there are many adoptions where the birth mother and the adoptive mother are friends like that, but Isaiah is a lucky little guy. He has two moms who care deeply about him and who are actually friends! We talked about how we want to be in frequent contact, and exchanged email addresses and phone numbers so we can contact each other and I can send her weekly (or daily -- whatever I feel like) emails and pictures of little Isaiah. We talked about visiting once or twice a year, and she said she'd love to come see us so we don't have to travel, because she likes adventure and seeing the world. How cool is that?! I never imagined that our relationship would be this easy, but it has been. While this whole adoption, with traveling across the country and Aaron deployed and Isaiah in the NICU has been hard, being with Heather and her family has been easy and one of the highlights of it all. In fact, her parents are hoping they can take me out to dinner and show me around Columbia some time this week. Amazing.
God is so gracious in the midst of all of this. What a blessing this adoption has been -- not only have we gotten a new son, we've made new friends, and in a way, "adopted" a whole new family.
So happy to read this. God does work in amazing ways. As the Mom of a chosen child [adopted], I know how exciting and emotional these days are. As a foster home of young mothers I know how emotional it can be. Praying Our Heavenly Father continues to bless you all.
ReplyDeleteLOVE this post! What a gift for you and your family and also for Heather and hers that you connected to so easily and are both so open to remaining in contact. I am so happy for all of you and can't wait to hear little Isaiah is on his way home to Seattle!
ReplyDeleteWOW! So exciting! We can't wait to meet him!
ReplyDeleteMatthew Savage