Today I wanted to tell our story of adopting Izzy. I have a hormone imbalance called PCOS. It causes many women not to get pregnant or have a very hard time trying. I was one of the lucky ones and was able to get pregnant with Emma our first try. (Chris takes ALL the credit for that!:) But the 9 months afterward were the most miserable months of my life. I was so sick and on bed rest 6 of the 9 months. It was awful! My Dr. told me that this would probably happen again if I tried to have more children. So Chris and I decided that Emma would be an only child. For years we were fine with that choice and really never thought anymore about it.
As the years went on several close friends came into our lives that had adopted children and something inside me told me to look into it. Well soon I realized that this option would not work for us because of the enormous cost of adoption. So again I put having anymore children out of my mind and went on with the one beautiful girl I did have.
But several summers ago we were at our pool and met 3 couples. One family had 4 biological children, one adopted child, and had had several foster children throughout the last 10 years. Another family was just beginning their foster care. They had 4 biological children and were getting a 3 day old baby boy as their first foster placement. The 3rd couple was very similar to us. They had one child( oddly enough named Emma) and had a foster daughter that they got when she was 8 weeks old. They were in the process of adopting her. She was about a year old by then. Something just really struck me about the families and their desire to help these kids whether it was through adopting them or just keeping them healthy and happy until an adoptive home came available or in some cases their families were able to take them back.
So of course the way I am, I just ask them all a million questions and become very interested in the idea. But oh yeah, I forgot I might want to pray about it and possibly ask my husband his thoughts on the topic.You know, 2 little pieces to the puzzle. So, I backed off. Gave my husband time to digest the idea and time for us as a couple to ask God for his plan.
After feeling very good about our decision we decided to take the next step and go to a introductory class on foster care and adoption at Missouri Baptist Children's Home. There we found out that there would be a 12 week course starting up at the end of August. So we signed up for it and the next 3 months of our lives were crazy!
We went to class every Monday night and met some amazing people! The friends we made in that class we still talk to and all have either adopted their foster kids or are very close to adoption. During this time several meetings were set up at our house, they are called home studies.They ask you a million questions and you fill out a ton of paperwork. I think there were 3 meetings all together.
Then the 2nd week of November came and it was our last class. It was so exciting to know that very soon we could be called for our first placement. When we signed up we said we wanted to foster to adopt and we were very specific about the age. We wanted an infant. The more specific you are about what you want the less calls you will get but if you know what you can handle and make that plan before hand it makes it alot easier on you. So we wait. We know it could be months before we get a call. So we all go back to our regular lives. But of course I obsess. I want to get the room ready etc. But how do you get clothes for a child you don't know the age or the sex of? So I just focused on a bed and a few toys and a couple of odds and ends.
Now it is the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and I get a call from MBCH telling me all our paper work is in the system and we could get called anytime. I was so excited! But what happened next I never expected. The lady on the phone says there is a newborn who needs a home and we need a family who is going to be home over Thanksgiving, are you interested? Holy cow! Yes we are interested.She tells me to call the case worker on the case and give her my info. So I immediately call her and she says she isn't for sure that this baby will be on her case load but if she is she will call me back. OMG! I can't believe this.
Wednesday we are over at my moms house cooking for Thanksgiving and my cell phone rings. Everyone in the kitchen stops and looks at me! I run over to answer it and it is the case worker. Yes, this baby will be on her case load and do we want her? YES!!!!!!! Her mother was in prison and she was born Monday at the hospital near the prison on Mexico Mo. The case worker told me they would go up 1st thing Fri. morning and get her and bring her to us. Wow! I can't believe this is going to happen. She told me her weight and height and said I could go online to the hospital website and see her picture. We all ran to the computer and pulled her picture up. She was so beautiful! The fattest little cheeks you have ever seen! Little did I know this baby girl would change our lives....... More tomorrow.
