Sunday, August 21, 2011

Whirlwind

That is the perfect description for the last month.

We found out we were matched on Tuesday, July19th.

We met Isaac's birth parents that Friday, July 22nd.

He was due August 9th, but at her appointment the Thursday after we met them, her amniotic fluid was low, and so they sent her to labor and delivery for induction.

We cleaned the house, packed our bags, and headed to Louisville about midnight.  We drove all night, and got there about 8am Friday morning.  She still had not had him, but continued to labor, so we checked into our hotel, slept a little bit, grabbed lunch, and waited.

About 6:00pm , they decided to do a c-section, because she only progressed to 4cm.

I was running (jogging/walking/whatever you call it trying to train for a 5k) at the gym at the hotel, so I ran upstairs, told Travis, and jumped in the shower.  We arrived at the hospital right after he was born, and was able to hold him quickly in the hallway before they took him to the nursery.



He was in the nursery for about an hour before we could go in and see him, and even then, he had to stay under the heat lamps for about another hour.  Once we finally did get to hold him, they let us go to the 'family room' (also used for nursing) attached to the nursery, and we stayed with him until about 3am.  We were able to do all his feedings, talk, sing, pray, cry, and simply be amazed where we were.



He loved the swing in the nursery, and still loves it!

We had the most amazing nurses, they were so supportive of us, talked with us, showed us what to do (to say we were overwhelmed might be an understatement).  We spent so much time with the nurses in the nursery, we've become friends, and took Isaac back to see them while we were there.

The rest of that weekend was spent either at the hospital with Isaac, or at the hotel sleeping.  

On Sunday, he got released, and we headed home. 
The last picture we have of him before we left Kentucky.  

In Kentucky, they don't have 'legal risk' placements, so he had to stay with a foster family, who had adopted from our agency before.  The 8 hour trip home that Sunday was the worst trip ever.  We cried when we left the hospital.  We cried when we passed the state lines, each city that went by.  We had left our son, and already we missed him.

His birth parents had to wait 72 hours to sign the termination of their parental rights, but since he was born so late on Friday (6:21pm- after business hours), they signed Tuesday morning.  

We were blessed by the foster family.  They were always welcoming to phone calls and emails, and sent us several pictures every day. 


His first doctors appointment




The weekend between when he was born, and when we went back was my 28th birthday.  This was the best present I could have received.  I will never be able to thank his foster family enough to have captured those days for us on film.  They are pictures/time that we would have missed out on entirely.  

We knew not to expect a court date the week the birth parents signed, so we prayed (and asked everyone around us to pray) that we would find out a date the second week.  We were told it could take 2-3 weeks. On Tuesday, August 9th, I got a phone call from the case worker in Louisville.  She told us we had court on Thursday  and I said "oh, awesome, we have a little more then a week" as I was thinking about everything that had to be done between now and when we left.  She laughed and said, "No, in 2 days!".  Panic.

Two days, we just wanted to know the date of court, never expecting it would be that soon.  Our God is an awesome God, and herd our prayers!

The next two days were frantic, trying to get things ready, packing, preparing our house/dogs for the pet sitter, trying to figure out what baby things we needed for the first few weeks of his life, and what other things (cutting board, mixing bowls, etc) we needed to live in a hotel for 2-3 weeks (the possible estimate of how long we would be there).

Court was that Thrursday morning, we were somewhere in Indiana when we got the call that everything was done, Isaac was ours!  The adoptive parents are not represented at all during court, so there was no need for us to be there (and it was suggested we don't show up).  The case worker had another piece of business to attend to downtown, so we planned on meeting her at the foster families house.

Reunited at last! My two favorite guys!

Our first family picture... well, once court was done, family picture!


There is a baby... in MY car!

So that is the beginning of the story, sorry I've been so absent.  I'll try to get our 'Kentucky Adventures' post done soon, with of course, more pictures!


39 comments:

  1. congrats!!! how exciting, and he is a doll!

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  2. Wonderful news! Congratulations! Quite a whirlwind--reminds me of our adoption (met birthmom on a Wed, matched that Fri, son born that Sun! 8 days in the NICU and suddenly we had a baby at home!) Looking forward to reading more of your adoption story!

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  3. Oh how incredible Jenn! Sooooo happy and elated for you!!! xo

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  4. What a wonderful stor! What a happy looking family!

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  5. What an incredible story. I'm so happy for you and your new family!!

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  6. Such an exciting time for you!

    Love the birthday pic!!!

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  7. Congratulations!!
    I couldn't be happier for you!!!

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  8. Congratulations!!! So happy for you all. Also happy that you all had such a positive experience/ good nurses etc at the hospital. Our first adoption the hospital experience was great (with only one hiccupp, they lost the paperwork). However our second adoption the hospital experience was not a pleasant one! I'm curious as to what hospital you all were at here, because we delt with different hospitals with ea of the adoptions. Anyhoo- so HAPPY for you all:)

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  9. Aw, so wonderful and sweet. Congratulations!

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  10. Amazing, simply amazing. So happy for you!

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  11. I can't begin to describe how excited I am for you - congrats again!

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  12. Wow...I am so overjoyed for you all! What an amazing story! Isaac is adorable!!!!
    Love,
    Maddy

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  13. Congrats!!!!! This is so exciting and fills me with such hope, as one who is still waiting for my match. I love the last photo- wait! There is a baby in my car! Ha haha. What a beautiful baby and beautiful family and beautiful story. Happy for you!

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  14. What a beautiful, happy family! Phenomenal story!

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  15. That's so great! I'm so happy for you guys! Congratulations!

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  16. I am still just so thrilled for you.

    PS - If you want to do a post on the online FB shower that would be great. Or I can do a blog post for you.

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  17. Oh I am so happy for you. After watching all you've gone through since I started following your blog it elates me to see you two with some wonderful news. A baby carriage at last. :)

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  18. AWWW I'm so happy for you I started to cry when i was reading your post! Oh man how exciting everything worked out for the best! :) Enjoy your little one they grow up quick!

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  19. Oh wow! This brought tears to my eyes. Congratulations congratulations congratulations!

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  20. I am crying I am SO happy for you!!!

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  21. Jen, there are really no words to express how how happy i am for you. He is beautiful. You both are glowing. And I'm so happy your dream has come true. Thanks for sharing your journey along the way, and cna't wait to hear all about motherhood- you are a fabulous mother!

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  22. Words cannot express how happy I am for you! He is right at home in your arms, and rightfully so! It all happened so fast I'm sure your head was spinning! I can't wait to read (and see) more!

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  23. I actually have tears in my eyes after reading this post. So, so, so amazing, esp that last picture where you wrote "there is a baby...in MY car". That just says everything right there!

    I'm so incredibly happy for you all! Congratulations again!!

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  24. Congrats! He is so adorable! You three look like you're meant for each other. A wonderful trio. I'm so happy for you!

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  25. Yay! FANTASTIC! Thanks for the detailed story!

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  26. I am so happy for you! He is perfect and you deserve all the happiness in the world. He is one lucky little boy to have you guys as parents, and he looks pretty special too!

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  27. I just found your blog and I am so glad because your post gives me such wonderful hope. I am currently waiting for a domestic adoption match. Congratulations to you and your hubby! He is beautiful!

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  28. That made me cry. I am so, so, so, so happy for you and your family. I live in Louisville and I'm happy it has such a wonderful new meaning for you!

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  29. This is SO great!! Congratulations!!!

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  30. Congratulations!! I'm so happy for you both! It must be totally unbelievable to have him home with you now when you didn't even know about him 2 months ago.

    (also, thanks so much for your comment - knowing your trigger was out by the 7th day makes me feel more normal)

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  31. Congrats!!!!! I've followed along for a while and when I saw this post ... Well I couldn't wait to read it!

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  32. I'm here from LFCA to say congratulations!! What a whirlwind! He is absolutely gorgeous, and I am looking forward to following along your new journey!

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  33. Congratulations!! He is a cutie pie. Your story gives me hope!!

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  34. Yay, yay, yay, yay, YAY!! Amazing. Love him up!

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  35. Sooo happy for you and your husband, Jenn! This is wonderful. He is SO cute and adorable too! Congrats 100 times over! yay! :-) Say hello to sleepless nights!

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  36. I just read this and cried tears of joy. Especially at the picture of him wishing you a happy birthday.

    Isn't life pure joy with your baby??

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