Saturday September 5th 2009

Our Journey to Faith Part 3

You can read Part 1 HERE and Part 2 HERE

I should also mention that we didn't tell anyone we were going down to the hospital. I didn't really know how or what to say. Plus everyone would have been so confused seeing we just told them we were matched with a baby due in late October. So Greg and I just went.

I took a picture on my phone and sent it to everyone...

Not the ideal way I know but I think I was in disbelief and shock. Here I was in the hospital holding our daughter and all my dreams coming true , what words do you say to tell people something like that? A picture is worth a thousand words so I sent everyone a picture and the phones calls starting flooding in.

We spent Friday night in the hospital and then a very LONG Saturday but for Faith it was worth it! Saturday my mom, dad, and step dad came up to meet their first grand baby. It was so nice to be surrounded by family. The whole time I had so many nerves in me I was literally making myself sick. dry heaving, throwing up, migraines you name it.

Faith was released from the hospital at 2pm Saturday. BUT her birth mother was not. Therefore it was in our best interest to wait until she was so that all papers could be signed by both parties. We waited, and waited, and waited. Finally the SW said she was 15 minutes away, almost 2 hours later she came into our room and told us birth mom had signed all the papers including waiving her 30 day period. ( In California birth mothers have 30 days to change their mind unless they sign a waiver declining those 30 days, then the consent becomes irrevocable at 5PM the next business day)

We got home to be welcomed by family and some friends who brought us food, baby items, diapers, a swing, a bouncy chair, flowers and more. I can't tell you how incredibly overwhelming it was to feel so incredibly loved by our family and friends. No words could explain that joy.

So for us 5PM the next business day meant Tuesday at 5PM. For 2 days I was on pins and needles. We had no reason to believe anything would go wrong but my heart couldn't settle until 5PM on Tuesday, praise God 5 PM came and went and at 5:20 we received a congratulations phone call from the social worker telling us that the adoption was irrevocable and she was ours!

Many of you are probably still wondering what about the NY birth mom? Well our hearts jumped at the opportunity to give Faith a sister, but our bank accounts couldn't follow. We regretfully had to decline and the birth mom in NY was beyond sweetness. She said she was happy for us and wasn't surprised at all that we were chosen by another couple. She said that for the time being she wanted her daughter to go to a family with no other children ( which in a weird way made us feel better because our hearts broke at having to turn the match down) and in the end everything is as its suppose to be.

So here we are on the 1 week birthday of our daughter and no words could explain the love and joy we feel for her. Every day is worth waking up and living just to see her precious face. Caring for her and loving her has been the biggest honor God could have ever trusted us with. There is no greater joy than that of being a wife and mother. To love two people so deep is life's greatest blessing and really no words describe how wonderful my life is this moment.

God is so good and in HIS perfect timing Faith came into our lives. For the past 9 months I have worried and cried and mourned and now those I feel guilty for not just trusting HIM all along. I know He forgives me, I know He loves me , and I know now more than ever before HE has perfectly planned all the days of my life. Every day now I wake up and live for today, the day the Lord has made, the day I have with my precious baby girl who is forever here to stay!