So Worth The Wait ... post #1

Life at our house just got a whole lot sweeter!!! God has a way of providing for His children in just the right time.  I will attempt to share as much of our adoption story as I can but please understand there are some details of her story that are very personal and we wish to keep those private.  So here goes ...

On Thursday, August 1, 2013, we received a call from a friend informing us of a potential private adoption.  All we knew at the time was she was 26 weeks along and it was a girl... well that was enough for me.  Two days later, Saturday, August 3, 2013, we met the birth mom and a friend of hers for dinner.  You could tell from the moment we met God had his hand all over this sweet girl and on the precious baby she was carrying.  As we sat and talked for a couple of hours and we shared our story with her she made the decision that night that she wanted us to be this precious girl's parents.  WOW ... we were shocked, scared, excited all in one.  So imagine how hard it's been to keep this great secret for 2 months!!!. 

As the weeks passed and we met with a lawyer and she did the same we began secretly preparing our home for the new arrival.  We made lots of trips to Memphis or Tupelo and late night runs to our local Wal-Mart hoping not to get caught with our purchases.  As we secretly awaited the arrival of our sweet girl we began falling in love with the thought of becoming parents; however, little did we know just how much our hearts would grow once we met Nora Kate.

Nora's expected due date was set for November 3, 2013.  I too am a November baby so I was excited to share my birth month with our little girl.  On Saturday, October 12, 2013, Nick and I went to have dinner with the birth mom and her mother just to catch up and begin preparations for our little arrival.  We arrived home around 10pm and when I text the birth mom to let her know we were home safely her response was quite a shock.  It read, "well I'm at the hospital my water broke when we got home they are keeping me waiting on delivery!"  I immediately sprung into action gathering up a baby bag for Nora (yes I was unprepared I thought I had a little more time) and throwing some things in a bag for us and most of all making sure we didn't forget the car seat!! Off we went to Southaven to await the arrival of our greatest blessing.  We made it in record timing!!! Glad there was no traffic and no cops!!

The next several hours are somewhat of a blur.  As we made camp in the family waiting room pushing chairs together managing to sleep a few minutes here and there the night lasted forever.  Into the next day time inched by as we waited for the notice of the birth.  Nora Katherine was born on Sunday, October 13, 2013 at 2:35pm.  She weighed 5 pounds 8 ounces and was 18.5 inches long and absolutely perfect.  As we anxiously await  the time to meet this little miracle my heart was overflowing with love for someone I had never met.  As the nursery nurse placed the infant arm band on my arm tears of joy and sadness filled my heart.  For in this instant I knew my dreams of motherhood were finally coming true yet my heart ached for the birth mother and the decision she was making.  Nick and I instantly began praying for this sweet, innocent, miracle we had yet to meet and we prayed for the birth mother and her family as they began dealing with the hours and days to come. 

It was love at first sight!!!

 

 

When this sweet little miracle was placed in my arms for the first time you can tell from the picture it was a very emotional time.  I had waited for 7 years to be called "momma" and as the nurse laid her in my arms and called me momma my heart melted.

 

In the 10+ years we have been together I can count on one hand the number of times I have seen by husband cry ... but this one topped this list!!! I've never seen someone cry such tears of joy (besides myself).  It's amazing how quickly this little baby has melted his heart!!

After we were able to spend some alone time with Nora Katherine we decided we better share our little miracle with the rest of the family.  As you can see from the pictures below the grandparents were just as excited as we were.  Nick is an only child so this is the first grandchild for his parents who are pictured below.

Even though my parents are a pro at this grandparent thing with little Nora being the 5th grandchild, they were just as excited to welcome this miracle baby we had prayed for, for so long.

 

 

 So as you can tell, October 13, 2013, will be a day my family will remember for many years.  While the seven years of waiting was hard and often tested my faith, God plans had been in the works for many years.  For you see, the number seven means completion ... " By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.  Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done " Genesis 2:2-3.  Our family of three is now complete!!!

Stayed tuned for the rest of the story ...