*To respect Liam's privacy and the privacy of his sweet birthmother, specific details of his 'story' will be limited*
It was on this day, one year ago, that we first learned about Liam!! I want to start from the very beginning so I don't forget any of the details! 😉
Ava with Cayden (5 weeks old) - notice Ava's cacti dress 🌵
The day started with snuggles with Cayden, my 5 week old nephew! He was visiting for the first time and I gladly held him that morning so his parents could get some rest. 😍
Later we went to a baby shower for Baby Slade! At the shower, several people asked for updates on our adoption journey. We had just walked through a failed situation (which happens when a birthmom choses to parent, choses another family, or baby was surrendered to CPS), so I literally had no updates - no match, no pending cases.
Then...around 9pm, we got an email! A stork drop in AZ!! A stork drop means the baby has already been born, and adoption plan is made but a family hasn't been chosen yet. These are *usually* every adoptive parent's dream. It typically means the birthmom is serious and confident about her decision and because baby is already born, there isn't much time to wait.
We quickly read over the details together and with Cameron & Riley, and decided to present! (Riley reminded me that Tim started singing "If it's meant to be..." ha!) By the time we sent our email asking to be considered, we immediately got an email back with, "We're sorry but we've reached our limit of families for this situation", meaning the agency had enough families already. So we were out.
Let me pause here to explain - this had happened to us numerous times over the last 1.5 years. We were accustomed to receiving news like this. Most agencies put a cap on how many families they will accept for each situation in an effort not to overwhelm the birthparents when they are trying to pick a family. So, we had learned to accept this type of news and move on.
But then...3 minutes later, we got the next email that said: "Actually, the person whose email I read before yours is from MN and unable to present to this mom due to the laws there. If you are wanting to present to this case, I am happy to put you on the list."
I immediately responded with "Ok, we'll present!! Thank you!!"...so our profile book was back on the table!!
By now, it's getting late, and I had offered to take baby Cayden during night shift so his parents could get some rest. As we headed to bed, my last words to Cameron - "call me when he wakes up and I'll come get him"...
It was around midnight that my phone rang. I immediately woke up and as I answered, started heading downstairs, thinking it was Cameron calling. But no. It was a woman's voice. I looked at the number and it said Phoenix, AZ. My heart was racing! I immediately woke up Tim, as she said, "Jaime? This is {caseworker}. I'm sorry, I know it's late there but I wanted to let you know that {birthmom} has chosen you guys and you have SON!!! He's waiting for you here in Phoenix!! How soon can you be here?? I didn't want to wake you but I also didn't want to wait until morning to call you, CONGRATULATIONS!!!"
Wow!!! Talk about all the emotions hitting you at once!! We discussed next steps, what we needed to bring with us, and she reassured us that he would be well taken care of until we could get there. Tim and I got moving on travel plans. Flights at this time were being delayed, no direct flights available that day, etc so we decided to drive. We could be there in less than 40 hours and would have a vehicle with us for our stay. With that plan in place, I told Tim to go back to sleep, I would get everything packed and he could be rested for the drive.
But first...I texted and called some dear friends with the news in an effort to make plans for our morning and travels. Then I did laundry, packed, and got absolutely ZERO sleep because I was on cloud 9!!
Around 3am, Ava woke up and came walking in our room, saw me packing and said, "Mom, what in the world are you doing? It's the middle of the night!!" (lol) I told her I had a surprise for her but it had to wait until morning. She quickly went back to sleep.
The next morning, we called my parents to come over. We had arranged to pick up our rental van when they opened at 10am and hit the road asap!
To be continued...
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