Most people who read this blog have known for a while that we were picked by a birthmom back in August, for her baby who was due October 4. I never did an actual post about it here because as most potential adoptive parents, we didn't want to jinx things by putting it in writing.
Well the opportunity for a jinx is passed now so I want to introduce our new son Boston Tanner!
He was born a week early on Sunday, September 27 and weighed 7 lbs. 13 oz. As will soon be evidenced by the massive amount of pictures, he is the cutest little guy you'll ever see and we are totally in love!
We were fortunate enough to get to know his birthmom, M, quite well over the past few months and have several face to face meetings with her since she only lives a couple of hours away. We also got to meet most of her family, something that made this process so much easier on everyone.
We got a call from M's dad early Sunday morning telling us that she was in the hospital and the doctor was expecting the baby to arrive within a few hours. She had requested we head down that direction so that we would be in the area when she felt ready to see us. As luck would have it, Ben was in Seattle on a business trip that weekend and had to catch the first flight home on Sunday morning but he made it.
Another twist of fate was that my
oldest brother and his family were here visiting us that week (they had just arrived the day before) so we were able to leave Kiara with them. This made the whole experience SO much easier and put me at ease in a way I can't explain. As they were leaving to head home my SIL Heather made the comment that she thinks that's the reason they made the trip, to be able to keep Kiara and let me focus on Boston and M. I have to agree with her and again, acknowledge what a huge blessing it was to have them here. THANK YOU!
Just as we arrived in M's city and got checked in to our hotel, we got a call from her step-mom telling us that the baby had been born and was doing great. M wasn't up for visitors but she wanted us to be able to see the baby in the nursery so we should still go to the hospital. *As a side note, M is one of the most incredible, strong and selfless people in the world. There aren't words for the love and respect I have for her and how she handled this whole experience from beginning to end. She is amazing!*
Once we got to the hospital we were told that we couldn't go in the nursery because we didn't have a wristband but that we could look through the windows. We started scanning all of the sweet newborns and almost instantly my eyes were drawn toward a beautiful little child whom I recognized instantly as my son. I pointed him out to Ben and told him that that was Boston just as a nurse came by and asked if we needed any help. We explained the situation and asked if she could just point out which baby was ours. She walked in, asked another nurse and then held up the little boy that I already knew was ours.
At that point the tears started pouring out of me unlike any other time in my life. I actually had to lean on Ben to get my composure. In that moment I felt so much joy and relief that this little spirit, who we felt had been trying to get to us for 2 years now, was finally on earth and healthy. I hope to never forget that feeling and I pray that all those who are reading this and are longing for the same miracle will recieve it soon. There is nothing like it.
The next two days were spent going back and forth to the hospital until Tuesday morning, when we went to the local LDS Family Services office to sign papers saying that we wanted this precious little boy to be ours. This part of the process was very quick but M's would understandably take longer. She also wasn't discharged from the hospital yet and that was taking longer than expected, so we were told to go keep ourselves occupied for the next several hours. Miraculously we were able to do that and then finally about 2:15 that afternoon we got the call saying it was okay for us to return to the office.
When we got there we were overwhelmed at the number of people in the room there to support our sweet M and give her the strength she needed to carry out her relinquishment. We had met all of these people before and while everyone's heart was breaking for M, there was also an amazing spirit of peace and reverence in the room and we felt support from every person in attendance.
I won't go in to any more detail on that experience because it's not only my story to tell and some things were too sacred to be written about in this public forum, but please believe me when I say that adoption is a beautiful, miraculous process. It was introduced by a loving Heavenly Father as a way to offer an eternal family to children who might not otherwise have one. Adoption truly blesses the lives of all involved, not just the adoptive family. M was in no way forced to do what she did nor did she act out of desperation or lack of love for her child. Rather it was her immense love for her child that led her to her Father in Heaven and caused her to beg for answers and clarity. Once those answers were revealed to her she showed unspeakable courage and obedience and put her faith and trust in her God. I know that because of this her life will be so fully blessed that every moment of pain that she is feeling right now will be turned in to joy in the future. I know that God and Jesus Christ want her to be happy and I know they can provide a way for that to happen. They are so present in all of our lives if we will take the time to recognize them and let them in, miracles will happen.
I know that Boston is a miracle and that he was meant to travel this path to help change lives. He has already brought so much joy to us and is the missing piece to our family's puzzle.
His dad is overjoyed to have his son home,
His big sister is a natural and acts like he's been here forever. She has once again amazed us at how well she is doing and how loving she is toward Boston. So far there hasn't been one moment of jealousy or resentment toward him, in fact her behavior has dramatically improved since his arrival.
She's wearing her "I'm the big sister" shirt with pride, she has asked to wear it every day since we got home!
I think she was definitely ready for Boston to come play with her!
And Boston's mom? Well I really couldn't be more excited to have my little boy home and love on him all day long.
My cup runneth over...
