On February 19, 2009 our path to parenthood took a dramatic and sudden turn. After spending two years in line in what seems to be an endless wait for a China adoption we decided to explore the option of private domestic adoption. At 2pm we met with an adoption attorney to discuss and start the process. In an amazing turn of events, 45 minutes after leaving the lawyer’s office we got a call from the agency we used for our China adoption home study asking us if we would be interested in adopting a baby boy born two days earlier. We had about five minutes to think about and discuss it and decide. In an unbelievable minute we became parents!
We had two hours to find a pediatrician, get a car seat and meet our social worker at the hospital. We cannot begin to describe the overwhelming emotion that was in control of us as we walked into the nursery and the most beautiful baby was placed in our arms. Less than 24 hours later we were on our way home with our baby boy whom we named Levi. Without a single baby item in our house, our wonderful friends and family rallied to bring us the items we needed to get through our first night and the next few days with our surprise baby. Everything fell together so serendipitously, so perfectly, it seemed that the creation of our family was written in the stars. Still, we had to wait out the mandatory 30 days that the birthmother had to reconsider her decision. Bonding was not hard---it was love at first sight and it just grew through every sleepless moment with our son. Thirty days went by without any communication from the birthmother. He was ours forever!
I want to chronicle the last three whirlwind months of our lives for us, mainly for our baby, so that we remember every detail and he knows as much as we can tell him about how he made us a family of three. Things will be coming in dribs and drabs as I publish things I wrote in sleep-deprived stupor and as I recall what went on and how I felt during this amazing time. There may be overlap, gaps, and things out of sequence but it is important to me to get it written down. I have three months to catch up on and current things to report. Welcome to our rollercoaster our time-machine of sorts.
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