Our little family officially started when we got married back in 1999, however, the real journey began May of 2004 when Stella was born. We had put our papers in with LDSFS and were ready to be looked at by December 2003. On April 21st we found out we were chosen by a wonderful birth mother, Dellany. A week later we had our first face-to-face meeting with her. Her parents came too! We were so nervous, excited, anxious, along with every other feeling! This being our first time around we didn't know what to expect. She was just as nervous (if not more) than we were. How could she not be? This was the biggest decision of her life and she wanted to make sure it was the right one. Her mom and I hit it off instantly! She was outgoing and fun. I felt like I was talking to my own mom. Dellany was pretty quiet the whole time, but that was OK with us. She let me touch her pregnant belly, which totally made my day! I couldn't believe my baby was so close! I couldn't wait till she was finally here!
My parents went to Hawaii a few days later. While they were gone Dellany went into labor. It was exactly a week after our first visit. The rules were pretty strict still when we adopted Stella, so I had to take gifts and flowers to the agency so they could deliver it to her at the hospital until she had signed her papers. Much to our surprise when we went to sign our papers with our worker we found out that Dellany had already signed her papers and would be able to pick up our new little girl a day earlier than planned!!! We were ecstatic!
Later that day we went to the hospital to pick up Stella. We sat and talked with Dellany and her parents for about an hour. It was wonderful! Stella was the prettiest girl I had ever seen! She was tiny and perfect. We gave Dellany some time alone with Stella for a little while before she handed her to us. When she did, I melted. This was the happiest day of my life. However, I have to admit my heart totally sank as Dellany left. I couldn't begin to imagine how difficult it must have been for her to hand her to me! That was by far one of the most emotional days of my life, and I was not at all prepared for that. Over the next few months we exchanged letters and gifts until we were able to release any personal information we felt comfortable with.
As for my parents... They had a little surprise waiting for them when they came home from their cruise! It was Mother's Day and we drove over to their house bright and early that day. They weren't expecting us to be there, but more than that, they weren't expecting Stella to be there! My parents reactions were priceless!!! My dad had to do a double take, then he chuckled as he saw the little pink princess on my lap. As for my mom, her reactions are the BEST! She saw her, collapsed, and bawled. It was the most memorable Mother's Day I may ever have!
Stella fit in perfectly into our family. Everyone fell in love with her at first sight, especially Bill and me. The transition from 2 to 3 was an easy one for us, and one that we had waited for for several years. We couldn't believe we finally had the chance to start a family!
No comments:
Post a Comment