Our Baby Is Due Next Week!

Wow! It is impossible to explain the feeling of joy we had last night when we received a phone call telling us that we had been chosen by a birthmom! We have shared our profile with at least 3 birthmothers in the past few weeks, but we assumed that they had all chosen other families. We were SO surprised last night when our agency called. You want the details? Well, I'll give you what we have right now.

We will be taking a trip to Cleveland in the next week to meet our birthmom. We want to have at least a minimum of information to share with our child as he/she grows older. Meeting the birthmom will give us at least a picture--a glimpse of her personality and interests. Then we will return home until it is time to meet our baby at the hospital. Our baby will arrive via c-section some time in the next 2 weeks (we should have a date after her doctor's visit on Monday).

We know very little about our little one right now. As of the last ultrasound, baby appears healthy. We will not know the gender until baby is born. One thing we do know is that our baby will carry his/her mother's HIV positive antibodies for the first year of his/her life. There is less than a 2% chance that the baby will become HIV positive, though we will not know for sure until he or she is 15-18 months old. Most babies born in the United States and treated immediately for HIV lead normal, otherwise healthy lives, so should the baby test positive for his own antibodies after 18 months, the virus can usually be kept under control with medication. We have done our research and prayed about this situation and are willing to accept our baby in whatever condition the Lord provides.

And we are also very aware that an adoption situation is not final until the birthmom makes the decision to "terminate her rights" 72 hours after the baby is born. Until that signature is taken, the situation could easily change. While we are anxious to have a little one, we want what is truly best for the baby.

You can see there are many things in the above paragraphs to pray about. We need wisdom and guidance. Baby and birthmom need good health and safety. We also need patience and a dependence on God to accept His plan for this situation. So pray with us, and keep checking back for updates! I can't wait to post a before and after picture of our family!!!

Blessings!

The Lord makes provision for us to carry out His will! Just this week He provided a $4,000 interest free loan from Lifesong For Orphans. While we will have to repay this loan, it is providing some of the up-front finances we need to cover the cost of our adoption. They have also set up an account for our family, where they will accept tax-deductible donations that go directly towards our adoption. Since most of the responses to our financial request in the earlier posts have been in the form of donations alone, we have decided to remove the "fundraising" tabs. Now if you feel you are able to help with a financial donation, just click on the letter in the right column. You'll find information about Lifesong, as well as how to make a donation. We are continuing to trust that God will provide ALL the necessary funds in His timing.

And yes...we are still waiting. Though we have started making some preparations for the new addition--like stocking up on baby food and diapers, and making sure we have the baby seat ready to throw in the van when we get the call!