So a friend of mine and her husband have been trying to adopt a baby. I know it's been an emotional struggle for them - she can't get pregnant. When I was in Arizona in November I found out that a tenant of ours, who I know and have talked to numerous times and knew she was pregnant, was talking about giving her baby up for adoption. WHAT!? I had no idea. I immediately emailed my friend and told her what I knew - not much. That this girl was pregnant, but I had no idea how flaky she was, no idea what her prenatal care had been, but that she may be giving her baby up for adoption. Did she want me to try to put the two of them in touch? Yes, she said - absolutely. I was nervous about the situation - what if they promised my friend a baby and at the 11th hour changed their mind? She promised me that no matter what happened it would not affect us. So I called the birth mother (BM we'll call her) and told her about my friend (AM - adoptive mother - we'll call her). She said she liked what she heard - that they weren't able to have their own children, and that they were both teachers, and Christians. I gave AM the BM's info. Apparently she called her, left her (in her own words) the most awkward message ever. ...and didn't hear back. A few days later I talked to BM. She said that of the couples that were interested in her baby, she was most interested in AM. I immediately called AM and said "Call her NOW!" So she did, and they talked. BM was very emotional, cried. She has children already, so knew this would be hard, but knew that she wouldn't be able to give this new baby the life she wanted and didn't really want any more kids. But she had gotten pregnant for a reason, thought that God wanted her to have the baby and give it to someone who couldn't have her own. So over the next couple of months AM and BM spoke every so often and talked about the plans. The birth father was proving to be a cause of stress. He wasn't on board. Wild card. Needless to say it was stressful for everyone.

On January 2nd BM went into labor earlier than thought, went to a different hospital than planned. AM made it to the hospital in time and was able to be there in the delivery room with them. She cut the cord and named the baby boy (Wyatt:). The BM was moved to a different floor and AM and her new baby boy got their own room until he could be released. A couple of days later they all went home. With adoption, papers are filed after the birth. Apparently for the first 30 days the birth parents can legally change their mind. Well, today the final process began and baby Wyatt is officially theirs. Big sigh of relief!

A-MA-ZING. I can not believe that I was able to play a role in this incredible adoption. I honestly feel like a proud Aunt. I know that I will hold this precious baby boy and his parents in a special place in my heart forever. How incredible. I have gotten to know BM a little bit and I saw in her the pain that any mother would feel giving her baby away. She has had some post partum depression, shed many tears, but in the end knows that she made the right choice. I have shed tears. For her. For AM. The whole thing is emotional. And incredible. I can't wait to see this baby boy grow up in his loving home. And this is definitely going on my list of coolest things I've ever been a part of. LOVE.