4:28pm...my cell phone rings...
"Hello?!"
Hi Beth, I've changed my mind, come pick up your baby.
What?! Why?!
As hard as this is, I just had a long conversation with my Dr and I know right now I can't take care of him the way I want to. So, please come to the hospital as I am getting ready to be discharged.
Okay, well, I have to go home & get Dan & then we will be right there, ok?
Ok.
When will you be discharged?
As soon as you get here.
Okay, I will be there as soon as possible. Are you sure?
Yes, I am sure. I named him Dylaun Markel. Will you keep that name?
No, I don't think we will.
What will you name him them?
I don't know, I will have to talk to Dan.
Ok.
We will be there as soon as we can, ok?
Ok.
See you soon. Bye
Bye.
This is how our conversation went. I was frantic. I ran to my friend & said, I just became a mom! She was on the phone with Air France, and PUT THEM ON HOLD!
I went into my boss & said, could I take some time off? I just became a mom! He looked at me shocked. Stood up and said, huh? I asked him if I could have a couple weeks off & he said yes. My friends were with me, I was frazzled. They asked if I had called Dan. I said no, they handed me the phone. I called Dan, who was picking up the car from the dealership. It was the fuel pump, so he was paying our $900 bill. He answered the phone and I said, Hi Daddy! He said, what did you say?! I replied, you heard me! Cancel your fishing trip. Meet me at home. Take a shower & DO NOT TELL THE GIRLS! (My nieces who were at my house waiting on me). I said, I'm leaving work and I will be home so we can leave & go pick up our son.
I told my friends I didn't even know how to put a car seat in the car, my sister who lived close to me was currently on the road to take their camper to the youth camp location for a dear friend to sleep in for the week. So, my friends agreed they would meet me at the hospital to help, plus they wanted to see my baby!!!!
I left work & headed out. At this point it is a little after 4:30 on a Friday afternoon. I knew I had to talk to the adoption social worker we had been working with to have our homestudy done for our VA Agency. I called her, fairly certain I would get her voicemail, as I never got her on the first time. BUT, she answered!!!!! I told her what was happening and she told me she would contact a lawyer and call me back.
I made a few more phone calls on my way home to my sisters and my mom. They were all thrilled!!!!! I arrived home, told my nieces we had to go to the hospital to pick up our baby. They both jumped up out of their chairs so excited! They walked over to my mom's to await our arrival home.
Dan & I hopped in our car to head to the hospital, but first, we stopped at Target to buy a car seat. Of course, remember, we had NOTHING in our home for our baby. We had 1 baby BOY outfit that we trusted God to fill & HE had done JUST THAT! But, I was already in mom mode. I looked at the car seats, Dan is freaking out because he wanted to go! I picked up a few other items and off we went. In the Target parking lot, I received a call back from the social worker. She had back door called her attorney that she worked with & he dictated an agreement to her, which she dictated to me. It was basically an agreement between us & birth mom so that if anything happened over the weekend that we could seek medical attention.
You see, this was all rare. I never got ahold of this lady on the first try & tonight I did. She rarely got the attorney on the first time & tonight she did. ON a FRIDAY evening of all nights. A Summer evening. It was ALL GOD!
By 6pm we were pulling into the hospital parking lot. Our emotions were all over the place. I was so nervous and excited at the same time. I did not know what I was going to say. I didn't know how to act. I was scared. What if she changed her mind?! What if we got up there and she said never mind? Again God reminded me......Be still! It was as if He just gave me that final nudge, trust me. I've got this!
Up to the nursery floor we went. I went to the nurses station to tell them who I was there to see. It seemed to take forever, but finally they buzzed us back. We walked around and they took us to her room. I was shaking! I was a frantic mess. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
But then......I walked in the room and she placed my sweet baby boy in my arms. We decided to name him Elijah Dylaun. We loved the name Elijah and we kept Dylaun out of respect for his birth mom and we always wanted him to know he had a piece of her with him forever.
We had our baby boy. He was in our arms. Little did I know though.....this was only the beginning of this adoption journey.
I took every single thing that hospital would give me. Formula, diapers, whatever they gave me. We left the hospital with birth momma. My friends were there now & they helped Dan make sure the seat was in well. Meanwhile, I hugged birth mom and said we would be in touch soon. I crawled in the back seat with my little man and we started home.
On the way there we called Dan's parents, his sister and called our church family. It was all starting. The weekend was changing right before our eyes and we were beyond thrilled.
Little Elijah Dylaun, 2 days old, was now in our arms.
---to be continued---
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