Wednesday, September 07, 2016

Baby Georgia

It’s been 3 months since we welcomed baby Georgia into our family.  I am now ready to document her story. I needed time to process, to feel, to soak in His faithfulness to our family and to see clearly through the fog of what we had just experienced.  If you like adoption stories, grab a tissue, a glass of sweat tea, and enjoy!
It was a sunny Tuesday afternoon when the phone rang.  We were told that Latrice, Georgia’s birth mom, was in the hospital and had developed preeclampsia.  The doctor wanted to go ahead and retrieve baby Georgia 3 weeks early to ensure no harm would come to her or Latrice.  She was scheduled to be induced early on Wednesday morning.  Like our previous two adoptions, we threw some things in a bag, squared away child care for our bigs, and hopped in the car for an 8 hour car ride filled with excitement, anxiousness, joy and all the other feels you feel when your family is getting ready to grow!
We arrived to our hotel, settled in, slept a few hours, splashed water on our faces, and headed out the door to Kansas University Hospital. When we arrived, we received our name tags and were escorted back to Latrice’s room where she was waiting for the doctor to arrive to discuss a time to induce. We were so very nervous as we were preparing our hearts, minds and eyes to be in the delivery room to witness sweet Georgia enter the world…as this was nothing we had ever experienced before.  Latrice was so very gracious to want us there, as she truly desired us to experience everything we possibly could as she was gifting this dear child to us.  This baby was ours. 
We sat, we waited, we talked, we laughed, we told stories and we waited some more.  After a whole day of waiting and sitting in the delivery room with Latrice, the time had come.  Her body was ready to bring baby Georgia into the world.  A rush of emotions overcame us as we experienced such beauty for the first time…the sites, the sounds, the rush of doctors into the delivery room…all of it. 
After just a few pushes….there she was…we saw the miracle happen right in front of our eyes!  It was just the way God had designed it to be. Georgia Rae was so beautiful with a head full of hair!  The little squeeks she made were sounds of pure bliss in our ears.  As Will was cutting the cord, the tears flowed…the representation of what that signified was overwhelming to our souls.
We spent the next few days in a hospital room caring for our sweet angel.  Will had some good time with Latrice in her room as she recovered.  He talked to her about Jesus, about who He is and what His characteristics are.  He talked to her about how God can Redeem all thing and all situations for good.  We had a bracelet made for her with the word Redeem etched in the middle. 
Fast forwarding a few weeks.  We’re back in Louisville.  Our family of 5 is reunited after a long two weeks apart.  The reunion was so glorious!  Our two bigs, Ruby and June, just adore their baby sister…as we knew they would!
Just a few days later…
The phone rang. The gentle voice on the other end carried a deep sadness in her tone.  We received the news that Georgia’s birth mom, Latrice had passed away. Our minds went into a fog as shock set in.  The heart break, oh the heart break.  It was all so very surreal.   All the questions swirling around in our minds. Sweet baby Georgia.  How will we navigate these waters?  Did we properly thank her for giving us the most beautiful gift and for helping us fulfill our desires to grow our family? 
We were told that Latrice was wearing her Redeem bracelet on her wrist as she took her last breath and passed into eternity.  Our prayer is that seeds were planted and that she truly felt God’s redemption in her life.  We’re praying that God used us to be Light.  We’re praying that Georgia Rae will use her story, her journey in this life to reach others, to share what redemption looks like, to glorify Him!
God chose to expand our family again.  He has done it through something so beautiful…Adoption.  The story He has written is breath-taking.  It’s a life full of complexities, curves, twists and turns.  It’s complicated, but not, because it’s of Him.  It’s ingrained so deeply into the fabric of who we are because it’s all we know. It’s our life.  It’s what He has so graciously given to us.     

He brings such beauty from ashes, His kindness is so evident, His goodness is over whelming, His gifts to His children are wrapped in such beauty.  And that’s what Georgia Rae is to our family…a gift.     

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