You Mean This Saturday?

On what seemed like any other Tuesday in January, I was at lunch with my coworkers when Chris called me.  If you know the two of us, you know that we never talk on the phone.  We text constantly and when he is working, we email.  We save phone calls for when we have a quick question or an emergency.  So, when I saw his name on my phone, I thought something was wrong.  I picked up quickly and he asked if I could talk.  It was loud in the cafeteria but I didn't think this would be a terribly important conversation so I stayed where I was.  He sounded stressed, like he had something on his mind.  I asked if something was wrong and he said "Do you still want to have a baby?".  I almost fell out of my chair.  He explained to me that *Jane* had had the baby his mom had told us about and she had gotten in touch with him that morning to tell us that the baby was being discharged from the hospital on Saturday.  She told him if we were still interested, she wanted us to be the ones to take her home.  All I could manage was "You mean this Saturday?". 

I can't begin to explain all the emotions I felt at that moment.  I excused myself from the table and practically ran back to the lab.  I am fortunate enough to work with my close friend Leslie.  She knew about the possibility of this from a few months before and I ran straight to her.  I was shaking and sweating and as soon as I saw her, I started crying.  I could barely tell her what was going on.  We shut the door to her office and I shakily explained what Jane had said.  Isabella was born on January 16 and was still in the hospital due to a minor health concern.  She was set to be discharged this weekend.  Jane had spoken with a social worker and told her that she wanted us to be the ones to take Isabella home and proceed with adoption.  I did my best to pull myself together and get back to work, but as the information kept coming from Chris, who had spoken with the social worker and already contacted an adoption attorney, I could barely focus. 

I found my supervisor, who I have become very close to in the last 5 years, and asked her if she had time to talk.  Not only did I want her advice, but I needed to fill her in since maternity leave may be in my near future.  We spent about an hour in an exam room crying, talking, and hugging.  She told me that she supported me and she would make sure my maternity leave was taken care of.  I called Chris again and told him maternity leave would be no problem.  He filled me in on what he'd found out since the last time we had spoken.  The social worker had let him know that since this was a step-family member, he would need documentation to prove the relation.  He had to track down birth certificates, marriage certificates, and divorce decrees.  We were also informed that we would need a home study before we would be allowed to bring her home.  We would have to provide bank statements, paycheck stubs, child abuse and neglect checks, state background checks, etc., and we would need to meet with Jane and the social worker, all before we could bring home this baby girl.  What a huge amount of work we had ahead of us, all to be completed in just a few days.

That night, when Chris got home from work, we were both very quiet.  I think we were both so overwhelmed, we didn't know what to say.  When we started talking, we both expressed our concerns.  We were scared to death.  Just a few weeks before, we had talked about all the reasons we weren't ready for a baby and here we were, bringing a baby girl home in four days.  We discussed all the issues and what we were going to do about them.  By the end of the night, we had as firm a plan as you can put together in an evening when you've just found out you're having a baby so soon!  We both had a pretty fitful night's sleep and headed back to work the next day.  Chris set up a home study with a social worker here in Lexington who had volunteered to stop by after work on Thursday, just so we didn't have to change our schedules.  He also scheduled a meeting with Jane and a social worker for Friday morning.  We finished our workday after staying in near constant communication and headed home again.  I wanted to go shopping.  I felt an overwhelming need to get ready for this baby and buy all the things she needed, but level headed Chris thought it was more important to straighten up the house and get all the documents together for the following evening.  After all, if the home study didn't go well, we wouldn't be bringing home a baby anyway! 

On Thursday, I decided it was time to tell my coworkers.  I think they all knew something big was happening with me, but they weren't sure what.  One had even asked me if I was pregnant!  Close...but no!  My supervisor gathered everyone in the office and I told them that Chris and I were being given the opportunity to adopt a baby girl and if all went well, I would be on maternity leave beginning the next day.  Everyone was thrilled for us!  There were tears and hugs and a list began circulating immediately for people to sign up for gifts!  I seriously have the best coworkers.  That afternoon they all wished me luck with our home study and our meeting with Jane the next morning.

Our home study went perfectly.  The social worker was so sweet and understanding.  She talked with us about what this meant and asked us lots of questions.  She collected all the documents she had requested and took what seemed like a million pictures of our home.  At the end of the meeting, I asked her if she thought it would be silly for us to go shopping for the baby and she said we better...since we would be bringing Isabella home this weekend!  The social worker had set up a password with the nursery and we were able to call and speak to Isabella's nurse that evening about how she was doing.  It was good to hear that she was doing well and should be able to come home on Saturday.  It was also very scary!  A baby!  In TWO DAYS!!!