Our New little Bundle of JOY!

Okay, so here’s the whirlwind story of how little Isabelle came to be in our family!  And it is a whirlwind! 

On Tuesday, August 3rd I got a call from Jane (our caseworker) telling us about a birthmother they had flown in last Friday that was due in a few weeks that they wanted to show our profile to.  So after getting the details about Ieisha, the birthmom, I told her yes, but explained that I was leaving to a family reunion on Wednesday and that Chris would be in town until Friday at noon and that where I was going had very limited cell phone reception.  On Wednesday evening Chris texted me and told me Ieisha had chosen us.  The plan was to meet with her when we got back on Monday evening and she had a doctor’s appointment on Tuesday and would most likely be induced on Thursday…that WAS the plan.  Fortunately things don’t always go according to plan. 

Friday we got up and went to the lake to swim and boat.  We got back to the cabin and showered kids and started to get lunch when I had the thought that I hadn’t checked my phone in a while.  Chris had texted me at 11:30 that she was going to the hospital and that I should probably call him.  You think?!??!! So at 2:30 I packed myself up, left my kids with Grandma and Grandpa Teeter and the cousins and raced the 2 1/2 hours home.  We got the phone call that Isabelle was born at 5:58pm on August 6th weighing 6 lbs. 4oz. and 19 in long.  Ieisha still wanted to meet us that night, so I hurried and threw baby necessities in the washer and jumped in the shower and we went shopping for some gifts for her.  At 7:30 we headed to Pioneer Valley Hospital in West Valley City and got to meet Ieisha and our new baby girl.  Ieisha is a honey!  The first half hour we spent getting to know each other and then the last hour she had us laughing our guts out!  She is so sweet and so humble and so giving.  We left around 9:30 and headed home to get baby stuff washed and ready.

Saturday morning we got up with the understanding that we would head to the hospital when we got a call from our case worker most likely around lunch time, so we went shopping to get all our baby stuff and some gifts for her 3 year old and 1 year old girls.  Then we were going to go look for bunkbeds for Spencer and Josey.  While in Walmart we were called and Ieisha wanted us to come up and spend the day with her.  So we quickly finished our shopping there and headed to the hospital picking up lunch on the way.  We spent a couple of hours with her in the hospital before she wanted to get the heck out of there.  She looked so tired and the nurses kept bugging her.  At 2:30 she was DONE.  We all said our goodbyes (see you sometime laters really), shed lots of tears and gave lots of hugs.  After Ieisha left, we spent the next hour with Isabelle and then had to go find bunkbeds and sign all of our paperwork with Jane.  We tracked down some bunkbeds, mattresses and dressers, signed paperwork and headed back to the hospital to be with Isabelle while we were waiting for the phone call saying that Ieisha had signed all of her paperwork at 6pm.  When we got back to the hospital at 6:12 and still hadn’t heard anything, I was stressing big time.  I had Chris say a prayer and felt this immediate peace wash over me!  At 6:32 we go the text from Jane that it was official and I took my first real, deep breath in 4 days!  We stayed with Isabelle until just after 7 and then had to get back to our house to drop off the mattresses and one dresser and go pick up the bunkbed and the other dresser and eat some dinner at 9 pm!  After that we came home and built bunkbeds for the kids (thanks to the help of some really great friends) until 11:30 and then I ran to Walmart to get some food for Sunday, came home and folded baby clothes until 1:15am and then finally felt my brain was tired enough to get a little sleep.

Sunday morning we went to church and then head to the hospital and waited for the agency to show up to get discharged.  We waited 2 hours(…snore!) at the hospital.  I was going crazy knowing ALL that had to be done at my house before the kids got home with G&G Teeter.  We finally got to leave at 1:30 and then went into overdrive to get dressers out of boxes, Josey moved over to the other room, bed made, Isabelle’s room put together (deep breath) and then getting the rest of the house looking like a house instead of a place where a bomb had gone off!  We accomplished our goal and when the kids showed up they were SO EXCITED!  I don’t know if they were more excited about their new baby sister or their new bedroom!  They held her, loved on her (maybe a little too much) and were so soft and tender with her that it made my heart rejoice! 

I CAN NOT believe that I am a mom of 3 beautiful children!  I hit the JACKPOT…3 amazing birthmoms and 3 remarkably soulful children!  GOD IS GOOD!  He has blessed me abundantly and given me tender mercies all along the way!  I am so thrilled and grateful to be raising these wonderful children!  Thank you Becky, Sondi and Ieisha for your devoted sacrifice and the powerful love you have for these sweet children and the desire you had to give them a rich life!  We love you and we love them so much!