Our family came together! Our story started when a family friend asked me to help her, ‘friend’ get an abortion. Due to a language barrier she couldn’t just look up a clinics phone number. I told her to bring her friend to my house anytime and I would personally escort her to a clinic, but that I just needed to talk to her first. I felt it was important to help the struggling mother problem solve before walking into a clinic. After a few cups of coffee my friend revealed it was her who was pregnant. I asked if she had seen a doctor, she said no. I asked her how far along she was, she didn’t know. I asked about her last period, she thought around August (it was the first of April). I asked to see her tummy. After removing a few shirts and a girdle she revealed a perfectly round tummy. I told her an abortion isn’t an option, and that I would personally take her to a doctor on Monday. She was scared, her community was small and gossip traveled fast. She shared she had tried to self abort many times with teas, herbs, exercise, and jabs. That if an abortion wasn’t an option she had thought about a dumpster after birth. I promised her I would keep her secret, I would protect her from anyone finding out, and that I would keep the baby. Two days later we after an ultrasound we learned she was 37 weeks pregnant. That gave us a few weeks to figure out how to do an adoption. 4 days later she arrived at my door frantic. She was in labor, 1 minute between contractions. In less than an hour she had given birth to the most amazing little dark haired boy. From the moment she revealed her secret I vowed to protect them; her from shame and him from the world. In 7 days time our world changed. People couldn’t believe our position. From the doctor, to the social worker, we were looked at like we had three heads. We weren’t ready. No lawyer picked, no home study done, not even a car seat to take him home in. But the adoption brought out the best in all of us. Friends gave us clothes, lawyers let us make payments, and my family stepped up to babysit. Because of our adoption our family is closer, my sister I was distant from became my biggest supporter. My older kids who had one foot out the door were drawn to this little baby in a big way. He became the families baby, everyone had a role in his life. Because of this he is caring, thoughtful, smart, swift, and of course adorable! We still see his birth mom as much as she wants, its always on her terms. 10 years later and I still feel very protective. How could I not, she gave me the biggest gift that one woman could give another woman.
