"I always knew that I would be an adoptive mom. I grew up in and around the adoptive community. My family included adopted kids. I planned on having two biological kids and adopting a third. After my oldest son was born, it never occurred to me that we would have trouble having another child. But after three years and four miscarriages, it was clear that we would not have another biological child.
We considered whether our family was complete. But I felt a deep sense of loss, like someone was missing. After considering different agencies and avenues, we decided to go with a private adoption through Catholic Charities. The vetting process took approximately six months. We were cleared and listed as eligible after Memorial Day 2015. We were told to be prepared to wait 18 months or more. But on July 17 at approximately 9 a.m., I was standing in line at a Starbucks and got the call. A woman had given birth, made her own plan, and chose us to be her child's parents.
We met our son's birth mother at noon and at 3 p.m. we were headed home from the hospital with our 3-day-old son. About six months after our youngest son came home, my oldest turned to me and said: 'Before he was born, you were sad. You aren't sad anymore.' We will always speak with love and respect for our son's birth mother. She has given us one of the greatest honours: the privilege of being his mother."