Our 1st Placement - Part 2

Welcome back to the story of our first placement and eventually, our first adoption. When I last left you, I was on the freeway off-ramp with a slip of paper with the details I needed to go pick up our first baby. If you need to catch up, you can check out part 1 HERE. 

The drive to the hospital felt like it took an eternity. In reality, the drive only took about 15 minutes. The hospital was only about 5 minutes away from my office, so I was very familiar with the area.

I arrive and realize, we didn't make any arrangements on where to meet once I got to the hospital. No problem. I can just call the case worker and let her know I am here. Small problem... in the excitement, I wrote her number down incorrectly. When I called the case worker, it was a fax machine. 

Now the hospital that we are at is not a nice one. This is in an area of town that you would not want to be alone in at night. So I realize that hanging out in the parking lot to wait for the case worker is not a very smart idea and even then, it is a large hospital with multiple entrances. Also, I don't have the babies name or anything so I can't go to the nursery and just say that I am here for this baby. 

While I am talking with the front desk and running around like a crazy person, she happens to walk in and I notice the DES badge. I introduced my self and she was very nice, but very business. This is really happening. She is here and I am going to be leaving with a baby. 

As I said, she was very business like. She came in with a list of things we needed to do. The first of which was stopping by security. She informed me that despite multiple efforts, they hadn't been able to make contact with the birth mother and so she may be there and she may not be aware we are taking her son. 

Wait... what?!? Rewind that. Let's break that statement apart. So first off, we need to get armed security to pick up this child. Secondly, the mother might be here and doesn't know she isn't leaving with her baby. Third, son?!? I am here to pick up a baby girl. Is this still a newborn? Why is he in care? 

Now all of those things are things I would have addressed had my adrenaline not been pumping like a crazy woman. So all I said was, "no problem". Not your finest moment Renee. Note to self- maybe ask a couple of questions when picking up a human life that you will be responsible for. 

We had no clothes with us since I was leaving and
  had no idea the age or gender we would get. Our
preemie left in the hospitals finest freebies.

So the armed security guard, the case worker, and myself make the walk upstairs. We stop at the nurses station and she hands over the documentation and her information. The nurse behind the counter gives us the news that the mom had left already. She had been checking her messages and knew we were coming. I am not going to lie, I was relieved. I knew I would have to face her someday, but I was glad it was not that Monday night while I walked away with her son.

The nurse finishes the necessary information and informs us that she will escort us to the NICU. My heart dropped. Why was this baby in the NICU? What had happened in his short life to land him there? What had I gotten myself into? 

After a long talk with the NICU nurses and the case worker, I got the information I needed to know. The baby had been born Friday. He tested positive for multiple drugs at birth. He was also born premature. They were only working with an estimated gestational age though due to a lack of prenatal care. 

I tried to prepare myself as they walked me to his incubator. Then I saw him. The most perfect baby boy. He was swaddled up nice and tight and sleeping so peacefully. It was official. In that moment, I was a mother. 

Later that night Mark and I walked out of the hospital with our son. Never in our wildest dreams did I believe that this little baby boy would be our son for the rest of our lives. That we would get to adopt this little precious baby boy. 

492 days later, the courts made official what we had known in our hearts since that Monday night. We adopted Austin Russell.