Bringing Kate Home...

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I woke at 5:00 in the morning after just a few hours of deep dreamless sleep. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, that something was wrong with Kate and no one had told us. The longer I lay there the more anxious I got and I eventually woke Jim. He assured me that she was fine, that we needed to trust that God was taking good care of her and that we would be with her very soon. He held me close and prayed with me and calmed my enough to allow me to sleep a few more hours.

The next morning after a conversation with "G", who was confused as to why we were asked to leave, told us that she would meet us at the hospital around 10:00 and promised to straighten everything out. I packed my pink diaper bag, carefully choosing a little pink dress I bought when we decided to adopt and the crocheted sweater, bonnet and booties that my grandmother made for me, which I wore home from the hospital many years ago.

We met "G" at the hospital at 10:00 on the dot and the nursing staff was very happy to put us back in the storage closet. The daytime nursing staff, were appalled at what happened to us and said that allowing us to stay with Kate would have been best for her and they didn't understand what happened. I was too exhausted and emotional to discuss it anymore, I picked her up, held her close and promised her I would never let her go again.

We waited hours for the pediatrician's visit and when she did finally come, she gave Kate a clean bill of health. Yet, my fears were confirmed that we had not been told everything, she disclosed the reason they kept Kate an extra day, and it was not due to jaundice. For Kate's privacy I won't share it here but the pediatrician said as far as she could tell, Kate was perfectly fine. She was content and comfortable, not showing any indication that anything was wrong. Yet, we were shell shocked, our agent "G" showed great surprise, and I'm not sure if she really didn't know about it or if she is an amazing actress.

I have no reason to have not trusted her, yet I would advise anyone adopting domestically, to make sure that they have an advocate with them other than their agency. We were so eagar, emotional and exhausted we didn't think that something about her health would have been kept from us until after we signed our papers.

When we began our domestic adoption we realized as with adoption anywhere, there are no guarantees. We screened our birth parents, filled out paperwork with situations we would accept and those we would not, but in the end allowed God to choose our daughter for us. God put so many obstacles in our way, so many trials to allow us to practice our faith and put our trust in Him. As the pediatrician left the room, we knew that no matter what, God would give us the tools and strength to deal with whatever Kate might need. However, for Kate's first few months, I did worry, each and every day. And each time I felt anxious, I prayed and found comfort there. Now 6 months later I can say with confidence that she is perfect in every way, and needs nothing more than a loving family and my worries have completely faded.

So after the Dr. left we were given the usual discharge information from a pediatric nurse. We dressed Kate in the clothes we brought then were dragged to administration to take care of one last bit of paperwork. We hugged "G" one last time, and then at last, we were on our own...

Heading toward Gregg & Sue's we breathed a sigh of relief. We couldn't wait to get home and enjoy our daughter, until everyone came home from work! We took her up to our room, and spent the afternoon napping and caring for Kate. We were so exhausted, relieved and totally in love with our daughter. The end of a long journey...

Our first night we got to Utah, I had a discussion with Sue about a crib for Kate. They had a crib and a playpen and she offered to get them out and set them up. I told her whatever was easiest, she had done so much for us already, I hated to make her do any more. I said that honestly, a swaddled new born baby really didn't need much more room than a large laundry basket and for the few days we would be there, that would be fine. When we got home we found on our bed, the biggest wicker basket I had ever seen. It was lined with a big fluffy hot pink blanket and had a bouquet of balloons attached to the handle! I was so tickled, it was perfect, a little moses basket for my sweet Kate. One of the first pictures we took of her in that basket is one of my favorite pictures of her.