Hi Friends!
The c-section has been changed to May 23rd so we are 7 days away! Everything still looks good. Right now, the birth mom doesn't want to see the baby and wants me to take him immediately. Hopefully, it means we will get a room. If so, we'll probably be able to have visitors. We won't know anything for sure until we get there. I'll try to update my Facebook status, as much as possible.
Hudson still doesn't know exactly what is going on, but I've been talking to him about a baby that might come soon. Today he told me that he's going to teach the baby to speak Spanish. Then he asked, "How do you say iPod in Spanish?"! He's still very excited about the possibility of a baby and says wants to help take care of him. I think he'll be a great big brother!
We're about to put the puzzle together with everyone's names on the back that have donated to bring this sweet baby home. We are so grateful!! There are still some pieces left so if you want to be on the puzzle, hit the donate button below. Pieces are $5.00 each. You can still make your donations to our church but not for long. We won't be able to get the money much after the baby is at home with us. We're still having the pancake breakfast at Applebee's in Spring Hill on June 25th. Those of you who live here will probably get an email about it soon. We'll need some volunteers for ticket sales and serving the food! If you do want to make a donation to our church, make it to Fellowship Bible Church, and put "I Choose You" in the memo line. Before, I said send it directly to the church. However, I have been told that it is better for me to hand deliver the checks. There have been a few missing ones. If you donated and the check didn't go through, let me know. You can send checks to me, and I will make sure we get the credit. Our address is:
3154 Winberry Drive
Franklin, TN 37064
Again, it has to be soon or we won't get it. If it is too late, it will still go towards an adoption.
Many have asked, and we do have a name! He will be Hayden Michael Davis. We want to use another H name, and Michael is Adam's middle name. Hudson said, "Name him after Daddy!" So we are. :) A lot of times, the birth mom names the baby whatever she wants to in the hospital, and then it has to be changed when the adoption is finalized. Our birth mom says that she wants us to name him right away. Her last name will be on the birth certificate until finalization, but we're so glad that Hayden Michael will be on the original one. The birth mom letting us name him is another good sign that she is sure he will be ours! We are still very confident that she won't change her mind, but our hearts are still a little afraid to be fully confident. We continue to pray for God's will in this no matter what that is.
Again, thank you so much for all the prayers and support! We are so blessed to have each of you in our lives!
Praying to bring Hayden home,
Andrea
The Davis Family
Monday, May 16, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
101%
Hi Friends,
If you don't already know, we have been chosen, and the baby will be here in 17 days! I know you want all the details so here it goes...
We received a call a little over a month ago from the social worker that did our home study about a birth mom in Memphis who was due in mid May with a baby boy. She came into the agency in Memphis wanting a biracial family. She is black and the birth father is white. They didn't have any families to show her so they called the office in Nashville. Our social worker told them that they didn't have any biracial families either, but they did have a family that would love to have the baby. This isn't the agency that we are currently using to find a baby so they didn't even have our profile. We sent it as soon as we got the call. They received it and said it looked great, but we didn't hear anything for a couple of weeks. We decided that it didn't work out. Then we received a call Monday before last saying that the birth mom loved our profile and had her hear set on us. They said that she had one other profile, and they were going to show her another one on Thursday morning. Our social worker said that we would know one way or the other by Thursday afternoon. So of course, I had my cell phone in my hand all day and was as nervous as I have ever been in my life! I didn't get a call, but finally an email at 4:00 from our social worker here saying that she had been playing phone tag all day with the social worker in Memphis. She said she would call me asap, but I never heard from her. I had to leave the house because I had a gig. While I was loading equipment, Adam called me and said that the social worker had called the house. We were the family for sure! I immediately felt like a different person!
Our social worker and another that I have talked to says that everything about this situation is the best case scenario Of course, there is always still a chance that the birth mom can change her mind, but it does not seem likely. She is 21 years old, unmarried, and already has a 4, 3, and 1 year old. Her children don't have the same father as the current birth father, and she isn't with the current birth father anymore. In fact, she isn't making this very easy on him right now. He has already surrendered his rights, but when the final decision was made to place the baby with us, he started to change his mind. The birth mom was furious and told him that if he even thought of trying to get the baby that she would make sure he couldn't even go to the hospital to see him. He agreed at the end of the meeting that he couldn't take care of the baby. His family doesn't even know that he got someone pregnant. It's great that she feels so strongly about letting us raise the baby. However, we hope that she doesn't make this really hard for him. The agency is counseling her about it so that everything will go smoothly.
The birth mom is having a c-section on May 21st in Memphis at St. Francis Hospital. Her doctor told her that she can have two people in the room with her during the c-section. She told them that she wanted her mom and me to be in there. She wants me to bond with the baby as soon as he comes out. That is the only part of the birth plan that we know right now, but we are hoping that because she wants me in there to bond that she will want us to keep the baby with us in the hospital. We don't even know right now if she wants to see him at all. We hope that she does because we've been told that it's better for them later to have said goodbye to the baby.
We are so thankful that the baby is being born in Memphis because we can get there quick without flying, and we can bring the baby home, as soon as he is discharged from the hospital. However, the hard part about adopting a baby in Tennessee is that the birth mom has 10 days after she signs the papers to change her mind. They have given her the option of having the baby placed in what's called "cradle care". This would be another family who would take care of the baby for those 10 days, but she has said that she wants us to take the baby home, as soon as he is released. This will be a very difficult 10 days. Even though we are very confident that she isn't going to change her mind, we will be worried until those 10 days are over.
Our social worker told me on Monday that the birth mom says she is 101% sure that she will place the baby with us. Her mom is also 101% on board. She placed a baby 20 something years ago and is very supportive of this decision. I'm sure she is helping raise the 3 children that the birth mom already has. So if the birth mom has second thoughts, we're hoping that her mom will be the voice of reason! She really does know, though, that she cannot take care of this baby and that we can. We are very fortunate and thankful that we live in a place where we know lots and lots of families with adopted biracial children, biological biracial children, and adopted children of a completely different races. We also already have biracial children in our family. Since the birth mom originally wanted a biracial family, we have done all that we can to help her feel confident that this child will be very accepted, loved unconditionally, and not made to ever feel any different. Heck, he and Adam will probably have the same hair! ;)
We are sooooo excited and are praying every second that this will all work out. Pray with us!! Hudson doesn't know fully what is going on, but we talk about the possibility of a baby to him all the time. He prays every night these exact words, "We pray for a baby brother or a baby sister- that their safe and healthy, feel loved by our family, and come soon." We're starting to set up the nursery so we know he knows it's probably going to happen soon. We just don't want to tell him anything definite, until the baby is born. He won't be there that day, but he will come the next day. If we get our own room and can keep the baby, we may be able to have visitors. Right now, we're just planning on our parents being there, but we'll let everyone know what the deal is closer to the time.
I have more to say, but I have to go to band practice, which also means I don't have time to proof read. Please excuse any mistakes! I'll update more soon!
Lots of love!
Andrea
If you don't already know, we have been chosen, and the baby will be here in 17 days! I know you want all the details so here it goes...
We received a call a little over a month ago from the social worker that did our home study about a birth mom in Memphis who was due in mid May with a baby boy. She came into the agency in Memphis wanting a biracial family. She is black and the birth father is white. They didn't have any families to show her so they called the office in Nashville. Our social worker told them that they didn't have any biracial families either, but they did have a family that would love to have the baby. This isn't the agency that we are currently using to find a baby so they didn't even have our profile. We sent it as soon as we got the call. They received it and said it looked great, but we didn't hear anything for a couple of weeks. We decided that it didn't work out. Then we received a call Monday before last saying that the birth mom loved our profile and had her hear set on us. They said that she had one other profile, and they were going to show her another one on Thursday morning. Our social worker said that we would know one way or the other by Thursday afternoon. So of course, I had my cell phone in my hand all day and was as nervous as I have ever been in my life! I didn't get a call, but finally an email at 4:00 from our social worker here saying that she had been playing phone tag all day with the social worker in Memphis. She said she would call me asap, but I never heard from her. I had to leave the house because I had a gig. While I was loading equipment, Adam called me and said that the social worker had called the house. We were the family for sure! I immediately felt like a different person!
Our social worker and another that I have talked to says that everything about this situation is the best case scenario Of course, there is always still a chance that the birth mom can change her mind, but it does not seem likely. She is 21 years old, unmarried, and already has a 4, 3, and 1 year old. Her children don't have the same father as the current birth father, and she isn't with the current birth father anymore. In fact, she isn't making this very easy on him right now. He has already surrendered his rights, but when the final decision was made to place the baby with us, he started to change his mind. The birth mom was furious and told him that if he even thought of trying to get the baby that she would make sure he couldn't even go to the hospital to see him. He agreed at the end of the meeting that he couldn't take care of the baby. His family doesn't even know that he got someone pregnant. It's great that she feels so strongly about letting us raise the baby. However, we hope that she doesn't make this really hard for him. The agency is counseling her about it so that everything will go smoothly.
The birth mom is having a c-section on May 21st in Memphis at St. Francis Hospital. Her doctor told her that she can have two people in the room with her during the c-section. She told them that she wanted her mom and me to be in there. She wants me to bond with the baby as soon as he comes out. That is the only part of the birth plan that we know right now, but we are hoping that because she wants me in there to bond that she will want us to keep the baby with us in the hospital. We don't even know right now if she wants to see him at all. We hope that she does because we've been told that it's better for them later to have said goodbye to the baby.
We are so thankful that the baby is being born in Memphis because we can get there quick without flying, and we can bring the baby home, as soon as he is discharged from the hospital. However, the hard part about adopting a baby in Tennessee is that the birth mom has 10 days after she signs the papers to change her mind. They have given her the option of having the baby placed in what's called "cradle care". This would be another family who would take care of the baby for those 10 days, but she has said that she wants us to take the baby home, as soon as he is released. This will be a very difficult 10 days. Even though we are very confident that she isn't going to change her mind, we will be worried until those 10 days are over.
Our social worker told me on Monday that the birth mom says she is 101% sure that she will place the baby with us. Her mom is also 101% on board. She placed a baby 20 something years ago and is very supportive of this decision. I'm sure she is helping raise the 3 children that the birth mom already has. So if the birth mom has second thoughts, we're hoping that her mom will be the voice of reason! She really does know, though, that she cannot take care of this baby and that we can. We are very fortunate and thankful that we live in a place where we know lots and lots of families with adopted biracial children, biological biracial children, and adopted children of a completely different races. We also already have biracial children in our family. Since the birth mom originally wanted a biracial family, we have done all that we can to help her feel confident that this child will be very accepted, loved unconditionally, and not made to ever feel any different. Heck, he and Adam will probably have the same hair! ;)
We are sooooo excited and are praying every second that this will all work out. Pray with us!! Hudson doesn't know fully what is going on, but we talk about the possibility of a baby to him all the time. He prays every night these exact words, "We pray for a baby brother or a baby sister- that their safe and healthy, feel loved by our family, and come soon." We're starting to set up the nursery so we know he knows it's probably going to happen soon. We just don't want to tell him anything definite, until the baby is born. He won't be there that day, but he will come the next day. If we get our own room and can keep the baby, we may be able to have visitors. Right now, we're just planning on our parents being there, but we'll let everyone know what the deal is closer to the time.
I have more to say, but I have to go to band practice, which also means I don't have time to proof read. Please excuse any mistakes! I'll update more soon!
Lots of love!
Andrea
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Photo Contest!
The photo contest has started! Donate $1.00 to vote for your favorite photo in this album:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=274712&id=503407483&l=14a6f7bec7
Also, post the album on your page and send it to your friends!!
If you are new to our blog, please read about our journey and keep us in your prayers!
Thank you!!
The Davis Family :)
Thursday, March 3, 2011
It's Been A While!
Hi Friends,
It's been a while since I've posted so I thought I would give an update on what's going on with us. After what happened to us in December, we decided to start over with a new agency. We are now going through Heart to Heart in Sandy, Utah. They are EXTREMELY thorough with birth moms and adoptive families. We are very pleased with them. We received our approval from them a couple of weeks ago so our profile is now being shown. We know of one birth mom who is being induced with a baby boy on March 22 that is looking over profiles, including ours, this weekend. It will be a long weekend! We'll hear either way next week. We're just going to try to keep our minds off of it. Send some prayers our way, PLEASE!!
I also wanted to share a new fund raising idea I have and how you can be a part of it! We are panicking a little about the financial part of this so I'm trying to get creative. Just to give you an understanding of the situation...if we are chosen for this baby that will be induced on the 22nd, we will owe $15,000.00 next week and $20,000-$22,000, after the baby is born. I don't think the reality of that has sunk in all the way, but I know I need to be more pro-active right now. So here's my idea...I would like for as many people that are willing to participate to send me a picture for a photo contest. Originally, I was only going to do this with my clients, but now I've decided to let anyone who wants to, to participate. I will upload all the pictures onto an album on Facebook. Each picture will be assigned a number and have a link to the blog at the bottom. Your friends and family can cast a vote for their favorite picture (which I'm sure will be yours :)) for $1.00. They can cast as many votes as they want to. When they pay through Pay Pal, they can just put what number they are voting for in the instructions. Whoever has the most votes, wins either a free sitting fee or an 11x14 Gallery Wrap (canvas) of their photo. Obviously, if you don't live here, you'll want the Gallery Wrap. If I have taken the picture that you want to use, just let me know which one. Otherwise, email it to andrea@andreadavisphotography.com. You HAVE TO HAVE the rights to your picture, if it gets printed. If you have any friends who are interested in participating, let me know. They just need to be on Facebook.
Thanks so much for keeping up with our journey! Email me a photo ASAP, if you want to be in the contest. The more the better!!
Lots of Love,
Andrea
P.S. We are still selling puzzle pieces for $5.00, if you want to be a part of that!
It's been a while since I've posted so I thought I would give an update on what's going on with us. After what happened to us in December, we decided to start over with a new agency. We are now going through Heart to Heart in Sandy, Utah. They are EXTREMELY thorough with birth moms and adoptive families. We are very pleased with them. We received our approval from them a couple of weeks ago so our profile is now being shown. We know of one birth mom who is being induced with a baby boy on March 22 that is looking over profiles, including ours, this weekend. It will be a long weekend! We'll hear either way next week. We're just going to try to keep our minds off of it. Send some prayers our way, PLEASE!!
I also wanted to share a new fund raising idea I have and how you can be a part of it! We are panicking a little about the financial part of this so I'm trying to get creative. Just to give you an understanding of the situation...if we are chosen for this baby that will be induced on the 22nd, we will owe $15,000.00 next week and $20,000-$22,000, after the baby is born. I don't think the reality of that has sunk in all the way, but I know I need to be more pro-active right now. So here's my idea...I would like for as many people that are willing to participate to send me a picture for a photo contest. Originally, I was only going to do this with my clients, but now I've decided to let anyone who wants to, to participate. I will upload all the pictures onto an album on Facebook. Each picture will be assigned a number and have a link to the blog at the bottom. Your friends and family can cast a vote for their favorite picture (which I'm sure will be yours :)) for $1.00. They can cast as many votes as they want to. When they pay through Pay Pal, they can just put what number they are voting for in the instructions. Whoever has the most votes, wins either a free sitting fee or an 11x14 Gallery Wrap (canvas) of their photo. Obviously, if you don't live here, you'll want the Gallery Wrap. If I have taken the picture that you want to use, just let me know which one. Otherwise, email it to andrea@andreadavisphotography.com. You HAVE TO HAVE the rights to your picture, if it gets printed. If you have any friends who are interested in participating, let me know. They just need to be on Facebook.
Thanks so much for keeping up with our journey! Email me a photo ASAP, if you want to be in the contest. The more the better!!
Lots of Love,
Andrea
P.S. We are still selling puzzle pieces for $5.00, if you want to be a part of that!
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