UPDATE: GOT CARSEAT...not sure about SANITY :}
Saturday, June 7, 2008 –Friday. night Jon and I started watching the movie Juno close to midnight. We stayed up until 2am. After the movie, I went to organize our bedroom since Jon had kindly moved furniture for me. I got distracted as usual and started playing in the baby’s room…putting up shelves, sailboat light switch, “sweet pea” plaques (first thing I bought for baby in Jan.), beautiful cross from my friend AnnMarie. I still couldn’t sleep so I got on the computer searching for maps and trip planning stuff to prepare for our trip to Vegas. Thank goodness I packed my toiletries because right when I decided to go to bed at 4:30am, my cell phone rang and it was Maria! She was having cramps and not sure if she should go to the hospital. She was trying to time the contractions and they seemed to be coming every 2 minutes. I did a mapquest search and gave Maria directions from Sahara to S. Maryland and she knew where the hospital was located. She started to cry and I told her it would be okay. I was trying to keep her calm. She didn’t want to wake Joshua but I told her it was time to go and not to worry if it was false labor because it sounded like she was definitely in active labor.
30 min. later, Maria called back from the hospital and told me she was dilated to 6 cm! She was in a lot of pain but I told her to let them take care of her and I would be there as soon as I could. I debated about waking up Jon and instead, I emailed our consultant Cindy, took a shower and started getting the last of our stuff together. I waited until 6am to wake Jon and tell him the news. At 7:37am ET, Maria called and said there was no time for an epidural and she had the baby naturally at 3:52am PT. The baby weighs 6.6 pounds, 18.5 inches long and is doing fine. She said the hospital recommended bottle feeding her breast milk and she asked me what I preferred. I’m afraid of Maria bonding with the baby with breastfeeding but I know how important breastmilk is (and it’s very important to Maria), so I said I thought it was best to bottlefeed him if that’s what the hospital recommends. I thought it was wonderful of her to ask me what I wanted which gives me more confidence that she is thinking of this baby as ours. Maria and I both left phone messages for the adoption agency’s social worker but it was too early PT to get in touch with anyone. Cindy called at same time Maria called and she got on the ball trying to find us a cell phone number for the agency reps. in Vegas.
By 8am we were packed and ready to go but USAir phone rep. said we couldn’t change our FF tickets for flights today. Jon called Greg and he drove us to the airport. I was prepared to beg to get on the 11am flight. Greg was so great to bring us their Bjorn baby carrier and he gave us great hugs and congratulations. I called Jennifer and Todd and their friend Brian tried to call his contacts at USAir to get us on standby. All the flights were sold out so we were very fortunate to arrive at the airport at 9:30, and a USAir rep. named, Christie (Christina Bufalino), was super sweet and typed away trying to get us on the nonstop 11am or 1pm flights. There were 7 other people on standby before us so Christie got us seats on flights through Phoenix so we could make it to Vegas by 3pm PT.
During this rushed time, I was on the phone back in forth with Maria and Cindy to let them know we were on our way. When Jon and I got to our gate, we finally had time to call our family members and give the exciting news! I called Julia, my PGA friend in Vegas and she was very excited to hear our news and offer to pick us up at the airport and let us stay the night with them. I also called to give news to Jeanie, Dinki, Lanie, Deresa, Jill, Laurie J., AnnMarie, Tara, Tracy, Karen V. and Mark. I was dialing as many numbers as I could until the pilot announced time to turn off cell phones.
1:30pm ET, sitting on the plane, just waking from a short nap, I ask myself is this really finally happening or a dream?! The beautiful clouds outside the window are so peaceful…I think of an image of a baby boy sleeping on the clouds....and then the image Stephen Speilberg uses for his movie introductions of the little boy sitting on the crescent moon comes to mind. I also think of my childhood memories of cartoons I used to see of a stork flying through the clouds with a special delivery. There was this really funny one of a stork with hiccups from drinking who delivered a baby to the wrong recipient. I wish I could remember which cartoon that was… If anybody reading this was a child in the 70’s like me, maybe they will remember and tell me. Funny, how at about 4am this morning, I was watching a utube video clip of Dumbo the baby elephant being delivered by a stork with the song “Leavin’ on a Jet Plane”…. That just may be the first Disney movie I buy for baby Brayden. Okay, no worries, I’m not having hallucinations, just weary from no sleep and trying to think of happy thoughts as I anxiously count the hours until we meet our little boy.
I’ve been asking Jon every hour or so if he’s sure of the name Brayden and he thinks so. We are still considering middle name but we’ll wait until we meet him to decide, I guess.
I’m reading the parenting magazines Deresa gave me and I’m trying to absorb as much information as possible to prepare. I’m so nervous and excited. It’s finally happening and doesn’t seem real. Jon is my rock, keeping me calm. I love this man so much!
3:03pm PT – plane landed on time. On the way to restroom, I called Julia’s cellphone and Danny answered. Julia was right there coming out of the same restroom and heard me on the phone so great that we ran into each other and found each other quickly. Julia drove us to the hospital immediately and we chattered the whole way. Having her there with us was so great and calmed my nerves. Julia came into the hospital gift shop with us and helped choose a gift (single red rose with baby’s breath) for Maria and write a quick card. I needed her input as I was so nervous about meeting Maria. Julia graciously left Danny’s car for us to use the rest of the day and Danny came to pick her up. Danny met us at Karen’s wedding over 6 years ago and Julia hasn’t seen me since the Key West PGA trip. Of course, any friend of Karen’s is fabulous!!! What good people we are so blessed to have in our lives!
We walked in the hospital room and met our beautiful baby boy's birthmother, Maria and her 2 year old beautiful daughter, Adrianna. They were holding the baby and Maria introduced Adriana to us as "this is the baby's mommy and daddy". Maria immediately shared with us her natural childbirth experience from earlier that morning. We are in awe of her courage, strength and kind hearted spirit. She asked if we were okay with her breastfeeding and we agreed it was best for the baby. Yes there is worry she will bond too much with the baby but we've established a good relationship and Maria seems sure of her decision that she wants Jon and I to be parents to this baby. Maria has been very supportive and encouraging of me trying induced lactation so we have been sharing a lot over the telephone for the last few weeks. We spent the next couple of hours holding the baby who we have been referring to as Brayden for weeks now. He is absolutely beautiful and perfect and truly a gift from above. Maria expressed how thankful she was to find us and we said the same of her. It was so great to spend time with Adriana too and see her beautiful features ( and we imagine Brayden looking like his half sibling) and getting to know her. She loves the baby and wants to hold him a lot. We took lots of pictures.
I will have to write more later as we are busy now spending time at the hospital, making phone calls to family and friends and planning to go to Julia's house to visit with Danny and Brighton and spend the night with them. I will write more later.
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