Branch Street Means Family, Part 2
Growing Family
This is second part of Sam and Megan’s story about their growing family. Be sure to read their first part, Branch Street Means Family
We have committed to joining Sam and Megan in their journey of adoption. If you would like to help as well, a GoFundMe page has been set up by a family friend.
PT 2: The Waiting Game
After the first weeks and months, Grace began to settle in and become part of our family. I settled into her routine and she settled into mine.
In February of this year, we flew back to Las Vegas where Grace had previously lived, to get guardianship of her. We met with Cindy’s (Grace’s grandma) lawyer at Clark County Family Courts building. We went into one of the many courtrooms, to state our intentions and to get a judge to sign off on our guardianship. Sam and I were sworn in as guardians, but not in the courtroom like I had always seen in movies. It took place in a little hallway with a piece of glass between me and an employee that worked at the court. To us, didn’t matter how we were sworn in, we were just glad to have guardianship of Grace!
Return to Vegas
While we were out in Vegas we had the opportunity to meet Grace’s birth parents, and her little sister Allison. We met at the park and focused mostly on spending time with the girls. Grace’s parents brought her presents and spent time watching her run around, going down slides and swinging on swings.
This was not an easy thing to do, but it was necessary in my opinion. Grace deserves to know where she came from and who her biological family is.
The Waiting Game
With Cindy still a co-guardian, we had to wait six months before she could come off as a guardian and we could move toward adoption. More waiting. Waiting is a huge part of adoption and you need tons a patience and persistence as you fight hard to keep your kids in your family.
In the meantime, spring came and went. We celebrated Grace’s second birthday like it was her first (since we missed her first), smash cake and all! Cindy came from Vegas and we had family over to our house to celebrate. As summer came to a close, Cindy relinquished her co-guardianship. We have recently hired a lawyer to start working on adopting! Birth dad has humbly signed over his rights.
This is not something we should look at and say, “finally! What took him so long” or “he doesn’t deserve her anyway”. This is a brave, huge step, one that was very hard for him and a decision that I admire. He knew that this was what was best for Grace and he boldly stepped out to take action for his daughter. I have learned through this process that all birth parents love their kids, although life circumstances don’t always make it look like they do. We need to honor them and respect them as individuals and try to reach out to them as much as we can.
Sisters reuniting
We continue to wait. Waiting wait for our lawyer to tell us what the next step is. Waiting for birth mom to sign over rights or to terminate them on our end. As we wait, we have been presented with the opportunity to have temporary guardianship over Grace’s youngest sister, Charli, who is four months old. In the waiting, we are preparing a space to welcome Charli into our home and our hearts. We don’t know how long Charli will be here, but it feels like we are starting this process all over again even before Grace’s adoption is wrapped up.
In the midst of so many unknowns and questions, I’m trusting the One who does know the answers to all my worries and concerns. We don’t have an ending yet, but we are happy. It’s not always easy, but it is worth it to know that lives are being changed because of what God has allowed Sam and I to be a part of. For that, I will always be grateful.