Olivia Mae's Family
July 20, 2021
It was a typical Tuesday night when we got the call. Mary was balancing joining a zoom meeting and entertaining the kids while waiting on Francis to get home from work and take over - then she could take her mic off mute without the rest of the participants hearing a chorus of “Wheels on the Bus” coming from the kids. When Mary saw an incoming call from Stephanie with the National Down Syndrome Adoption Network, she knew she probably couldn’t answer the call AND attend the zoom meeting AND entertain the kiddos… besides, it probably wasn’t going to be THE phone call. Even after getting a text from Stephanie right after the missed call asking her to call back as soon as she could, Mary still couldn’t imagine getting the news that they had matched. Still, she decided to turn off her camera and find a corner away from the kids to return the call.
“Ok, I’ve got a lot to tell you… do you have a pen and paper so you can write it down? Oh yeah - congratulations! You were chosen for Olivia Mae!”
We matched! Mary was trembling - excited and nervous. As soon as Francis got home (perhaps the longest 10 minute wait of Mary’s life) she shouted out the back door as he walked in from his car, “We matched! Olivia Mae! We matched! We have to pack, we are leaving tomorrow!” We were simultaneously stilled by this life changing news and mobilized by the immediacy of our placement - Stephanie told us that we had to leave the next day to make the drive so we could meet the birth parents the following morning! They wanted to talk with us and then introduce us to Olivia. From that point on, she would be in our care. The time between finding out we matched to becoming her caretakers was a mere 40 hours. The remainder of our evening grew into a late night filled with phone calls, planning, and packing. Before we knew it, Tuesday became Wednesday, and we were on our last road trip as a family of four.
Meeting our new daughter’s birth parents that Thursday morning was perhaps the most humbling experience of our lives. We were and are so moved by their big love, and we feel so blessed that our lives and families are forever knit together by our shared love for this child. After we got to spend time with them, and after they introduced us to Olivia Mae, we were overcome with peace knowing that God had led us right there.
Olivia Mae was the name given to her by her birth parents, and we are happy and humbled to keep that name. We added the name Fiat (the Latin for “let it be done” - specifically referencing Mary’s yes to the angel Gabriel and her acceptance of her role in God’s will). Simply put, Ollie Mae is our fiat. We heard God whisper an invitation in our hearts to explore adoption, and we have tried to practice surrendering to His will wherever we have heard Him calling. We have done this imperfectly, but He has blessed us perfectly (and abundantly) despite our stumbling.
We are thrilled to be learning and enjoying everything that it means to be a family of five. Big sister, Flora, and big brother, Pax, are overwhelmingly in love with their new sister. Mom and dad are overcome with joy and gratitude for our sweet family and all the richness and blessing that comes from adding one little soul, two tiny feet, and three copies of the twenty-first chromosome to our family.
February 2023
As we reach Olivia Mae’s second birthday, we are filled with so much gratitude! This sweet, strong, little fighter has been facing countless medical battles with no clear diagnoses or consistently effective treatments anywhere on the horizon. However, each time she is set back with an illness or a hospital stay, she recovers and then charges forward by demonstrating a new skill! Most recently, we have celebrated her first independent army-crawl and her first time being truly receptive to eating some food by mouth! She continues to amaze us with her cheery and content personality, and has recently been showing off her silly and playful side as well. She adores her siblings just as much as they adore her, and we are just so blessed to have her in our family!
