“If you would have asked me about adoption before I was pregnant I would have said that I could never go through with it. Now that I have I can’t imagine what my life would have been if I hadn’t!
I was fifteen and a sophomore in high school when I found out that I was pregnant. I had just played in a basketball game and came home feeling horrible. I went to the doctor the next day and was told the surprising news that I was pregnant. I didn’t believe my doctor at first. How could this have happened? Not to me! My boyfriend at the time was also in high school, and both of us knew that we were not ready to parent. I wanted to finish school and go to college. I was too far along in my pregnancy to get an abortion, so we knew that adoption was the right choice.
My mom helped me find an adoption agency and set up a meeting for an adoption worker to come to our house. I was so nervous! I thought that it would be some old woman who would tell me what I needed to do. I could not have been more wrong. The worker came and made me feel comfortable right away. She told me that I got a lot of choices through this process. She told me that I got to choose the family, decide how I wanted the adoption to go, and also have contact after placing.
My boyfriend and I went through the book of families. We chose one to meet with. They came to our house to meet because we thought that would be easiest for us. Everyone was so nervous at our first meeting, but after they left, we both said that they were the ones. We asked them to meet us again and we told them in person that we were choosing them. Everyone was crying and hugging. It felt really good.
When it came time to deliver, the family was in the waiting room. We wanted them to meet their daughter as soon as she was born. They had a separate room at the hospital and it was nice to have some time with them and our baby and also some time alone with her. When we all left the hospital, there were more tears, but they were good tears. We had all been through so much together and truly cared for each other. Even though it was extremely hard, we knew that we would be seeing each other and be in each other’s lives forever. That made it a little easier.
Since placing, I have seen my daughter a few times a year. It has been really amazing having her in my life. She got to come to one of my basketball games and meet my team. It was so incredible to see her cheering in the stands. If you had asked me about adoption before I was pregnant I would have said that I could never go through with it. Now that I have I can’t imagine what my life would have been if I hadn’t!