Austin's Blog

This is the story of how our sweet Addie joined the DeArmond family. Valerie and I had been married a couple years and decided we should try for children. We tried without success and were both open to adoption. We had served overseas in the past with children and were working with kids at the time. My boss at the time also ran a crisis pregnancy center. I went to him after school one day and told him if there was ever a situation where a child needed a family, we would pay the expenses and joyfully take them in. He said he would keep us in mind if something should ever arise. I also reached out to some friends at Louisiana Right to Life and organizations letting them know the same thing. We hadn’t told anyone about the conversations.

I was driving home a week later when my mom called me. She opened the conversation with, “So…do y’all want a baby?” I was surprised by the question. We talked and she heard through the grapevine that there was an opportunity to adopt a child. A young lady who already had two children was pregnant, without a home, and considering making one of the most sacrificial acts a mom can make-give her sweet child up for adoption so they could possibly have a better life. I told Valerie and she broke down crying. Things moved fast, I mean, very fast. We made contact within a day with the young lady, found an adoption attorney through a family at the school I worked at, and set up a trip to Tennessee to meet the young lady. The meeting was providential and she said we were the ones. She said she had peace that we would take care of her sweet girl.

Our church immediately moved in support throwing us a baby shower the following week. Private adoptions are excessively expensive and, without being asked, a beloved family member stepped in and loaned us money to cover the legal and adoption fees. A gofundme as well as the generosity of family, church members, and even strangers helped cover some of the expenses. The two months were stressful to say the least. There was always the fear that even after covering the cost of the adoption as well as care for the birth mom, the adoption could fall through.

Because the adoption was in another state, we had to stay there for the birth and subsequent legal benchmarks. We had to stay for a whole month. Out of the blue, God raised up a Christian couple who had a whole downstairs apartment they were willing to let us use free of charge. We had never met them but they opened their home to us so we could give Addie a home. We didn’t know them from Adam and Eve yet God used them to provide a place for us in another state. Another act of grace was the Lord providing for us while we were out of work for a month. I had so many vacation days saved up but a couple coworkers willingly donated many of their vacation days as well so we would not be financially burdened while in Tennessee. Many others also supplied us with gift cards to cover expenses while there.

The moment we got the call that the birth mom was going into labor set into motion a wild experience. We drove to Chattanooga and got to the hospital before her. She was due at the hospital but didn’t arrive until hours later. Was she going to show up? She finally arrived after what felt like an eternity. We anxiously stayed up as she began delivering Addie. Valerie got to be in the room. Addie arrived and our world was forever changed. The next five days were filled with delight as well as a slight worry. A birth mom has up to five days to reverse an adoption. Every call felt like the end, especially if it was a number we didn’t recognize. Yet, we trusted in God and spent those days enjoying sweet Addie and all the family who drove up to meet her. The fifth day passed and everything was set in legal stone. Addie belonged to us and we belonged to her. We became her parents, a steward of a precious gift from God.

The hero of the story is definitely Addie’s birth mom. Words cannot express the amount of joy, gratitude, and love we have for her. She gave us the ultimate gift. We wanted her to know that Addie will grow up knowing that her birth mom was a model of courage, unconditional love, & strength. Addie will know our love and the story of her love too. We will never be able to truly describe how much her act of sacrifice means to us. Addie will grow up knowing she’s adopted and the story of God’s goodness, faithfulness, and sovereignty.

God has immeasurably blessed our family through Addison. So many people have taken an active role in pouring into her life. She was the first child to be adopted in our church and within our family. We couldn’t have made it through the process without everyone’s’ love, kindness, and help. I honestly cannot imagine what life would be without Addie. She’s growing like a weed and continually amazes us. People say all the time that they are amazed to learn she’s adopted because she looks so much like me. I reply, “Bless her heart. It is ok if she looks like me now as long as she looks like Valerie when she gets older.” Each moment is a token of God’s lavish goodness and grace because it did not have to be. Being her parents is one of the greatest privileges and responsibilities of our lives. Thank you to everyone who has had a small or large hand in the story of our sweet Addie girl. The best, of course, is yet to come.

P.S. We set up an email for her where we send pictures and little notes to her. We intend to give it to her when she gets older. If you would like to drop her a little note, email her at addisondearmond315@gmail.com. Our local paper wrote a story about our adoption of Addison, which can be found here.