Each year in the United States, about 135,000 children are adopted. These kids come from all walks of life and are adopted at all ages. At any given point in the U.S., there are nearly 500,000 children in the foster system who want nothing more than a family to call their own.
Just think about that. Hundreds of thousands of children waiting patiently for someone to come in and give them the life they deserve.
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Parents Heather and Brent Dickerson recently decided to adopt a baby and open their home to a child in need. Haley Griffin and her fiancé Johnny Cheramie of Something Southern Photography followed along as Heather and Brent went to the hospital to collect their little bundle of joy.
The anticipation can be felt in the heartwarming photos and video from start to finish. They show the family of three washing up and preparing to meet the baby girl, Adela, for the first time. You can feel their excitement!
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You can tell that two-year-old Willa, who is also Heather and Brent’s adoptive daughter, is excited to meet her new little sister.
Heather wants the world to know that she’s not the only strong mother in this story we need to know about. Thirty-year-old Brandy Griffin, Adela’s birth mom, made the ultimate sacrifice to give her daughter a life she just knew she could not offer. Heather feels it’s important to share Brandy’s story as well, because without her, none of this joy would’ve been possible:
“Really Brandy’s the hero. She’s the one who had to break her own heart.”
After chatting with a few potential adopters, Brandy just knew in her heart that Heather and Brent would give her child the life she deserved. Heather’s texts to Brandy brought her to tears and it was clear to her from day one that there would be plenty of room in Heather’s huge heart for little Adela.
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Brandy announced to the couple on Christmas Day in 2017 that they were the ones she and the baby’s father wanted to adopt Adela. A few months later, Heather and Brent got the call that Brandy had gone into labor, so they hopped in their car and made the journey from Michigan to Louisiana to welcome Adela into their family.
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By this point, Heather and Brandy had really bonded and Heather made it clear that this was not a separation of families. Instead, Adela would forever be the beautiful bridge between the Griffins and the Dickersons.
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When everyone was at the hospital for their initial meeting, Haley and Johnny showed up with camera in hand to capture it all. What’s even more incredible is that Haley is actually Brandy’s sister, making this a true family affair.
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They all decided on an open adoption because Heather felt that it’d be extremely important to have Adela grow up knowing that she has two families who love her more than anything in the world.
To watch their incredible first meeting, check out the video down below and share it with the people you love!
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