"I think I found our son"

After viewing hundreds of kids and watching numerous videos, I asked our adoption agency to view a file for a little boy they had listed on their website.

From: lkessler@pcgscurrency.com
To: heidigoestochina@msn.com
Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2013 17:13:33 -0600
Subject: Lancelot

Hi Heidi.

May I please review the complete file for Lancelot?

Laura

 

Because it was Friday night, I thought I would hear back from her sometime Monday. Nope! I got an immediate reply.

Heidi Hawkins <heidigoestochina@msn.com> wrote:

Hi Laura-

Exciting news for Lancelot, but Lancelot's family stepped forward this week and his file is locked.

Langston still needs a family would you like to see his file?

Best wishes,

Heidi Hawkins
China International Specialist

Langston's name sounded familiar, but I couldn't place the exact child she was asking about. So I replied.

From: lkessler@pcgscurrency.com
To: heidigoestochina@msn.com
Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2013 20:56:35 -0600
Subject: RE: Lancelot

Great news for Lancelot! 

Yes, please send file for Langston. I would love to know more details about him.

Laura

Then Heidi replied with files attached.

Subject: RE: Langston
Date: Fri Feb 22 20:59:49 CST 2013
From: Heidi Hawkins <heidigoestochina@msn.com>
To: Laura Kessler <lkessler@pcgscurrency.com>

:)

Heidi Hawkins
China International Specialist 

I first (like most) wanted to look at his pictures. he was beautiful! And look at that smile!

Yeah, I noticed that the last two pictures are the same with different back grounds.

I immediately ran to my computer to view the profile for Langston.

"Holy cow! That sounds serious" I thought. Why did they remove this poor child's meningosomething and don't we need those? I'd better google this. After reading what I could find on the internet, I laughed at myself. This was nothing. NOTHING.

I called Jason and asked him to come to the garage where I was with my laptop. That's where I go for privacy when I need to concentrate. I pulled up the bio on Langston and turned my laptop towards him. Jason said, "He's really cute." and read  further. "Oh, no. Why doesn't he have a spinal cord or nervous root in his dural sac.?" I explained to him that it was a mild form of Spina Bifida and it was surgically repaired when he was 1 1/2 years old. Jason read the files that Heidi emailed carefully. I had already done this three times. And then he said, "Laura, I think we found our son."  I can't describe the emotion I felt I that exact moment. He felt the same thing I was feeling. It's not like a car that I really want and have to talk him in to it. This was going to be our child. Forever.

Next was Payton. She came to the garage, looked at his picture, carefully read his bio and said, "Yup. He's the one." While still reading his bio, she pointed to the top of my monitor to his birth date, which I failed to notice was the day after hers. She announced to me that she is not sharing birthday with him! I replied and told her, "What makes you think he wants to share a birthday with you anyways?" Payton asked me if he had any brothers or sisters, "because if he does, we have to take them all, mom." I told her that it appears to be just him. That was Payton's only stipulation throughout this entire process. She didn't care what race, gender, special need or age her new sibling would be. Her only requirement was that if they had brothers or sister, we had to take them ALL. I actually agreed with her.

I quickly replied to Heidi:

From: lkessler@pcgscurrency.com
To: heidigoestochina@msn.com
Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2013 21:56:43 -0600
Subject: RE: Langston

Jason and I are very interested in Langston. Excited about him, actually. Are you available by email or working tomorrow?

Laura

She replied.

Heidi Hawkins <heidigoestochina@msn.com> wrote:

can we talk now? I'm at the office

Heidi Hawkins
China International Specialist

I had an amazing conversation with Heidi where she gently reminded me that I have yet to actually sign with their agency. Oops. With the amount of work and effort they have put in to helping me, I had totally forgot. Shortly after our conversation, an email from Heidi was sent to me with all of her co-workers cc'd. There were tons of attachments, but the subject like read

Langston-LOCK AND AGENCY DOCUMENTS

and a message in the body " Let's lock Langston's file :)"

Oh, wow. This is real. I have a son. And he is in China!