Michelle’s Story
I had just graduated high school. I should have been voted “most likely to stay a virgin until marriage.” If quotes had been recorded, I probably would have been quoted saying, “Come to church with me!” I was the holy-roller-goody-two-shoes type and it was my first semester in college away from home when I met one of “those guys.”
At the start of my next semester I found out that I was pregnant. I was forced to leave my Christian school and moved back in with my parents away from the birthfather. The first three months of my pregnancy were spent in utter confusion about what to do. My mother suggested adoption and I had no idea what it was all about. After calling an agency in California that told me there was such a thing as open adoption, I became curious about it. Was there such a thing that would allow me to have a relationship with my child?
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Dora’s Story
Dora has a unique perspective, because she parented 13 months before she decided on adoption.
The pregnancy…
When I found out that I was pregnant, I was happy. I thought that I was prepared and that I would be able to handle single parenting. After all, I was 20 years old and had a job. Also, and this was the biggest factor, I thought that the baby would fill the void that was in my life. So I prepared to have a baby. I use the word “prepared” loosely. I took the Lamaze classes and somewhat tried to financially prepare, but that was the extent of it.
Parenting…
Fast forward to when Brianna came into my life:
Here was the little person who looked to me for all her needs. But the honeymoon soon came to a screeching halt. I had no clue what was in store. I tried to balance the tasks of raising her and myself (I say myself, because I had a lot of growing up to do emotionally and spiritually). Finances also become a huge concern. I was tapped into the state system to get cheap shots and WIC, but that was never enough.
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