After years of hoping and trying to become a mother, one nurse’s dream finally came true when she met a new patient whose own family couldn’t care for her.
Her story is inspiring and shows us what true love looks like.
In 2017, Liz Smith was the director of nursing at Franciscan Children’s Hospital in Massachusetts.
She had no idea that her job would lead her to her dream of finally becoming a mother.
When Liz was 19-years-old, she sadly lost her own mother to cancer.
Liz had followed in her mother’s footsteps by becoming a nurse. She also planned to have a family of her own but had struggled with infertility.
While at work, she spotted a new patient in the NICU whom she had never seen before.
Liz was told that the eight-month-old baby girl named Gisele had been recently transferred to the hospital.
Gisele had been born premature and was suffering from the effects of her mother’s drug use during pregnancy.
She only weighed two pounds at birth. The first time Liz saw her, Gisele required a feeding tube and was receiving specialized care for her lungs.
Liz was then told that the baby had not had a single visitor in five months.
Social services was trying to place Gisele in a foster home and that’s when Liz knew she had to step in to care for this baby.
Liz would visit Gisele every day after her shift.
Finally, she got the word that she had been approved as Gisele’s foster parent and could take her home.
“Leaving the parking lot of the hospital with Gisele and a car full of baby stuff, I was in shock that it was happening,” said Liz in an interview with The Washington Post.
However, the state was still trying to reunite Gisele with her birth parents.
Gisele’s birth parents were granted weekly supervised visits while Liz was fostering her.
Under Liz’s care, Gisele began hitting her development milestones for the first time.
She took her first steps and began saying words.
Ultimately, Gisele’s birth parents were deemed incapable for caring for her.
The news brought a mix of emotions for Liz.
It meant that she could apply to adopt Gisele, but she knew it also meant Gisele’s birth parents were losing their daughter.
“The day I got the call that their parental rights were terminated was very sad,” she said in an interview with The Washington Post. “My gain was another’s loss.”
In October 2018, Liz’s dream of becoming a mom came true.
A judge completed Liz’s adoption application and she became Gisele’s mother legally.
To celebrate, Liz and Gisele shared this photo.
The photo marked the new start for this family whose story began in the NICU.
Even though their story has a happy ending, Liz and Gisele still face some medical challenges.
As of April 2019, Gisele still required a feeding tube but is making huge strides in her growth and development.