Today’s beautiful story is from Boston, Massachusetts. This 2019 story is about a woman named Liz Smith – director of nursing at Franciscan Children’s Hospital. It’s about how fate made her meet a beautiful baby girl who’d be her daughter one day.
Liz Smith, who’s in the 40s, doesn’t have children. She tried getting IVF (In Vitro Fertilization), but it didn’t work. She had always dreamed of being a mother one day.
That Fateful Day
One day, as Liz was walking towards the hospital’s elevator. She saw a nurse carrying an infant with beautiful blue eyes. Liz asked the nurse:
“Who’s this beautiful angel?”
To which, the nurse responded:
“Her name is Gisele,”
Gisele was eight months old, and she was born prematurely with neonatal abstinence syndrome – a syndrome in infants when their mothers are drug users. The beautiful baby weighed under 8 pounds.
Gisele’s parents were deemed unfit to be her guardians when Gisele was three months old, and the hospital was looking into putting her in the foster care system. That night, Liz told herself:
“I’m going to foster this baby. I’m going to be her mother.”
Becoming a Mother
According to The Washington Post, Liz knew the moment she saw Gisele that she had to take her into her care. Liz said:
“Since the moment I met her, there was something behind her striking blue eyes capturing my attention,”
“I felt that I needed to love this child and keep her safe.”
She put in a request to foster the child and went to see her at the hospital everyday.
“She was behind developmentally, and I wanted to get her out of the hospital and get her thriving,”
When Gisele was nine months old, Liz’s foster request was approved, and she could finally take the baby home! Liz spoke of how it felt leaving the parking lot with Gisele:
“Leaving the parking lot of the hospital with Gisele and a car full of baby stuff, I was in shock that it was happening,”
She was dedicated and scared at the same time. Her dream of being a mom was finally coming to fruition. Liz spoke:
“I was excited but nervous, realizing that I was committing everything I had to this child who might not be in my life forever,”
Gisele’s birth parents were allowed to visit her, but the state soon terminated their parental rights.
Liz could finally apply for adoption to become Gisele’s mother. She spoke of the bitter-sweet moment:
“The day I got the call that their parental rights were terminated was very sad,”
“My gain was another’s loss. It’s a feeling difficult to describe when you are experiencing this life-changing moment that someone else is as well, in the opposite way. The bottom line is: It’s devastating for another family.”
Liz Smith is now Gisele’s mother. She nurtures, protects, takes care of her every need, and makes sure she grows up to be a happy child.
We wish the mother-daughter duo more happiness and good health!
Sources:
- The Washington Post
- Franciscan Children’s – Liz & Gisele’s Story
- Images & Featured Image via Franciscan Children’s
- Images & Featured Image via Ashley Pizzuti on Instagram
Comment Your Thoughts Below
What are your thoughts on Gisele’s incredible and emotional story? Talk to us in the comments below!
What the Liz did is her humanity and her desire to experience motherhood. Motherhood is present in all of us and she listen to her mind .
I would like to bless both mother and daughter for there incredible journey. ❤️