Family Profile
Nick, Christy & Lane Home: St Louis, MO (St. Louis County)
We began our adoption journey
many years ago, and on November 4, 2019 we finally met our son’s birth mom. Shortly after, she was admitted to the hospital with pre-eclampsia and delivered on November 27, 2019, two months premature. Our home was three hours away, but we raced to the hospital to welcome our baby boy. Lane Laver Overton was a healthy 5lb 2oz but was in respiratory distress and had complications. We only had seconds to see him before he was rushed away to be stabilized. After a few hours, we saw our son intubated and placed in an open isolate to keep him warm. It was terrifying and beautiful all at the same time, so many wires for such a little baby. After 25 hours of labor and the most exciting and terrifying moment of our lives, we are forever thankful the Ronald McDonald House was there to pull all of our needs together. Thanks to the staff, donors and volunteers, I was able to spend my days with our baby and have a place to eat, sleep and shower at night. I washed our baby’s’ first clothes and blankets at 1 a.m. at RMH where I met a mom whose son was in a coma from a bad car accident. We hugged and prayed for our boys in that laundry room. Our days were spent wondering when we could hold our little boy. We would stay at the hospital until we couldn’t stand, and then our nurses would smile and say “go get some sleep”. RMH made being with our son possible. After Lane’s father went back to work, I was left all alone to care for our preemie and manage the adoption formalities. As a first-time parent, it was tough, but the staff and friends at RMH became a second family for me. We came to RMH the night before Thanksgiving and the Christmas tree made us smile. When Christmas came and went, they made sure Santa came by our door. I was able to share my first kiss on NYE with my sweet baby boy and then have a place to sleep at night. After 44 days, our little boy got to come home. Our NICU nurses and RMH friends had become family, and their support helped us fight for our little boy’s life. They truly touched our souls, amazing me every single one of our 44 days with their love and generosity. I can honestly say our adoption wouldn’t have been such a great bonding experience without RMH. There are not enough words to express our gratefulness, and we can’t wait to give back to the Ronald McDonald House and spread the word of how truly amazing they are. Lane is a healthy 9-month-old now, wearing clothes and acting like a 1-year-old. He’s grown out of his “preemie” title, and we want everyone to know what a blessing the Ronald McDonald House was to our lives.
#forRMHCozarks
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