When she was a little girl, Jenna dreamed of becoming a mother. Adoption was always part of that dream. Even before she understood what it meant, she knew in her heart she wanted to love children who might not look like her. In March of 2015, Jenna and Kellon eloped after only four months of dating long-distance. They were adventurous and spontaneous, sure they had found the right person to spend forever with. They dreamed of travel, laughter, and a big family.
For their first year of marriage, they enjoyed life together. Soon after their anniversary, they received joyful news. Jenna was pregnant. Holding that positive test, their hearts filled with happiness. They imagined the life ahead with their first child. But only weeks later, Jenna’s body showed signs of miscarriage. The physical pain was matched by crushing grief. Their first baby was gone. The doctor gave the words many women hear: miscarriage is common, it happens often, just keep trying. So they tried again.
For a year, they endured heartbreak after heartbreak. Jenna became pregnant, only to miscarry again. Then again. Four times in total, each one more painful than the last. With each loss came tests, questions, tears, and deep sadness. Jenna sank into postpartum depression. Yet a quiet peace began to grow in the middle of that dark year. Maybe, she thought, their family was meant to come together differently.
Exactly one year after trying for a biological child, Jenna and Kellon started the adoption process. Adoption had always been on their hearts. They thought it would happen after having one or two biological children. But now they realized this was their true path. The process was overwhelming. They researched agencies, completed a home study, took drug tests, were fingerprinted, and underwent background checks. They became a waiting family. Waiting was full of questions. How long would it take? Would they be chosen? Would a birth mother change her mind?
A few months later, they connected with a young woman late in her pregnancy through a mutual friend. This would be a private adoption. Jenna and Kellon poured themselves into supporting her. They shopped together, cared for her, and dreamed of the baby they would raise. When the baby was born, Jenna and Kellon held the child they thought would be theirs. But the next day, their lawyer called. The birth mother had decided to parent. The grief hit hard. They had carved out space in their hearts and lives for that baby, and now it was gone. Still, they supported the birth mother’s decision. Any woman who wants her child and can make a way to raise them deserves that chance. They were proud of her courage, even though their pain was heavy.
Days later, something happened that they never expected. Their agency called about a newborn boy, who was only two days old. Would they allow their profile book to be shown to their birth mother? The very next day came the news: she had chosen them. Jenna describes that moment as the most tremendous honor of her life, being determined by a mother to raise her child. That same day, she met her son for the first time. The moment she saw his tiny body in the hospital bed, she knew. He was her baby. They named him Isaiah.
Isaiah was born a little early and spent two weeks in the NICU. Those days became some of the most precious of Jenna’s life. She held him, fed him, and whispered love over him. When Isaiah finally came home, joy filled their house. Friends and family who had prayed and waited alongside them came to meet him. Jenna realized infertility is never just about the parents. Everyone who loves them waits too. Isaiah had been worth every tear, every test, every broken plan. They had waited two years for him, without even knowing it.
Now, as Jenna watches Isaiah grow, smile, and light up every room, she sees the purpose behind every loss and trial. The string of grief, the failed adoption, the heartbreak—it was all part of the tapestry that led them to him. For Jenna, adoption has shown that family is not built on genetics, but on love. Love makes a family. And love brought them their son.
