Introducing our daughter...

Colette (Coco) Arya Briggs 

We have our little girl. God is so kind to give her to us. Looking back, we clearly see why God had us walk down the path we did, to be scammed out of our adoption savings, to cry more tears than I have ever cried, and to go through more heartbreak than we have ever experienced. It was all for this little bundle.

We received a text from our adoption agency on Monday, November 26th, that a baby girl had been born and that she needed a family. We didn't have much information at all but felt a complete peace about the situation and decided to present to the birth mother right away. In a matter of hours, we were chosen to be her parents! Birth mom signed over her rights the very next day and the days that followed we prepared to travel to our baby. OUR baby! It seemed so surreal! We were parents!!!

We were told Coco could be in the NICU for a few weeks because she was born 7 weeks early and only weighed 3 pounds, 10 ounces. Josh planned to stay the first week and then travel back to work and I would prepare to stay until Coco was discharged from the hospital, however long that would be.

We traveled to her later that week and when we walked into that NICU unit, we were motioned to the little incubator that housed our baby. They removed the blanket covering the incubator and we looked on our beautiful Colette for the first time. What a little beauty she was! Josh gave me a delighted exclamation, "She's so precious!" and I stuck my hand through the glass window to lay it over her tiny body and whisper, "Hi, baby girl. Mommy and Daddy are here."

The baby girl that we had been praying for all along was right in front of our eyes. Our prayers had not been wasted. The Colette that we had talked about and prayed for was this tiny beautiful little creature. God had taken those prayers that we had thought were going toward a particular child and had administered them to her. He had prepared us to be her parents all along. Before the foundation of the world, this child was meant to be in our arms, and our hearts forever.

God miraculously protected our little one and she has amazed the doctors and nurses over and over again. One of our beloved NICU nurses even told us that in the 30 years that she had been a nurse, she never saw a case quite like Colette's and the progress she had made. It is all a testament to God's protection and the answer to so many prayers by not only her parents but the countless people that have prayed for her since the beginning.

Our days in the NICU were such a blessed time as we bonded as a new family of three. We spent time reading and singing to, feeding, changing, bathing, cuddling, and studying every little feature of our baby girl. She is so beautiful and such a picture of God's grace and faithfulness to us. She is far more amazing than we could ever hope for and we can't wait to spend our days treasuring her and showing her the love of Jesus.

This past year has been one of the hardest of our lives but also the most rewarding. It has been so amazing to witness God's faithfulness to us first hand and to have a daily reminder before us that He is sovereign and He is good.

We want to thank every single person who has prayed for us, sacrificed financially to bless our little family, and have encouraged our hearts along this adoption journey. We have had family and friends spend countless hours helping us raise money, given sacrificially, and have come along side us when we wanted to give up. You guys will always have a special place in our hearts and your gestures have meant more to us than you will ever know.

We love you!
Josh, Hannah, & Colette