Liz Smith’s initial reaction when she spotted the bright blue-eyed youngster on her way to work as director of nursing at Franciscan Children’s Hospital in Brighton, Massachusetts, was, “Who is this lovely angel?” She turned out to be a NICU preemie, and she would forever transform Smith’s life.
Giselle, an eight-month-old ward of the state, had previously spent five months in the hospital. She was born prematurely, weighing just under two pounds, and was diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome.
Gisele was born in July 2016, and in her third month, the state of Massachusetts acquired custody of her and moved her to the Franciscan Children’s Hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit.
She had a feeding tube as a NICU preterm, and her lungs required special attention. Gisele did not have a single visitor during her five-month stay.
When Smith met Gisele, social services were attempting to place her in foster care. “I’m going to foster this baby,” she knew the instant she saw the newborn. “I’m going to be her mother,” she says.
This was not how Smith had imagined her life as a mother. She had a compassionate and caring temperament and had always envisioned herself as a mother.
Smith’s mother died of liver cancer when she was 19 years old, while she was growing up in Andover, Massachusetts. She made the decision to honor her mother by following in her footsteps.
“My mother was a pediatric nurse who was constantly concerned about others. As a result, I aspired to be a nurse as well.” Smith was the middle child, with two brothers and two sisters, and she was disappointed when her siblings started establishing families of their own.
“I never expected that becoming a mother would be difficult. It’s a need you can try to ignore by distracting yourself with other things, but it never goes away.”
Smith quickly established herself as “the world’s greatest aunt” to 13 nieces and nephews, but she craved more. “I always saw Liz as a mom, since she’s a nurturer by nature,” her sister Elly Smith, 40, said.
Smith looked into other options, but she couldn’t afford in vitro fertilization and didn’t want to adopt.
Gisele, on the other hand, altered her mind. “There was something behind her beautiful blue eyes that drew my interest from the moment I met her.
I felt compelled to adore this child and protect her.” She began the paperwork to foster Gisele right once, anxious to watch the NICU preterm develop into a strong and healthy child.
Smith was able to take Gisele home when she was 9 months old, with the understanding that the state would continue to try to reunite her with her birth parents.
“I was in amazement that it was occurring as I drove out of the hospital parking lot with Gisele and a car full of baby gear.”
I was both pleased and nervous as I realized I was dedicating everything I had to a child who might not be in my life indefinitely.”
The authorities quickly concluded that Gisele’s parents were unable to care for her, allowing the baby to be adopted. Smith was both pleased and disappointed by the news.
“It was a really sad day when I got the call that their parental rights had been revoked.” My gain was someone else’s loss. It’s difficult to convey how you feel when you’re going through a life-changing experience and someone else is going through it in the opposite direction. The final truth is that it is a tragedy for yet another family.”
Under Smith’s loving care, the NICU preemie thrived, and she was officially welcomed into the family in October 2018. “This is the mother-daughter bond my sister has waited a long time for,” Phil Smith, 44, said. It’s clear that they’ve given one other a sense of completion.”
Gisele is still on a feeding tube at the age of two, but she has gained 23 pounds and enjoys cheese, avocados, and pizza. She’s gone a long way from being a lonely NICU preterm at Franciscan Children’s Hospital. She’s energetic and affectionate.
To find out more about their amazing story, see the video below:
