‘Families don’t have to match’ – Black couple share their journey to adopting three white children

Sadie and Jarvis Sampson tried everything for years to get pregnant, and eventually they accepted that they would only ever be aunt and uncle. Then, one day, they received a text that completely turned their world upside down.

Since getting married in January 2018, the pair has been trying to get pregnant, so when that didn’t work out naturally, they tried everything else.

The Houston mother told Love What Matters, “Ovulation tests, prenatal vitamins, cycle tracking apps, fertility monitors.”

“We didn’t even try our luck at following the unsolicited counsel of strangers, friends, and family. We tried, prayed, and waited for fourteen months. Month after Month. pregnancy test negative following negative test. It appeared like we would require help getting pregnant. We even went so far as to discuss it with medical professionals.

The couple seemed to get little assistance from the doctors. Sadie was advised by everyone that she would get pregnant if she reduced weight. Since she had no other options, she underwent gastric surgery and shed 28 pounds.

“She informed me that since she was unable to give me the fertility medication, she would refer me to a fertility specialist if I wasn’t pregnant within six months,” Sadie recalled. I was ecstatic to hear that. We finally received a response other than “no”! We were ecstatic to hear “not right now.”

Unfortunately, though, the couple felt as though they had begun over after Sadie lost the weight and they were unable to conceive.

Connecting the Dots – Adoption Puzzle Fundraising EventAs everyone is aware, we received a call regarding our little two weeks ago.

Published on Friday, August 30, 2019 by Sadie Sampson

Sadie said, “I had always felt like I was meant to be a mother.” “I was still not pregnant even though my surgeon had spent a long time to warn me about how fertile I would be following surgery. Thus, we gave up. We came to the realization that our only destiny was to be our nieces’ aunts and uncles and our goddaughters’ godparents.

The couple had just come to the painful conclusion that they would not be able to conceive when Sadie’s friend texted her to ask if they would be willing to foster a child that a couple she knew was thinking about for themselves.

At first, the couple was apprehensive since they had been instructed by a caseworker to look after the child while the mother sought therapy. The couple was concerned that they would grow overly devoted to the child. But soon after, the narrative was altered.

The caseworker stated, “The birth mother decided she would prefer you guys adopt the child instead.”

“Holy crap!!” was the first thing Sadie uttered out loud when she learned she was expecting a child.

“Overnight, we went from not having any kids to possibly fostering one to, ‘You guys are parents!’” Still in shock, I listened to the caseworker as she spoke. After hanging up, I dialed my spouse! “Baby!” They desire that we adopt the child! They want us to have kids,” I cried out. Hold on! Really? He exclaimed, “I assumed they just wanted us to foster him.” “Nope!” “They want us to be his parents,” I remarked.

Over the weekend, the couple not only processed the surprising news but also braced themselves in case the mother had second thoughts.

On Monday, the mother not only expressed her desire for them to adopt the child, but also stated that she was prepared to sign the adoption papers independently.

At 33 weeks, their son had been born—seven weeks ahead of schedule. His weight was 4 lbs. 5 oz. Sadie writes, “He fit in one of my husband’s hands.”

Sadie said, “He was so small, swaddled in a white blanket with stripes of pink and blue.” He was early, therefore he couldn’t eat on his own, thus an NG tube was coming out of his nose. But my goodness, was he adorable!

The couple was urged to create a registry after they announced their announcement on social media. In just three days, 55 of the 72 goods they had advertised had been purchased.

Following the adoption of Ezra Lee, which was completed in October 2020, the couple had the cutest family portraits shot, sporting t-shirts that said, “Families don’t have to match.”

Through embryo donation, Sadie and Jarvis became parents to twin twins, Destinee and Journey, in 2021. The black couple, adhering to their family credo, “Families don’t have to match,” gave birth to three white children: two girls and one boy.

There is just one reaction for anyone who judges this lovely family: love is the strongest foundation there is.

My Husband Refused to Replace Our Broken Vacuum and Said I Should Sweep Since I’m ‘Just on Maternity Leave’ — So I Taught Him a Lesson He’ll Never Forget

When our vacuum broke, my husband said I should just sweep because I’m “home all day anyway.” So I grabbed our newborn and a broken broom and showed up at his office to remind him exactly what that really looks like.

I’m 30. I just had my first baby, a sweet little girl named Lila. She’s 9 weeks old, and yeah—she’s perfect. But also? She’s chaos. She screams like she’s in a horror movie. Hates naps. Hates being put down. Basically lives in my arms.

A fussy baby in his mother's arms | Source: Pexels

A fussy baby in his mother’s arms | Source: Pexels

I’m on unpaid maternity leave, which sounds relaxing until you realize it means I’m working a 24/7 shift with no help, no breaks, and no paycheck.

I’m also handling the house. And the laundry. And the meals. And the litter boxes. We have two cats, both of whom shed like it’s their full-time job.

A tired woman sitting on a couch | Source: Pexels

A tired woman sitting on a couch | Source: Pexels

My husband Mason is 34. He works in finance. Used to be sweet. When I was pregnant, he made me tea and rubbed my feet. Now? I’m not sure he sees me. I’m the woman who hands him the baby so he can say “she’s fussy” and give her back five seconds later.

Last week, the vacuum died. Which, in a house with two cats and beige carpet, is like losing oxygen.

A woman vacuuming | Source: Pexels

A woman vacuuming | Source: Pexels

“Hey,” I told Mason while he was playing Xbox. “The vacuum finally kicked it. I found a decent one on sale. Can you grab it this week?”

He didn’t even look up. Just paused his game and said, “Why? Just use a broom.”

I blinked. “Seriously?”

He nodded. “Yeah. My mom didn’t have a vacuum when we were kids. She raised five of us with a broom. You’ve got one. And you’re home all day.”

A man lounging on the couch | Source: Pexels

A man lounging on the couch | Source: Pexels

I stared at him.

“You’re not joking,” I said.

“Nope.” He smirked. “She didn’t complain.”

I let out this weird laugh. Half choking, half dying inside.

“Did your mom also carry a screaming baby around while sweeping with one arm?” I asked.

He shrugged. “Probably. She got it done. Women were tougher back then.”

A man arguing with his wife | Source: Pexels

A man arguing with his wife | Source: Pexels

I took a breath. Tried to keep calm. “You do know the baby’s crawling soon, right? She’s going to have her face in this carpet.”

Another shrug. “The place isn’t that bad.”

I looked around. There were literal cat tumbleweeds in the corner.

“And anyway,” he added, “I don’t have spare money right now. I’m saving for the yacht trip next month. With the guys.”

“You’re saving for what?”

A man turning away from his wife | Source: Pexels

A man turning away from his wife | Source: Pexels

“The boat weekend. I told you. I need the break. I’m the one bringing in income right now. It’s exhausting.”

That’s when I stopped talking. Because what was I going to say?

“You haven’t changed a diaper in days?” “You nap while I pump milk at 3 a.m.?” “You think scrubbing spit-up off a onesie is relaxing?”

I didn’t say any of it. I just nodded.

A sad woman sitting on the couch | Source: Pexels

A sad woman sitting on the couch | Source: Pexels

Apparently, child-rearing is a spa retreat now, and the woman doing it doesn’t deserve a working vacuum. That night, after Lila finally fell asleep on my chest, I didn’t cry. I didn’t yell.

I just sat in the hallway. The light was off, but the dim glow from the nightlight hit the baby monitor just right. It was quiet. Too quiet.

I looked at the broken vacuum. Then I looked at the broom.

A crying woman | Source: Pexels

A crying woman | Source: Pexels

I got up. Took the broom in both hands. Snapped it clean in half.

The next morning, while Mason was at work, I texted him.

“Busy day at the office?”

“Yeah. Back-to-backs. Why?”

“Oh. No reason. I’m just on my way.”

A woman talking on her phone at home | Source: Pexels

A woman talking on her phone at home | Source: Pexels

I packed Lila into the car, still red-faced from her morning meltdown. I tossed the broken broom in the back.

And I drove.

I pulled into the parking lot of Mason’s office with Lila screaming in the back like I’d strapped her into a rocket seat instead of a car seat. She’d just blown out her diaper on the drive, and she wasn’t shy about letting me know how she felt about it.

A baby crying | Source: Pexels

A baby crying | Source: Pexels

Perfect.

I wiped spit-up off my shirt, threw a burp cloth over my shoulder, hoisted the broken broom, and unbuckled the baby.

“Alright, Lila,” I muttered. “Let’s go say hi to Daddy.”

His office building was all glass and steel and fake smiles. I walked in with a red-faced baby in one arm and a jagged broom handle in the other.

A woman holding a baby | Source: Pexels

A woman holding a baby | Source: Pexels

The receptionist blinked twice when she saw us.

“Can I help—?”

“I’m Mason Carter’s wife,” I said, smiling widely. “He left something important at home.”

“Oh. Um. Sure. He’s in a meeting, but you can go back.”

I walked past her desk like I owned the place.

A kind woman holding a baby | Source: Pexels

A kind woman holding a baby | Source: Pexels

Lila started wailing again just as I turned the corner into the conference room. There he was. Mason. Sitting at a long glass table with four coworkers, laughing about something on a spreadsheet like he didn’t have a wife slowly unraveling at home.

He looked up. His face went white.

“Babe—what are you doing here?” he said, standing up fast.

I walked straight in and laid the two snapped broom pieces gently on the table in front of him.

A shocked man | Source: Pexels

A shocked man | Source: Pexels

“Honey,” I said, shifting Lila on my hip, “I tried using the broom like your mom did with her five kids. But it broke. Again.”

The room went silent. Someone coughed. One guy just stared at his laptop like it was suddenly the most interesting thing he’d ever seen.

I looked around the room and kept going.

A woman cuddling a sleeping baby | Source: Pexels

A woman cuddling a sleeping baby | Source: Pexels

“So,” I said calmly, “should I keep sweeping the carpet with my hands while holding your daughter? Or are you going to buy a new vacuum?”

Mason looked like he might actually faint. His eyes darted between me, the broom, and his coworkers. His jaw opened and closed like he couldn’t decide which disaster to address first.

“Can we talk outside?” he said, his voice sharp and low, already standing.

“Of course,” I said with a smile.

A tired man looking at the camera | Source: Pexels

A tired man looking at the camera | Source: Pexels

He yanked the door closed behind us hard enough that the glass shook.

“What the hell was that?” he hissed. His face was bright red now, all his calm corporate charm gone.

“That was me being resourceful,” I said. “Like your mom.”

“You embarrassed me!” he snapped, glancing over his shoulder toward the conference room. “That was a client pitch. My boss was in there.”

An angry businessman | Source: Pexels

An angry businessman | Source: Pexels

“Oh, sorry,” I said, cocking my head. “I thought you said this was all part of the job. Housewife stuff. What’s the issue? I’m just doing what you said.”

He ran a hand over his face, frustrated. “I get it, okay? I messed up. I’ll get the vacuum today.”

“No need,” I said. “I already ordered one. With your card.”

I turned and walked out, Lila still crying, broom handle still under my arm.

A baby crying in their mother's arms | Source: Pexels

A baby crying in their mother’s arms | Source: Pexels

Mason got home that night quieter than usual. He didn’t toss his shoes in the hallway. Didn’t drop his keys on the counter like usual. Didn’t even glance at the Xbox.

I was on the couch feeding Lila. The living room was dim except for the glow from a floor lamp and the soft hum of the white noise machine in the corner. He sat down across from me, hands folded like he was waiting to be called into the principal’s office.

A serious man sitting down | Source: Pexels

A serious man sitting down | Source: Pexels

“I talked to HR today,” he said.

I looked up slowly. “HR?”

He nodded, staring at the carpet like it had answers. “Yeah. About our… situation. I said we were going through an adjustment. Stress at home. Lack of sleep. You know.”

I blinked at him. “You mean, you told your job your wife embarrassed you because she’s tired and doesn’t have a vacuum?”

A woman talking to an annoyed man | Source: Pexels

A woman talking to an annoyed man | Source: Pexels

He rubbed his neck. “That’s not what I said. I just… I didn’t mean to be dismissive, okay? I’ve got a lot going on too.”

I let a beat pass. Lila made a soft grunt in her sleep.

I didn’t yell. Didn’t even raise my voice. I just looked at him and said, calm as ever, “Mason, you’re either a husband and a father, or you’re a roommate with a guilt complex. You decide.”

A woman talking to her husband | Source: Pexels

A woman talking to her husband | Source: Pexels

He opened his mouth like he might argue. Then he closed it. Just nodded slowly, lips pressed together like he was swallowing something bitter.

The next morning, the yacht trip got canceled. He said the guys were “rescheduling,” but I didn’t ask questions. Pretty sure “the guys” didn’t even know it was happening.

A man talking on his phone | Source: Pexels

A man talking on his phone | Source: Pexels

That week, he vacuumed every rug in the house—twice. He looked like he was fighting a war with the dust bunnies. Didn’t say a word about it.

He changed three diapers without being asked. Took the 3 a.m. bottle shift two nights in a row, even when Lila screamed in his face like she knew he was new at it. He paced the hallway with her until she passed out on his shoulder.

A man on his laptop while holding a baby | Source: Pexels

A man on his laptop while holding a baby | Source: Pexels

He even took her for a walk Sunday morning so I could nap. Left a sticky note on the bathroom mirror that said, “Sleep. I’ve got her.”

I didn’t gloat. Didn’t say “told you so.” Didn’t bring up the office.

But the broken broom? Still sitting in the hallway, right where I left it. Just in case he forgets.

A wooden broom | Source: Pexels

A wooden broom | Source: Pexels

This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.

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