Making the decision to place a child up for adoption is rarely an easy one for parents. Even if they know it's in their baby's best interest, the choice can be agonizing and result in lasting trauma for both mother and child.
But some adopted kids do end up reuniting with their biological parents later in life, which can sometimes result in the healing of some of that trauma. Amanda Rector and the son she gave up for adoption 18 years ago, Hunter Bouchette, recently had such an experience when they met for the first time, by chance, at a local Walmart.
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Amanda Rector gave her son up for adoption because she was addicted to drugs.
"Nineteen years ago, I had to give my son up for adoption because I was addicted to drugs and I couldn't take care of the kid," Amanda explained in a TikTok video posted on December 30, 2023. "And so I gave him up for adoption and then I went to prison and I got sober. And I've been sober for 17 years."
Amanda continued, "And so eventually, like last year, we met for the first time. And it was like just one of these happenstance, all of a sudden we ran into each other at Walmart. His sweet girlfriend kind of introduced us or whatever, and we started forming like a relationship."
In a recent interview, she opened up about meeting Hunter for the first time.
During an interview with Today, Amanda opened up about meeting Hunter for the first time — at Walmart of all places. Amanda and her older son, Jameson, were at Walmart when she saw him speaking with a teenage girl.
“She was like, ‘What’s your name? And when he told her, she pointed down the aisle and said, ‘That’s your brother,’” Amanda told Today.
Evidently, Hunter had become curious about his biological mother and discovered her identity online. He hadn't reached out yet, but he and his girlfriend recognized Jameson.
“I was speechless. I couldn’t believe it was happening,” Amanda explained. “I didn’t know if he was going to be mad at me and cuss me out. And I would have been OK with that.” Instead, the biological mother and son hugged.
In another TikTok video, Amanda went into detail about her drug addiction when she was pregnant with Hunter.
In December, Amanda offered more details about her state of mind when she was pregnant with Hunter.
"When my son, Jameson, was about 1 year old, I got pregnant. And this is when I was still on drugs and things were bad. I had lost custody of Jameson and my life was in shambles," she explained in a TikTok video. "And you're probably going to hate me for what I'm about to say next, but if it helps even one girl out there, then it's worth it. I could not stop using drugs."
Amanda continued, "I hated myself because I was like, 'What the hell kind of mother does this?' I didn't understand about the power of addiction at that time and I just thought I was a horrible person."
Although she left her baby at the hospital, she got to hold him a few days later.
When Hunter was born, there were drugs in both his and Amanda's systems. A CPS worker talked to Amanda, asking her if she had a crib, a car seat, formula, or anything a baby might need.
"And she said, 'Honey, you know you're not going to be able to take this baby home with you.' And I said, 'Yeah,'" Amanda shared.
Amanda left the hospital without her baby boy. A few days later, she went to the emergency room for a medical issue with her boyfriend. Ultimately, she went to the labor and delivery floor and asked someone at the nurses station if she could hold Hunter. The nurse agreed and took Amanda and Hunter to a dark room with a rocking chair.
“After she left I looked down at him and started whispering in his ear, ‘I’m so sorry. This is not me. I’m so sorry that this is your life,’” Amanda told Today. “All those feelings I had been bottling up cracked wide open.”
Hunter also reflected on meeting his biological mom.
Shortly after Hunter was adopted by his family, Amanda went to prison after she committed an armed robbery, Today reported. She served two and half years of her five-year sentence. Amanda turned to Christianity while in prison and ultimately got sober.
Because Amanda and Hunter lived in the same community, she caught glimpses of him as a child throughout the years. But she never approached her bio son because "it wasn't my place," she told Today.
Now, Hunter is thankful they finally reconnected. “I’m so proud of her,” he told Today. “She completely turned her life around and we’re building a relationship that we never could have had before.”
