Prophecy and Peace:

The Trice Family’s Journey to Completion

It was a little past bedtime when six-year-old Jackson came tiptoeing into his parent’s room. Before Palmer and Nicole could ask him what he needed, he blurted out, “God told me I’m gonna have a baby sister.”  They helped their son back to bed, but his words lingered in their hearts, until two years later when their third son was born.

They would have loved having a daughter, but it was clearly the right time to stop growing their family. “It seems our son doesn’t have the gift of prophecy after all,” Nicole quipped to Palmer.

But the Trice’s were having trouble feeling peace about capping off their family at five. Of course, they loved their three boys, but neither of them could shake the feeling that they were still incomplete. For Nicole, her mind frequently wandered to the future. When her three little men were grown up and off at college or work, would they call home? Or would they play into the young man stereotype and leave their poor mom wondering how they were doing? For Palmer, he couldn’t keep the sweet visions out of his mind: the daddy-daughter dance, and holding his little girl during Sunday morning worship. “I can’t believe I’m not going to get that,” Palmer mourned. But still, it just made the most sense. After adopting their eight-year-old boy and having two more biological boys, life was plenty busy.

One Sunday as they were in their worship service, Nicole got an urgent phone message and left the sanctuary in a hurry. A few minutes later, Palmer got a text from his wife. “Come outside now,” it said. When he met Nicole outside, she was on the phone with the child welfare department. They explained that their oldest son’s biological mother had given birth to a baby girl and was unable to care for her. “You have an hour to decide,” said the voice on the other end. In a frenzy, Palmer and Nicole quickly arranged for their boys to go home with family friends so they could have space to make a decision together.

Nicole recalled the two of them sitting on a couch together deep in thought; both were afraid to speak first. Finally, Palmer broke the silence. “I think we should do it,” he said. Nicole immediately let loose a “So do I.” Even though both parents were certain that on one level it made no sense, Palmer remembered that for both of them, “We just felt so called to do it; it felt so right.” Reflecting on that call with child welfare, Nicole remembered the woman on the phone describing the little girl and giving her height and weight. “It already felt like she was talking about my daughter,” Nicole said.

Several days later, Palmer and Nicole were in the car together when they had a flashback from years ago. Awestruck tears ran down both of their faces as they remembered what their son Jackson had told them those years ago. “I don’t cry very often,” Palmer said. “But I was a wreck.” It seemed that their son may have heard from God after all. 

The day the Trice family welcomed their daughter Shiloh home, everything made sense. Palmer explained, “From the moment we held Shiloh, we knew she belonged with us.” Raising their newly completed family has been far from easy, but the Trices are grateful for the ways their friends and family continue to walk alongside them.

Several churches have joined forces to bring clothes for the baby girl, and Nicole emphasized that they’ve received more than enough, even having enough extra to give to her cousin who is expecting.

At Summit Church in Lake Mary, a new care community is being assembled for the Trice family, and their former care community is helping out, even 4+ years after they were formed initially. Nicole and Palmer were stunned and excited upon realizing that “The head of [their] previous care community just happens to be a doctor at the hospital where the baby was.” This friend has since been organizing meal deliveries to support them, and their former care community has continued to help out. All of this support has moved Palmer and Nicole to gratitude for their faithful friends and community. “We’ve been made aware of how lucky we are,” Palmer said. “We never even knew.” They had always known that their friends were wonderful blessings, but in this challenging season, they felt the power of their loving community in a new way.

The Trice family’s story, though challenging, confusing, and exhausting at times, has been marked by a persistent peace. Nicole reflected on the peace she felt when they first decided to welcome their daughter. “I’ve carried that same level of peace throughout it all,” she said. Palmer explained, “When you feel that it’s right, you do it.

Logistically it makes no sense, but when you have peace about it, it does make sense.” Their beautiful story is representative of the current reality of foster care. While the circumstances are dire, there still is so much hope for healing.