Woman Whose Parents Sold Her To Strangers When She Was 3 Months Old Credits Her Grandparents For Giving Her A ‘Happy Ending’
"I feel like I was always meant to be theirs."
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock Some of us are lucky enough to have strong relationships with our grandparents. They spoil us, have us over their homes for sleepovers and are always there to say yes even after Mom or Dad say no!
However, one woman’s bond with her grandparents goes just a little deeper than the typical grandchild-grandparent. Not only did they raise the woman from infancy to adulthood, but they also quite literally saved her life.
The woman was adopted by her grandparents after her biological parents sold her to another couple when she was just 3 months old.
Kat Lively took to TikTok to share her heartbreaking life story which thankfully has a happy ending.
Lively revealed that she was born in Denver, Colorado in October 1993, to parents she described as, “two people who should not have ever conceived a child.”
“They couldn’t even take care of a mouse,” Lively said.
When she was just three months old, Lively's biological parents sold her to another couple in exchange for drugs. Afterward, they called Lively's grandparents, who were living in California, and informed them that they had a new granddaughter, but that she was already gone and that they did not know her whereabouts after giving her away.
Lively's grandfather, who she said was “off the heels of a second heart attack" did not hesitate to hop into his Chevy van to drive all the way to Colorado and find her. Lively fought back tears as she recalled that her grandfather camped out in his van for two weeks until he got the help of law enforcement to locate his granddaughter.
“He bought me all these baby snow outfits, he bought a car seat that he put in the van, and with the help of police, they found me,” Lively said. “There’s no way I would’ve lived much longer if he hadn’t found me.”
Photo: Monkey Business Images / Canva Pro
Lively's grandfather was finally able to take her home on Christmas Eve to meet her new family — and the rest is history!
“My grandparents treated me like one of the family. I never felt adopted,” she shared.
Lively's adoption was officially legal in 1999.
She credited her grandparents, whom she always referred to as Mom and Dad, for bringing her up and giving her a “beautiful childhood.” Even though Lively's grandparents are no longer here, they are still a crucial part of her life.
“It was not lost on me how special it was for them to take me in like that,” she said. “I feel like I was always meant to be theirs.”
Photo: pixelshot / Canva Pro
She cannot help but gush over the “two incredibly selfless people who already had their own health problems” as well as their own two teenage children, who took in their infant granddaughter without a second thought and saved her life.
“Because of them, I am who I am today,” Lively said. “It’s not what happens to us, it’s what we do with it.”
Now, Lively hopes to use her platform to build a community for people who experienced similar life events.
In a follow-up video, Lively shared several photos of her grandparents, Ron and Kathy, including the heartbreaking last photo she took with her grandfather, clutching his hand in the hospital on the day he passed away.
While Lively never got a chance to know her biological parents, she didn't feel like she was missing something in her life. Her grandparents stepped up to the plate to fill the parental roles she needed.
Lively's heartwarming story proves that the people who bring you into the world are not always meant to be your parents.
There are over 2.5 million grandparents in the U.S. who are the primary caregivers of their grandchildren.
The concept of "real parents" transcends biology and includes the individuals who play a significant role in a person's upbringing, emotional development, and sense of belonging.
Lively's grandparents were clearly those individuals for her, and as she said, she was always meant to be theirs.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.