Houston NICU nurse adopting baby she helped deliver

HOUSTON, Texas -- It's a story unlike any other. She's a 25-year-old nurse now in the process of fully adopting her tiny patient.

"I knew I wanted to be a mother, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I was going to adopt," Claire Mills said.

Mills calls it God's plan. Little Jackson Jude was meant to be in her arms all along.

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"It was my second week at Methodist downtown, I was called to this emergency C-section," she recalls.

It was back in May when Jackson's biological mother was having complications, so Claire was called in. The moment she locked eyes with that 3-pound, 10-ounce preemie, it all changed for her.

"Immediately felt an instant connection with him," she said. "He just felt very familiar to me. I feel like I know him."

It was a very odd feeling and said she couldn't shake it.

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Soon after, Claire would learn that Jackson's parents would be putting him up for adoption because they didn't have the means to support him. Claire knew this was not a coincidence.

"I just felt like it was meant to be, so that made it really real for me. I was like, 'Oh wow,'" she said.

Everyone involved has been very supportive, including Claire's mother who is more than happy to care for her soon-to-be grandbaby.

All of this is so surreal for Claire.

"Just kind of scary at the same time because I'm single, just got a house," she said with a smile though. "This is not how I saw my future."

Jackson-Jude has made a lot of progress since he was born, and in just a few short months, already his future family can't imagine their lives without their tiny gift from God.

"I know it's meant to be so I know everything is going to work out," she said. "It has to."