July 9 marked a very special day for 4-year-old Jeremiah Dickerson. Just moments after being officially adopted by Jordan and Cole Dickerson, the energetic boy broke the exciting news to the world that he’s going to be a big brother.
“It was very exciting and thrilling. It was a long time coming for [the adoption] to happen so we were high on emotions,” Cole, 28, tells PEOPLE. “We were ecstatic to finally make it official. He was excited about it, as much as a 4-year-old could grasp. He was like, ‘We’re already family!’ ”
In a sweet photo from the big day, Jeremiah is shown sporting a big smile alongside his parents as he held a sign that read: “TODAY I BECAME A DICKERSON UP NEXT… BIG BROTHER.” Other shots showed the little boy climbing on Cole and Jordan, and one featured the parents planting a kiss on his cheeks.
“We thought it would be a fun thing to do to say, ‘Hey, Jeremiah’s a part of the family. And we’re adding on even more to the family,’ ” Cole, of Memphis, Tennessee, tells PEOPLE.
Jordan first met Jeremiah last winter after he was admitted to the Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis where she works as a nurse. Born prematurely, Jeremiah has a series of medical issues, including chronic lung disease. He had a tracheotomy and briefly used a feeding tube.
Still, during his time at the hospital, he couldn’t help but capture the hearts of everyone around him, especially Jordan.
“Jordan started to fall in love with him. She told me about this little boy that smiled all the time and danced and was so much fun and they just connected,” Cole recalls. “We were both on the same page, like, ‘Let’s do this! This little boy is up here, you’re falling in love with him and I want to meet him.’ So I met him and I fell in love with him too.”
With that, the couple took Jeremiah in as foster parents and, after a year, were able to officially adopt him.
“He’s an energetic 4-year-old boy, through and through. Most of the time he’s happy, he’s full pedal to the metal ready to go!” Cole says of Jeremiah. “He wants to go sing, he wants to go dance, he wants to play inside. His smile lights up the room. Those [adoption day] pictures describe how he is. He was very happy that day.”
And Cole says Jeremiah is even happier about becoming a big brother. He tells PEOPLE that it was the 4-year-old who predicted the pregnancy.
“Jeremiah one night was praying and was like, ‘Thank you, God, for my mommy and my daddy. Thank you for my baby sister in a couple of weeks,’ ” Cole recalls to PEOPLE. “We were like, ‘What did he just say?’ Three or four weeks later, Jordan surprised me one night and said, ‘I just took a pregnancy test and it’s positive.’ ”
The couple learned of the pregnancy in May, weeks after Jeremiah’s prayer. Now, Cole says the little boy can’t wait to meet new sister, who is due in January.
“When we told him, he said, ‘I knew it!’ He says, ‘I can’t wait to teach her to play basketball and baseball, and dance and sing,’ ” he says. “He wants to teach her to do everything that he likes to do.’ “
