An Adoption Update – How We Chose Samoa
Check out videos from when we announced our adoption, how we chose Samoa and a book that Gracie wrote for her baby brother.
Well, so much has happened in the last 6 months, but we are thrilled to announce that we are officially on the waiting list to adopt a sweet little boy from Samoa!! We have been told to expect approximately 3 years until we are matched with our son.
We have gotten so many questions, which we love, and the most common is “why Samoa?”
To start, when we decided on international adoption the process was overwhelming. We had no idea how or where to start.
We were given excellent advice to sit down as a couple and consider if there was a culture that we felt we could relate to quicker than another and start there. We both agreed that the Latin American culture was the first that came to mind between our own time spent there and that of our families.
Adoption agencies all specialize in different areas, including countries, as some have a larger presence in certain corners of the world than others.
The agency we found happened to have several programs in Latin America. The bottom line is that the first program we interviewed for had just closed its doors to the adoption of children less than 7 years old.
Zach and I agreed we wanted to adopt as young as possible, and the next program open was Samoa, so we moved forward!
What an amazing journey it has already been! We announced the adoption to our kids, first, over Easter. If you missed that blog post, then you can read it here! Watching the kids process it all has been one of my favorite things about adopting already.
I made up 4 Easter baskets and when the 3 big kids were done finding theirs in the basement we told them there was one more basket to find upstairs.
I included the Samoan flag, a little pair of boy shoes, a couple of books on learning Samoan words, and that picture was in a magnetic sleeve which we handed out to all of our family members for their fridge as we announced it over the next several days.
[wpvideo ugtsxNxP]This video makes my heart so happy. Caleb was excited to help us announce his baby brother!
The next day Zach’s family joined us at our French Country Cottage fixer upper for a workday in the kitchen, and we made our announcement by showing them the video of Caleb above!
[wpvideo NeXPRyu4]This was a great day. We made our first adoption announcement, we got the kitchen cabinets installed, and all of my children survived their antics with the cabinet packing materials above.
The next day was our announcement to my family and my mom’s parents.
In case you were counting, between our families we have 4 Easter celebrations each year. (Christmas we have 7!)
Here are my mom’s parents holding their picture! Somehow I missed a pic of my parents.
Easter Sunday! They are singing the “Bunny Song” and Lily is showing you her bunny ears.
We were so excited to announce it to the whole Fulmer family! Above is the obligatory family Easter pic.
Which mostly looks like this. Notice I have not changed positions at all between these two pics? #whosekidsarethose
Hooray!! There is Zach’s dad at the end of the table holding up the picture. Multiple members of this family have been involved with orphan care, 3 of which worked in a Chinese orphanage for a year, which makes bringing an orphan home all the more meaningful.
On to my family next!
Here we are on Gramma and Grampa’s farm showing them Caleb’s video.
Hi Uncle Wendell. We miss you a lot :-(.
[wpvideo VP0PqRIo]Gracie had written a book about her brother the day before which she read to us that evening with a few key spelling mistakes that were surprisingly appropriate however unintentional.
Storytime with Great Grampa 😉
Caleb talks about his baby brother the most. He was sitting on his bunk bed the other day pretending to be on a boat, and Zach asked him where he was going.
Caleb replied, “I am going to Samoa to get my baby brother.” Oh my heart.
The day before Caleb’s 5th birthday we were officially put on the waiting list to adopt a sweet boy from Samoa! We are officially, per the government and our agency, adopting!
We have been blessed to have been awarded a $4000 matching grant from Calvary Church Adoption Fund, administered by Lifesong for Orphans.
We are at $3,000 right now! Just $1000 to go! Would you consider supporting us as we wait? Below are two links.
The first link is to an incredible coffee fundraiser through GoBena Coffee which will be ongoing for the next year or so. Lots of options – whole bean or ground – and includes K-cups.
Thanks to our matching grant 100% of the proceeds go toward our adoption! The coffee is genuinely delicious. Would you consider buying your coffee from GoBena this holiday season?
The second link is our crowdfunding page for general donation if you do not like coffee! Ha.
THANK YOU for partnering with us to care for the orphans and to bring our son HOME.
We cannot wait to watch as God writes his story.
Adoption Update – GoBena Coffee Fundraiser
We have teamed up with Gobena Coffee to raise funds for our adoption. 100% of what you spend on this site will go towards our adoption (up to our grant amount)!! Enjoy the fresh roasted coffee! And don’t forget if you spend $50 or more you get free shipping!!
Adoption Update – MyStory Fundraising Page
Fulmer Party of 6!
Your financial support goes toward home study fees, agency fees, court fees, and travel expenses.
