Married Couple Make Life Altering Decision That Changed Everything

When this married couple decided to invite four people into their home for the Christmas period, none of them expected their lives to drastically change.

The first steps

Adoption is one of the most beautiful things someone can do for a child looking for a forever home. With most children living in foster homes, the moment they find out they are being adopted is one that changes their life. And that is exactly what happened to these four children and this married couple.

About her

During the Christmas holidays in 2016, a loving married couple, Drew and Tammy Waltz, opened up their homes to four sweet kids. Offering them a warm home to spend the holiday where they would feel loved and looked after. The couple lives in North Carolina, in a town called Kannapolis, where Tammy works as a Worship Director.

The same dream

Although Tammy very much enjoyed her job, she had always had an urge to help change someone’s life and it was even before she met her partner Drew, that she felt something inside of her, a pull to adopt. It was a beautiful thing when the pair met and discovered they both wanted the same things in life. Drew also dreamed of adopting.

Somewhere to belong

When asked about their big decision, Tammy told a UK based newspaper “We love adoption – And there’s nothing like a child finding somewhere to belong. Our passion is orphans.” After discussing it between themselves, they delved into it further and eventually it was a photo that fueled the fire inside of their hearts even more.

The OHHC

The couple was shown a photo of two siblings, a brother, and sister, who were living in Eastern Europe. The picture of the young children had come from the Open Hearts and Homes for Children (OHHC), a non-profit organization that was created in 2010, that gives young orphans the opportunity to experience life in an American home.

A home for Christmas

The program primarily focuses on orphaned children living in the Latvian and Ukrainian areas of Eastern Europe. Drew and Tammy knew they had found the perfect way to add to these kids’ lives and so they had a conversation with OHHC. When speaking with the organizes of the program, they weren’t expecting to be told this by the couple.

On their way

A representative from the OHCC told Drew and Tammy that the brother and sister actually had an additional two younger brothers. But that wasn’t going to stop them, what’s better than bringing joy to two young kids? Bringing joy to four! The decision was made, and the four children would soon be on their way to North Carolina for the holidays.

Five weeks

The kids soon arrived at the couple’s home where they would spend five weeks with Drew and Tammy, being surrounded by love and the spirit of Christmas. It was fair to say that the couple’s love for the siblings rapidly grew and they were more than happy with their decision, Tammy said: “We spent five weeks during Christmas of 2016 learning their personalities and falling in love with their individuality and their bond with each other.”

 

Time to leave

The four siblings were aged between 8 and 13 and Drew and Tammy could see the joy on their faces and how much they were reacting to their loving surroundings. Sadly, after a wonderful Christmas period, the time had come for the children to return back to Eastern Europe – “After seeing the kids off at the airport as they headed back to Eastern Europe, we instantly noticed how quiet our lives were once again.”

Something was missing

Drew and Tammy had a heavy heart saying goodbye to the children, and they hoped a better life was heading their way. Once home, the couple felt a sad space in their life now that the children were no longer around. “We found ourselves missing the sounds of giggling, broken English, and remote-control cars racing through the house – These sounds filled our home with so much life for those few weeks.”

But what if they?

As the weeks passed by, Drew and Tammy filled their lives with conversations of the children, wondering about what they were doing and curious if they were all ok and happy. The whole family continued to talk about the guests they had over the Christmas period. It was then, a few months later, that the couple decided to make a huge life-changing decision and not just for them!

It was their calling

Drew and Tammy were a religious family and wanted to be guided by that when it came to making the decision about the children. We missed them so deeply, but the thought of adopting four children is nothing to be taken lightly – We needed to know that it was a calling from the Lord and not an emotional response. After months of prayer, and seeking God’s will and wisdom, we knew that these precious ones belonged with us.”

The decision was made

It was then in March 2017 that Drew and Tammy made their big decision, and they made the call to OHHC and told them the amazing news that they had decided to adopt all four children! The children were already booked in for another hosting period with the Waltz’s that summer, and the couple decided to keep their adoption plans a secret.

Plan into motion

The married couple kept their plans from even their best friends and closest family members, most of whom had already met the children when they hosted them over Christmas. To spread the joy and excitement of the adoption, Drew and Tammy came up with an amazing idea that would unfold once the children arrived in North Carolina for the summer.

A special recording

With their summer stay drawing closer, Drew and Tammy had a great idea to record a personal message from each of their friends and family for the four siblings. With each thinking they were just recording a simple hello, Tammy surprised each of them by telling them mid-recording that her and Drew had decided to adopt the four children. And how they reacted was priceless.

Wonderful responses

Although each person knew how much Drew and Tammy had fallen in love with the kids, none of them thought it was feasible for them to adopt all four of them! Each person reacted with the most beautiful response, with some jumping for joy and others, like Tammy’s grandmother, bursting into tears at the news.

Their friends message

One of Tammy and Drew’s friends relays his message calmly and smiling until Tammy interrupts him with the couple’s adoption news, in shock he screams at the camera, “Shut up! – Are you serious? Are you serious? You’re adopting them? Shut up! Are you kidding me?” Emotions become stronger as the messages continue to be recorded.

Her grandmothers reaction

The next part of the video shows Mags, Tammy’s sweet and adorable grandmother. When Tammy interrupts her and says, “You’re going to be a great-grandma times four – We’re adopting!” Her grandma looks as though she can barely believe the wonderful news and bursts into tears responding to the camera with “Oh thank you, Jesus.”

Emotional video

With other emotional reactions from their loved ones, Tammy uploaded the heartwarming video to Youtube which then received thousands of views. Meanwhile, over at OHHC, one of the coordinators, Michelle was spreading a positive message about how fantastic Drew and Tammy had been to the children during their Christmas trip.

Their girlfriends’ reacted

The video continues to their best friends with one shouting “Four? Are you serious?”, with the biggest grin on her face, with another exclaiming that she was going to cry seemingly in shock from the special news.

A message from OHHC

Michelle, who was also a friend, said of the couple, “You can tell there was a different relationship with everyone in that video – I was thrilled because I saw them in action during our hosting and for a couple who had not parented before, they exhibited the most caring, gentle and kind yet firm parenting with the kids.”

A sweet bond

Following their first trip to North Carolina, the children had also developed a close bond with Drew and Tammy and wondered if they would all end up being adopted. They are so, so sweet – They’re loving, extremely affectionate. They have their moments, but it doesn’t deter us. They are awesome kids.” The kids had asked them on a few occasions if they would think of adopting them.

They had already asked

Beautifully, during their communication following their Christmas stay, there had been a time where the four siblings have curiously asked if the couple would be interested in adopting them, “They had been asking us for quite a bit if we were going to do it, if they were going to stay with us forever.”

The amazing news

The married couple announced the amazing and life-changing news to the children by showing them the video from their friends and family. The kids could barely believe what was happening to them, that they were getting their chance at a happy family life, with each other by the other one’s side.

The happiest of endings

The family came together blissfully and once they were all together again, they could never imagine their life apart. The children were elated, as were Drew and Tammy. The love between them all grew stronger and they really do make the most gorgeous and happy family and we wish them all the best!