Seven siblings who were separated in different foster homes for more than a year will now get to grow up in the same house.
Lisa Fulbright and her husband Gary decided to adopt a set of seven brothers and sisters, who range from 4 to 12 years old.
The Fulbright family, who live in Derby, Kansas, may not experience peace and quiet for awhile. On top of the seven siblings, the couple also cares for three other children. They adopted two other kids three years ago and have a biological son who is 17.
And that’s not all. The Fulbrights also have seven other kids who are fully grown and out of the house.
They wanted the siblings to stick together
The couple started off fostering three of the seven separated siblings, but eventually wanted to reunite them all.
“We would invite the other siblings on holidays so they could spend time together,” Lisa Fulbright told CNN.
When the two older girls asked to move in with the Fulbrights as well, they took them in.
Then, after the couple learned that the government had terminated the mom’s rights and the siblings’ case was going to adoption, they sought to permanently reunite the family under one roof.
“We want to keep the kids together,” Lisa Fulbright said. “Not many people would adopt seven together. We asked for an exception to get the other two siblings.”
The adoption process took about a year, and the family made it official last week in court. They wore jerseys of the Kansas City Chiefs, their favorite NFL team, and invited K.C. Wolf, the team’s mascot, to celebrate with them.
“We knew we were meant to be their parents,” Fulbright said. “They’re all very loving and affectionate. They’re always coming in hugging and sitting in our laps.”
The siblings had difficult childhoods
The siblings’ home environment before they became Fulbrights was rough.
Emerson, 12, is the oldest of the seven.
“My mom would … leave for days at a time without being home, and I don’t know my dad … he’s in Mexico, so it’s really nice having a dad to spend time with,” Emerson told CNN affiliate KAKE.
Fulbright said the siblings missed out on a lot of activities that most kids get to experience.
“We did all their firsts,” including visiting the zoo, going ice skating and seeing a movie, Fulbright said.
“We’re just trying to show them everything life has to offer.”
The house gets pretty hectic
Fulbright, who has been fostering children with her husband for 10 years now, said she’s used to having a lot of people around. She previously did daycare for 10 kids, so this seems normal to her.
“It’s very loud most of the time, especially when you have that many people under one roof,” Fulbright said.
She is always doing head counts to make sure that no one gets left behind.
“Most people think we’re crazy, but this our life and we love it,” Fulbright said. “We’re doing god’s work, adopting these kids and keeping them together.”
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