A 12-year-old from the Philippines jumped with joy when his new U.S. family surprised him with a cake revealing his dream of being adopted was about to come true. Parents Holly and Ariel Romero, from Charlotte, North Carolina, already had four biological children of their own when they decided back in 2014 they wanted to adopt. With their family being of Filipino American descent, they decided to look to the Philippines for children who may be looking for a family. After adopting a 16-year-old into their family, they later wanted to adopt again, and from the moment they met Kiko, in May 2023, the youngster immediately took to calling Ariel and Holly ‘Mom’ and ‘Dad.’ In the Philippines adoption program, you must have a child in a family’s care for a minimum of six months before the country will send a“Consent to Adopt,” allowing families to go to court and finalize the adoption. During his time living with the Romeros in America, Kiko would enthusiastically keep asking when the family could head to court and make his adoption official. All Holly and Ariel could respond was, "soon," and then, in February 2024, the couple received an email from their adoption agency to say that the Consent to Adopt had arrived. They decided to plan a big surprise for Kiko, headed to a local bakery, where they asked for a cake that said, "We're going to court!"
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00He waited half a year for this news.
00:04When Holly and Ariel first met Kiko at his Philippines orphanage,
00:08he immediately called them mom and dad.
00:11And after coming to a new home in the U.S. with them,
00:14he couldn't wait to make the adoption official.
00:18So when they found out about their court date six months later,
00:22they surprised 12-year-old Kiko with this.
00:25To the court?
00:28We got it! We got the kids!
00:34So off they went to court for some more excitement and a few tears of joy, too.
00:41To the boy who bravely waited 12 years for a family,
00:45the boy who met complete strangers,
00:48took their hands and called them mom and dad,
00:51I want you to know that we aren't the perfect family,
00:53but we are yours, and you are ours.
00:57And today, your long wait for a family is officially over.
01:01Here's to forever.