When Mandi and Tyler Palmer of Perrysburg, Ohio discovered they couldn’t have their own biological children, they were devastated.
Mandi had suffered from Crohn’s disease for over seventeen years, and the autoimmune disease had wreaked havoc on her body. She’s been through dozens of surgeries. Surgeons even had to remove a large portion of her intestines, and she now gets by with a stomach that’s the size of an almond. Her husband Tyler, a United States Army veteran, suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after serving in Afghanistan twice.
Despite their hardships, the couple always knew they wanted to open their heart up to a child.
Love What Matters
“When [Tyler] got out of the army, we moved to Perrysburg, Ohio and decided it was time to start a family,” Mandi said. “We both knew we wanted our own family so greatly but didn’t know what God had planned for us.
Love What Matters
“We tried for years to get pregnant but soon came to realize that it wasn’t going to happen… We were heartbroken and quickly found ourselves seeking other ways to grow our family and become parents. Because of the health battles we’ve been given, we weren’t the type of people to just ‘throw in the towel’ and let our dreams of becoming parents get shattered.”
The couple decided to pursue adoption, but after seeing daily advertisements seeking foster parents in their area, they felt called to help a child in need. After months of arduous training, paperwork, and home inspections, they became licensed foster-to-adopt parents.
“We were scared but we knew God was pulling at our heartstrings and telling us that this is what we needed to do,” Mandi explained.
That’s when they met Hunter.
Love What Matters
The very week they were licensed, they got the call that an infant boy needed a home. The couple quickly ran out to buy baby supplies like diapers, wipes, blankets, and a crib. It was a whirlwind couple of days, but they were more than ready to welcome Hunter into their hearts!
Hunter was just eight days old when he joined Mandi and Tyler in their home. They fell in love with him instantly — it was totally meant to be. Mandi explained, “It became obvious that Hunter was more than just our first baby. He was our ‘medicine’ and both of our reasons to fight the health battles that we have been given. He truly became our ‘why’ in life.”
Finn Photography
It took sixteen months of fostering before the courts allowed the couple to formally adopt Hunter. The family felt that their prayers had finally been answered when they stepped into the courtroom on December 18, 2017 to make the adoption official.
Photographer Ann-Marie Finn of Finn Photography was there to capture the joyous occasion.
Finn Photography
When Mandi and Tyler finished signing the legal documents, the judge read the adoption decree aloud and presented the court with Hunter’s new legal name: Hunter Palmer. That’s when little Hunter, a toddler now, melted everyone’s hearts.
Finn Photography
Clapping his hands, Hunter looked at Tyler and exclaimed, “Dad!”
Everyone in the courtroom, even the judge, melted.
Finn Photography
Now the family of three is happier than ever. “Our hearts are forever changed because we now know a true and genuine love,” she said. “We know that he will forever be safe with us and most importantly will always know what love is.
Finn Photography
“We have learned that family isn’t about DNA. It’s about love!â€
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