Your child is home; the honeymoon period is over. You’ve dealt with the introductory medical appointments, and your “First Year Home!” anniversary is quickly approaching. Whether you’ve been home for 11 months or for 11 years, Gotcha Day may be a significant celebration to your family. It can represent so many things depending on what and how you choose to celebrate it. Here are seven Gotcha Day party ideas that will help boost your spirit and spice up your day.
1. Precious Cargo
A “Precious Cargo” theme is so adorable I could scream. While it does come off a little more international than domestic, I think you could spin it and make it work for your own story fairly easy. Including super cute suitcases and a ton of vintage elements, this party would be Pinterest ready in no time. Including globes, “baby’s breath” to represent a new addition to your family, maps, and the sweetest treats you can find will make a Gotcha Day party celebration one you would never forget.
2. It’s O-FISH-AL
Whether you celebrate the day you passed court or the day your domestic adoption is finalized, running with an “O-FISH-AL” party idea, it would be well worth the dive. A fish family would be the perfect party, incorporating orange and blue touches everywhere. It would be especially adorable if you adopted a little one—they love things that swim.
3. We Found the Missing Piece
We did a puzzle fundraiser for our own adoption, and I’m sure many of you did, too. If you did, this would be a perfect way to celebrate your Gotcha Day. Having puzzle piece details everywhere really helped tie in the goal of completing the puzzle you chose during your adoption journey. Displaying the puzzle at the party would be a perfect touch showing how many people prayed, loved, and helped bring your baby home.
4. Born in Our Hearts
Around adoption circles, the quote “Born not from our flesh, but born in our hearts; you were longed for and wanted and loved from the start” was most likely something that followed you throughout your journey. Having a “Born in Our Hearts” themed Gotcha Day celebration would be an adorable way to celebrate your new family being together forever. Plus, shopping for decorations would be easy if you were able to stock up around Valentine’s Day.
5. We’re Wild About You
The theme would be especially perfect if you added your new child into an already large family. “We’re Wild About You” theme, with lots of zoos and animal details would make any child feel celebrated and adored. What a fun way to commemorate your big day as a family.
6. Country Celebration Day
If you want a way to keep your child’s birth country and culture alive, this could be a great way to incorporate that into your yearly celebrations, especially when you adopted an older child internationally, he may still feel very connected to his birthplace. Finding a local restaurant that cooks food from his birth country or even learning and cooking a recipe as a family could be a great way to celebrate together. Food often unites families, so why not use food as your celebratory agent that day, too?
7. Staycation Day
If everyone has busy lives, maybe your family’s perfect Gotcha Day celebration is a day at home, hanging out together. Cooking food, playing games, and watching movies all day together as a family may be your perfect way of celebrating the day you became a forever family. Big parties aren’t for every family, so a small “family party” day, where everyone stays at home, with their phones and computers off, and enjoys each other’s company, may be just what you needed.
Celebrating Gotcha Day isn’t for every family, but if you do choose to, it can be a super fun way to commemorate the day you became a forever family. Keep it fun, keep it light, and make sure good food is involved. Your family will surely love some of these ideas. Happy Gotcha Day!
