It's no secret that Giuliana and Bill Rancic have gone through more than their fair share of emotional and physical pain when it comes to starting a family via the difficult process of in vitro fertilization. But their frustration with the process and Giuliana's tragic miscarriage finally has a happy ending -- they're planning to adopt!
Minutes after finding out that the Italian press was reporting the E! News power couple were getting ready to sign the papers and adopt a child from Naples, Italy, Giuliana called me to set the record straight.
"We were in Italy recently. We were there for two weeks and now it's about to break that we are adopting a baby from Naples. It is true that we were there and it is something we talked about but we are not doing the paperwork," Giuliana explained. "It’s definitely something that I’ve thought about. I’m from Naples. I was born in a poor neighborhood and I always, in my heart, felt like it would be amazing to be able to adopt a child from Naples. I could give someone the opportunity I had. I would love to give back in that way and pay it forward."
Giuliana's parents moved to America when she was just seven years old and ended up giving their daughter opportunities she never could have dreamed of in Italy.
"Bill come with me this trip and visited my childhood home in Naples and saw where I grew up in a one bedroom apartment with my two siblings and my parents."
Because the couple is still in the early stages of the adoption process, they have not yet decided if they will adopt a newborn or an older child.
"It wouldn’t even necessarily be a baby. I want to look at children too that have had no opportunity or tragedy in their lives," Giuliana tells me. "Our idea was to go there and look for an orphanage. We discovered it’s a lot harder to adopt from Italy than we had thought. I’ve done a lot of research online and everyone said the way it works in Italy is you just have to go there. You can’t do it over the phone or online you have to go and meet face to face that’s how it works. Plus [this] is so personal we wanted to keep it under wraps, away from the cameras."
Although the couple's most recent trip to Italy did not lend enough time to begin paperwork on a specific child, they have begun the process and will continue from the U.S.
"We have some leads and we are doing our research but for me I just feel when I go to Naples every year I feel a connection," Giuliana gushed. "I have 40 first cousins and 20 of them still live there. When I see underprivileged kids, it tugs at my heart. Bill was astonished at what he saw."
But even with the excitement of possibly welcoming the couple's first child into their home, Giuliana explains that they are taking each step of the process in stride.
"There is a bigger plan for us. There is some reason we haven’t had a kid. Our kid hasn't come yet for some reason. We really believe that," Giuliana tells me. "We definitely will try IVF again but if IVF doesn’t work then that’s it. There are so many kids out there that need help but even if IVF does work I think adoption is the most selfless thing someone could do. It’s just so wonderful. I just feel such a connection to the little kids in Naples. I remember being on the street wanting a small piece of candy."
The pair are already discussing their schedules and connecting with the right people to work with in the adoption process to find time to get back to Naples and make their dream a reality.
Tune into Style Network tonight to catch “Giuliana & Bill.”