Dear Potential Donors,

We are so excited and blessed by the opportunity to have a baby by embryo adoption and appreciate your consideration with such a precious gift! The story of how a music teacher from the northeast married a police dispatcher from the southwest is an unusual one, but perhaps best, or at least most succinctly, told through the eyes of their mutual friend. This friend met and became friends with Dad-to-be (sorry, we are not supposed to use names) at a new church he (Dad-to-be) had helped plant in the pacific northwest. He became a regular member and volunteer, and eventually heeded the call to ministry, getting married and becoming ordained at that very church as a minister. When he accepted a pastorate in the northeast, he soon met the worship leader of a neighboring church, Mom-to-be. The friend quickly became a matchmaker, suspecting Mom-to-be and his friend Dad-to-be would be perfect for each other, and he made the introduction when Dad-to-be came to visit. A brief courtship and long-distance relationship followed. Their friend the pastor and his wife finalized their adoption of two twin girls for whom they had been caring in the meantime. Since both Mom and Dad-to-be had good family support and had been loving partners in the adoption journey, the two friends made them Godparents on the day of the adoption, two days before Mom and Dad-to-be were married and moved to the southwest, where Dad-to-be’s family lives.

Dad-to-be has one son, and had a vasectomy shortly after the birth, at his ex-wife’s request. His son is now 21 and remained in the northwest when Dad-to-be moved. Due to the time that has passed since the vasectomy, successful reversal is an almost certain impossibility for Dad-to-be, however, having a family is central to both of us. Mom-to-be is the middle child of three daughters with whom she still enjoys good relationships. The oldest is a nursing professor with three adult children, and the other a music teacher with no children. Dad-to-be is the oldest of five boys, the devoted uncle (and Mom-to-be is the new aunt) of 12 nieces and nephews, near whom we live. The broader family stays very close, and we spend a lot of time together, celebrating birthdays, holidays, or just having family outings. Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter are especially important get-togethers. We try to get away every summer to vacation as one big family. It is often quite a chore finding a house that can hold the entire crew, but it’s worth it to have everyone under one roof!

Helping to take care of those nieces and nephews is one of the chief reasons we live where we do. The positive relationships and close family support is one of the key reasons we are the Godparents of our pastor friend’s children. Aside from hanging out with the kids, we like hiking or rucking/backpacking, watching movies or attending other local events in the area, and doing volunteer work. When possible, we like to travel, especially to national parks, and do outdoor activities like camping, hunting and fishing. Mom-to-be is still a performer playing in the local orchestra, a teacher by trade, although she is transitioning to full-time ministry as a student missions leader in their local church. Dad-to-be is an amateur fitness enthusiast and martial artist. He still speaks passable French, a holdover from his college minor, and is currently learning Spanish. Since marrying and moving back to the southwest, he no longer works as a police dispatcher, and is now an account manager for a landscaping company.

We have two dogs, Jojo (a ten-year-old collie/corgi mix adopted from a shelter), and Oakley (a beagle mix rescued from a puppy mill). They always accompany us on the hikes/rucks/etc. They have made fast friends with people around the neighborhood and ham it up at the dog park. To say that the nieces and nephews love them would be a gross understatement.

Most importantly, though, faith is central to both of our lives, both before, during, and after our initial coming together. We are very involved with a non-denominational church we call ours, not far from our house. We tithe and attend regularly, and volunteer often. Dad-to-be has even been called upon to preach on occasion. Mom-to-be, in addition to singing and playing on the worship team, will soon start a job as a full-time church employee. We both attend Bible studies to sharpen our faith but also to ensure we are living truthfully to that end.

That faith will be the cornerstone of our home and our strategy for raising any children we have. We plan to draw on not only our experiences, but those of our family. Although Mom-to-be’s mother is deceased and her father, a retired engineer and not-so-retired farmer, is still in the northeast, Dad-to-be’s parents live close by, along with his brothers and the nieces and nephews we mentioned. Dad-to be’s father is the founder and former president of a successful business and currently a pastor serving as the chaplain for a government organization. His mother is an accountant (still occasionally practicing, if needed) and lay counselor. Both are also very involved in church ministries and in all of their grandchildren's lives.

What this means practically, is that any children who grace our home will have 2 loving parents, 2 grandparents, 4 aunts, 4 uncles, and 12 cousins who are closeby and more than willing to help, just as we have helped them when needed. This is in addition to out-of-town family and friends. We own our current residence and are almost completely debt free, and we are using this time to further build our savings to ensure we have everything our family needs going forward, which will, God willing, include Mom-to-be stepping back from work to focus on raising a child or children full-time. Our ultimate goal is to raise children in a faith-filled home that is both loving and structured, while also providing them a robust educational upbringing - spiritually, mentally, and physically. We like to think we’re up to the challenge.