Hi, we are Susan and David! Thank you for choosing to read our book. We hope that, in getting to know us through these words, you might begin to see us as we see ourselves—as the parents we know we were meant to be!

We were married in 2002 and are still as unapologetically loving, geeky, playful, affectionate, and devoted as when we were dating. We remind each other as often as we can that we love one another and that we are here for one another. With us, a child will hear every day that they are loved, valued, wanted, and cared for. We'll also share with the child our love of books, reading, and learning—our living room is lined with bookcases! We've already started the baby's library with books we've found and books that have been given to us by friends. 

We strongly believe that an adoption as open as the parent(s) want is important and valuable for the baby as they grow up. Any child that we adopt will know as much as possible about his or her birth families' culture and heritage, as well as ours.

I was introduced to Susan through one of her high school friends and quickly learned that we shared a love for words and poetry and stories. Her poems were wonderful, and she was an amazing and fascinating person. We didn’t begin dating until about 10 years later, and I had the chance to learn that all of my earlier impressions of her were correct *and* that she was even more incredible than I’d first thought. Susan is a sweet and generous soul, a kind person who brings out the kindness in others. She’s also strong and brave in ways that I think will make her such a good mother – her strength is tempered by her compassion and her sweetness is magnified by her courage.

More about Susan:

Occupation:  Office Manager

Current Favorite Books:  the Circle of Magic series by Tamora Pierce

Current Favorite Movie:  Labyrinth

Current Favorite TV Show:  Star Trek:  Deep Space 9

David and I always knew we had writing in common. When we began dating, we discovered we knew some of the same “love poetry.” We had both long loved “The White Rose," by John Boyle O’Reilly. Later, when we married, the rose described in the poem became the flowers in my bouquet. He still gives me those roses on occasion, white with the edges lined in red.  David is a sensitive, loving soul with a very kind heart. He is thoughtful and attentive and, occasionally, very silly. I know that, because of these, he will be a great father.  I can’t wait to see him share his love with a child.

More about David: 

Occupation:  Proposal Writer

Current Favorite Books:  the Culture series by Iain M. Banks

Current Favorite Movie:  Blade Runner

Current Favorite TV Show:  Dr. Who

We own a two-bedroom condo in a town near Washington, D.C. We are very fortunate that this area is full of family, friends, and opportunities for a child to learn and grow. The schools in our area are some of the best in the nation and are in the top 3% in terms of diversity. We value academic excellence and exposure to many different cultures. 

The historic downtown area of our town is only a short walk from our home. Our town hosts numerous celebrations throughout the year, such as the annual town festival, the Fourth of July parade, and summer concerts. There are also 11 public parks nearby, as well as many museums and national parks within easy driving distance. We expect that, once we adopt, many afternoons and weekends will be spent exploring all the fun activities and sights the city has to offer. 

One of the best things about where we live is our proximity to a sizeable portion of our immediate family. We visit with our loved ones often for holidays, family events, or just a simple meal. Any child who joins our family will grow up surrounded by a crowd of loved ones! 

A large number of our family, friends, and church members have adopted, and what they've learned and experienced has helped us in our adoption journey. We regularly hear both "Any news?!?" and "Let us know anything you need!"

We’ve been blessed with five nieces, so a child will grow up with a lot of cousins, along with five grandparents and six aunts and uncles. We have enjoyed watching our nieces grow, playing games with them, reading with them, and generally spoiling them, as is our responsibility. We spend every other Christmas with the Kentucky nieces (Susan’s sister’s family). We are able to see our Virginia nieces (David’s sister’s family) for birthdays and special days in their lives, like Confirmation, holidays, and dance recitals.

We are fortunate to live so close to our blood family, but the family we have chosen through our friendships is just as important to us. Our friends live as close as 900 feet away and as far away as Japan. Our friends have cared for and sustained us, and we can’t wait to bring a child into that love. We tend to spend long meals with our friends and days or evenings over a board game or movie. We have so much fun during the holidays—each of us brings family traditions from childhood, and we look forward to building traditions within our family as well.

What brought us together, even before we began dating, was our mutual love of words. Both of us wrote poetry back in the day and are still constant readers. It’s rare that we don't have a book or audiobook with us, and frequently both. We know that reading to and with a child will be one of the great joys of our lives.

We love spending our time in books, but we recognize that being in the world is important. While we think that "thoughts and prayers" are kind to offer, we live out our faith and beliefs, contributing directly to build the world in which this child will grow up. 

Volunteerism is integral to us, and we plan on modeling that for a child. We participate in various service projects each year through both our church and our community. One project that we’re really passionate about, for example, is one where our church helps provide weekend meals to children who live in tough situations. We participate in the packaging of several hundred meals a month to be delivered to the school, as well as contributing directly by purchasing food for those packages.

Holy Week is a family tradition we’ll share with a child, participating in Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and, naturally, Easter with our church community. We look forward to sharing these days with a little one, as well as the traditional egg-dyeing, Easter egg hunts, and making Easter baskets for each other.

Christmas is our favorite holiday, and we are so excited to share it with a child soon! Our Christmas season starts right after Thanksgiving when we put up our tree. It’s always a joyous time when we delight in sharing old ornaments and remembering the stories behind them. We play Christmas movies in the background and open our Advent calendar each day. Each compartment has a tiny ornament that we hang on our door wreath.

We attend the Christmas Eve service together, celebrating Christ’s birth and enjoying the music and fellowship at our church. We allow each other to open one gift on Christmas Eve. Another family tradition we’ve created is our Christmas casserole: having mixed it up the night before, we wake up Christmas morning and start it cooking. While we share our gifts from each other, family, and friends, the smell fills our home. When it is ready, we sit in bed, eat directly from the dish with spoons, and spend a chunk of the day watching movies together. Sharing that day (and the spoons) with a child will be the greatest gift we could receive, and we hope it will become a cherished memory for them.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read through our book. We want you to know that we find your decision to consider an adoption plan a courageous act, and we hope to honor this by being the best parents we possibly can be. Part of that relationship is communicating to the child how he or she was brought into the world. We intend to share with him or her as much about you as you allow. We believe that such openness will improve the child’s understanding of his or her world and help build a stronger self-identity for the future. You will always be honored in his or her life and in ours!

We have long known that we would be parents and, yet, our adoption journey has been such a learning experience for us as future parents. We have learned that we have more to give than the basic necessities of life. We have our love to offer, accompanied by the love of our extended family and friends. We can offer not only a space in which to live, but a home, rich in care, faith, and possibilities, in which to thrive.