4569Ryan and Emily

Dear Birth Parents,

We genuinely admire your bravery and strength as you consider the possibility of adoption. As your love for your child guides you in the decisions you will make, we hope that God gives you clarity and peace. We’re grateful and humbled that you might consider us as potential parents for your child.

A little about us...One of our favorite things to do is explore new places far and near. We’ve both had many opportunities to further our education and explore our interests and talents. We fully intend to give our children the same opportunities. God’s love for us is the basis of our lives. We strive to know God more and live life to the fullest. On any given weekend, you may find us laughing around a campfire with friends, soaking in the sun as we relax at the lake with our family, or participating in fun events to get to know or serve

new people in our church or community. We enjoy making lasting memories with our nieces and nephews and can’t wait to experience a child of our own. We look forward to showing an unconditional love that may not always be easy, but is always true.

We’d love to have a picture of you in their room to help us teach and daily remind your child of the courage and love you displayed for them. We want to continue to share pictures and stories throughout your child’s life in a way that works for you – through email, texting, facetime/skype, a blog, and/or mailing photo albums and updates. During the first few years of your child’s life, we could schedule monthly visits via skype/facetime to begin to get to know each other better. We’d love to visit with you at least three times a year in person. We imagine meeting for playtime in a park, getting ice cream, or visiting a zoo together. If you choose us, we’ll be sure your child knows the love you have for them. No matter what you choose, you will always hold a special place in your child’s life.

With Gratitude,

Ryan and Emily

© 2016 Adoption Support Center, Inc. All rights reserved. 1

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EmilyMy family is a close-knit family. With only two years between myself and my older and younger brother, we have been able to experience different life stages around the same time. In fact, my older brother married his wife two weeks after Ryan and I got married! Talk about a crazy fun summer! Their son is the first grandchild on my side of the family, and he is ready to have a cousin to play with. My younger brother is a musician and loves trying to teach our young nephew to play various instruments. My brothers and parents all live within a half an hour from us, so we are fortunate to be able to get together often. This past year, we’ve enjoyed experiencing new things with our nephew such as swimming at my parents’ lake house, visiting a petting farm, and decorating Easter eggs. My whole family recently enjoyed a beautiful fall Saturday by eating brunch together and then spending the morning at a pumpkin patch complete with hayrides, mazes, and pumpkin ice cream. Our nephew’s little face lit up with pure joy as he ran through the mazes with his family. I can only imagine how fun it will be as more children join our family. I grew up with so many memories of outings, activities, and weeks spent with my grandparents and cousins. I hope for those same close relationships among cousins for the next generation of our family.

RyanMy family is a small and tight group. I grew up with two older sisters who are 9 and 12 years older than me, so it felt like I was an only child at times. My mom was a stay at home mom until I was in elementary school, so I spent a lot of time with her as a child. She is hardworking and loving. She also babysat a couple other children with me. In fact, now that she is older, she enjoys babysitting a couple of children again. My father was a hard-working, soft-spoken, and caring man. I enjoyed spending time with him outdoors as a child, and he instilled a love for all of God’s creation in me. I admire my father and wish I got to know him better as an adult before he died. Some of my fondest memories include camping as a family. We would load up the pick-up truck and pop-up camper with supplies for a week and head to a state park. Dad always had to get a perfect spot right along the water. He would get up early each morning and go fishing. During the day, I would ride my bike all around the park. At night, we would cook over the campfire and have s'mores. My grandparents would sometimes come and spend a night as well. Now that we are grown up, I don’t live as close to my siblings, but we still make time to celebrate Easter, Christmas, and Thanksgiving together. My family spoils my nieces and nephews, and everyone loves watching them open their presents.

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Emily’s thoughtsabout our relationshipI know that I can depend on Ryan to be there for me in small and big ways. He enables me to serve and be involved in things I’m

passionate about by willingly helping out with laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning, or whatever else needs done! I am confident that when we have children, he will be the type of father who is willing to do the not-so-glorious chores of parenthood without complaining. He has an amazing servant’s heart that sees needs and puts his time, energy, and resources into meeting those needs. Ryan will make a great dad. I know he will love to teach and experience new things with our future children. He’s been known to stage science experiences for our older niece and nephew. They love seeing how soap expands into a cloud in the microwave or figuring out how to make a paddleboat out of household items with Uncle Ryan! Children feel at ease with his

calm and loving demeanor. Our nieces and nephews love to spend time with him. He’s not content to stand at the sidelines and observe his nieces and nephews having fun. Rather he’s quick to carry them on his shoulders on the way to their baseball game, jump in the water to swim with them, or just sit on the floor to play with them at their level. I know that he will demonstrate the same attentiveness with our own children and will find ways to be involved in their lives.

Ryan’s thoughtsabout our relationship

I love Emily’s blue eyes and the way she can laugh and cheer me up on tough days. I love how she has a servant's heart and enjoys giving up her free time to help others. Her love of other cultures is also admirable. I’ve learned so much personally from her. She takes a genuine interest in the youth group girls she mentors. She has had painting nights, dinners, and more with them. She will take a Saturday morning to go have coffee with them if they need to talk. I’m so proud of how she has created, directed, and served in the English as a Second Language ministry at church. She started the ministry on her own from a desire in her heart. She spends time coordinating volunteer teachers and has the opportunity to teach non-native English speakers. I love how she truly cares about the little children she teaches at school. She gets to interact with them on a daily basis and I can tell she cares about them. I know this same love will only grow for a child of our own. I love watching Emily interact with her brother’s little son and how his eyes light

up when he sees her. She will make a beautiful loving mother. She is always thinking of new things we can do with our nieces and nephews, and she loves them very much. I can’t wait to start the adventure of raising children together.

Fun Facts• Both of us find great joy in serving our community and are a part of

a church that values that as well. • At Christmas, we have a tradition where we all pile into the car on

Christmas Eve to look at Christmas lights in the surrounding neighborhood. Christmas day includes a brunch, remembering on the story of Jesus’ birth, presents, and then Christmas movies, putting puzzles together, or sledding down the hill next door.

• We enjoy doing a lot of the same things together like water-skiing, riding our bikes together, hosting friends for game nights or bonfires, and exploring new areas together. •Emily loves traveling and learning about other cultures. She has traveled to Hungary, China, England, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Canada.

•Swimming and being in the water was and still is one of Ryan’s favorite activities. We love going to Emily’s familys’ lake house for swimming, tubing, and water skiing.

• Emily is fluent in Spanish.

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Emily RyanBorn: 1987 1987Height: 5’1” 5’11”Complexion: Fair FairHair / Eyes: Brown/Blue Brown/BrownReligion: Christian ChristianEducation: Master’s Degree Bachelor’s DegreeOccupation: Teacher EngineerMat/Pat Lv: Yes Yes Future stay-at-home mom

We have been married since 2014 and are excited to be parents for the first time.

Home and CommunityWe love having a place to call our own. Our four-bedroom and three-bathroom house with a finished basement is our place to connect and unwind as well as a great place for hosting fun get-togethers with friends and family. We also love to spend time outdoors in our yard - playing yard games, roasting marshmallows over a campfire, eating dinner on the patio, or gardening. When looking for a house to purchase, we wanted a house that was close enough to town so that we could easily stay involved and connected with the community. We couldn’t

have asked for a better location! Our neighborhood is very diverse, with many different cultures and nationalities represented. Neighbors are friendly and respectful. Our diverse school district offers many different hands-on learning experiences, technology access for every student, and high academic standards. Another reason we love the location is because we often hop on bike trails that take us to the surrounding countryside, parks, and cities. There are over 25 public parks within our city! Several are within walking distance of our house. Some of our closest friends live within a mile from our house -- some of whom are also beginning the process of adoption. Emily grew up living near a lake where her parents still live. So, many weekends during the summer, you can find our family water-skiing, tubing, swimming, and just hanging out by the lake.

Why Adoption?Even before we were married, we had both considered and talked about adoption as an option for us in the future. Now, we are at the point where that future is becoming a reality! Our first couple of years of marriage, we spent time learning how to live, love, and serve together as a married team before we began trying to grow our family. Then, after many doctor’s appointments and trying for over a year and a half to conceive unsuccessfully, we came to a crossroads. We could continue to try on our own, begin fertility

treatments, or pursue adoption. We decided that we wanted to welcome the newest member of our family through the loving choice of adoption. We have several close friends who are currently beginning the process to adopt. We have also learned so much from the many families at our church who have already adopted. We feel that we have a very strong and stable support system in place to welcome the next member of our family.

Thank you for considering us!

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