Thank you for giving us the opportunity to tell you about ourselves, our life together and most importantly, our dream to adopt our second child. This dream may become a reality because of the courage you are showing. We hope to forever provide our children with a loving home where they learn strong values, lots of laughter, a respect for others and an appreciation for what they have been blessed with.

Ron Lisa Job Description 4th Grade Teacher 3rd Grade Teacher Education Bachelor's Degree-Elementary Education Bachelor's Degree-Liberal Arts & Masters Degree-Early Childhood Education Favorites Bedtime Story Three Little Bears Bedtime Story I Love You as Much Movie Field of Dreams Movie What About Bob? Food French Fries Food Pizza Subject in School Geography Subject in School Math Magazine Field & Stream Magazine Better Homes & Gardens Children Madison-5 years old

Four years ago, we adopted our beautiful daughter Madison. The whole adoption experience was amazing! From the first phone call telling us we had been selected by a birth mother, we have felt blessed. We had the great fortune of getting to know Madison's birth mother through phone calls, emails, and a weekend visit to her hometown. What a special girl! She had selected us from a stack of profiles that took her 3 weeks to look through. The instant we heard her voice on the phone, we felt connected. She was an intelligent, kind, soft spoken young woman who wanted to find the best parents for her little girl…..and she chose us!

We arrived at the hospital seven hours after Madison's birth. Although terrified, we were so excited to meet this precious little girl. After hugs were exchanged Madison's birth mother looked up at me and said, "Do you want to hold your baby girl?" The connection and overwhelming love was felt instantly! The courage this young woman showed was amazing! We spent the next couple of days in the hospital with these two new members of our family before having to say goodbye. It broke our hearts to leave this special young woman, not knowing what the future would hold for her.

Now, after four years, we continue our correspondence with Madison's birth mother through email. She is doing very well. We will continue to send pictures and letters on all birthdays and special events. Madison knows all about her adoption and we pray for her birth mother each night!

Teaching is the most enjoyable and rewarding job! We have taught 3rd and 4th graders for between 12 and 15 years. We are fortunate to have a job that we look forward to going to each morning, no matter how tired we are. Throughout these many years of teaching in the same town, we have taught over 600 children. Many of our former students have become volunteers in our classrooms and even babysitters for our daughter. We run into former students at the grocery store, bank, local restaurants and at our own front door. Since we live in the town we teach in, we have former students show up at our home to say hi, many stop as they drive by and the younger ones often trick or treat here. There is nothing we enjoy more than seeing our former students, knowing they are doing well and achieving great successes in their lives.

Summer at the Beach

As a family, our favorite vacation spot is Sanibel Island in Florida. We spend a very relaxing week each April with some of Lisa's family. We are fortunate to stay in a beautiful house on the beach. The beach is a great place for our family! We all love hanging out with the kids swimming, building sandcastles, looking for shells, and simply relaxing. When we are not on the beach, we ride bikes into town for lunch, shopping and usually a trip to the playground. Each night, we take turns cooking dinner for everyone, and later we head out to the beach to watch the beautiful sunset. Although we never want to see this week end, we have wonderful memories that we can keep forever.