American Adoptions -- America's Adoption Agency
 A book that we can't wait to read to our child is All the Places We Can Go by Dr. Seuss because it conveys such an excitement for life! One silly rhyme after another beckons us to believe what we should all believe about our lives: that we can be anything and go anywhere! And this is what we believe. Mark has raced in Denmark and Serena has been to Ghana to build an orphanage, but still, the one thing we want to do more than anything we've ever done is share our love for people and enthusiasm for life with a child.  |
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On any given day, we are outdoors! We might be cross country skiing in the winter or, on a hot summer day, we might gather our friends to go white water rafting. During triathlon season, we're often training for upcoming races. Mark has completed 5 Ironmans (2.4m swim, 26m run, and 114m bike), and Serena has done quite a few adventure races, including a fun race called the Muddy Buddy with her sister. And don't worry, we also love "vegging out" on the couch reading or watching movies and eating exorbitant amounts of comfort food!
We also love having our friends and family over. Mark is known for his perfectly marinated grilled steaks, and Serena is always the first one to get everyone playing a game. Growing up, both our houses were considered the "play houses," and we can't wait to create the same thing for our children.
Another important part of how we spend our time is volunteering. Mark is the treasurer of our Triathlon club, and we often volunteer at races. Serena does a lot of volunteer work with her students. Just recently they went to Build a Bear and made 71 bears for kids that are living in homeless shelters. The theater group we belong to is also like an extended family, and members often bring their kids to help paint the sets or do simple costume work. It is going to be so thrilling to share these experiences with our child!
What makes us unique isn't how much we love each other or how much we are going to love our child. It isn't our commitment to each other and our commitment to our family; those are things that every solid couple has. What makes us unique is our boundless energy and enthusiasm for life and "seizing the day," and that is what we cannot wait to share with our child. We cannot wait to take our child to a puppet show, and then, go home, and make a puppet show on our own. We cannot wait to take our child on an adventure of walking through a stream telling stories of Cowboys and Indians. We cannot wait to hike with our child to the top of the mountain so that he can be in awe of how gorgeous it is to see nothing but sky and mountains. We cannot wait to teach our child the importance of giving to people, like Serena did when she went to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina to help build houses. And don't get us wrong, as much as we like to do, we love to "bunker down" in our home, put on a fire, pile on the couch and read, play a game, or watch the movie Princess Bride for the 10th time. There is nothing better that you can give a child than a love and respect for himself, for people, and for life!
Aside from the normal things that couples love about each other, one of the things we love most about our relationship is that we are always growing together. When Mark began an interest in Triathlons, Serena started racing, too. A couple of years ago, Serena joined a theater group. Though Mark laughs at the thought of trying to sing or dance, he loves doing stage crew and audio support. We also love reading the same book together and discussing what we think is going to happen next!
Serena: One of the things I love most about Mark is that he takes such good care of me. In one day, Mark will make sales calls, chop wood, fix the pump to the pond, go food shopping, and have dinner made because he knows I'm running late. I don't know how he does it. All I know is that if I were ever time warped and became one of those pioneers making the trip West in a wagon, Mark's the guy I'd want hitching the horses!
Mark: The things I love most about Serena are her enthusiasm, her ability to see things from multiple perspectives, and her integrity. There is never a dull moment with Serena. And whenever I have a problem, I can count on her. When Serena listens to you, she makes you feel like nothing else in the world matters, and she helps me see things I hadn't considered.
