American Adoptions -- America's Adoption Agency

Visiting Santa in Chicago

It is hard to choose what our favorite vacation spot is since we enjoy traveling and exploring new places so much. Some of the places where we have had the opportunity to travel are France, Italy, Spain, Thailand, Israel and Turkey.

One of our favorite things to do when we travel somewhere is to rent a car and drive from town to town enjoying the landscapes and experiencing how the locals live. We had a fabulous time doing this once while vacationing in southern Spain. We had a general itinerary of places we wanted to go and then we would modify our plan as we went.

One town on this trip that captivated us was Ronda. Our hotel was located in the heart of the town and sat perched on a cliff overlooking a deep and narrow gorge that ran through the town. We spent hours strolling through the streets taking in the beautiful architecture with its mixture of cultures. The nearby hilly countryside made for awe inspiring day hikes with its massive rock outcroppings, colorful spring wildflowers and never ending olive groves.

We like to blend in with the locals and try not to look like tourists. Before our travels we try to learn as much of the language of the place we are visiting as possible. Once while visiting Paris we were actually mistaken for locals when a French speaking women approached us on a street corner and asked us for directions.

We can't wait for the time when our children are old enough that we can take them to see some of the wonderful places in our country and in the world.

Playing in the Leaves Along the Mississippi

We are always looking for new fun and interesting things to do. Marilyn keeps up on all the local happenings like festivals, art shows, exhibitions, plays, kid's activities, new restaurants and music events. In fact many of our friends come to us when they are looking for ideas of things to do.

During the summer we love to go for long walks through the many park lands near our home and splash around at the local pool or a nearby lake. On a typical summer evening you can find us on our front stoop chatting with neighbors while the kids play up and down the sidewalk or run thru a sprinkler We can find an outdoor concert somewhere near our home any night of the week during the summer. Frequently we will pack a picnic dinner and spend the evening eating and listening to music.

During the winter we like to go to the theater and visit museums. Our hometown has a wonderful Children's Museum, as well as, a Science Museum where we can spend hours exploring the many exhibits. Minnesota winters are great times for us to go sledding and to play in the snow. Once we get too cold to play outside any longer we like to cozy up to a fire with some popcorn and watch a movie, play a game, or hang out with friends.

Good Fun with Ice Cream

Shortly after we started dating, Mike surprised Marilyn at dinner one night by telling her that he had always wanted to have twelve children! Many women might have been scared away by such a prospect, but Marilyn was not. She never imagined herself with twelve children, but she did have warm memories of growing up with two brothers and two sisters.

When we married on February 26, 2000 we were fully open and eager to start a family right away. Because of infertility problems, it wasn't until after five years of marriage that we were blessed with our daughter. The experience of being parents brought such joy to our lives that we continued to try to have more children right away. However, due to continued infertility issues that has not been possible.

Over the years we have watched family and friends adopt and have always thought that adoption would be wonderful choice for expanding a family. We believe man's highest call is to love God and others. We've been called to love as parents and want to continue to expand and live that call by adopting a child.