Dear Birth Parent(s),

We'd like to thank you for taking the time and interest to learn about us. We can't imagine the difficult decisions you are facing right now. We truly admire your courage, and the concern, love, and selflessness you have for your baby. Most of all, we'd like to thank you for considering adoption for your child.

We would like to tell you a little about ourselves to help you get to know us. Our names are Mike and Ingrid. We met while working together at an engineering firm fourteen years ago. We have been happily married for eight years, and our devotion and love for one another grow stronger every day. Early in our marriage, we struggled with infertility but soon felt a strong nudge that God had other plans for us - to provide a loving home to a child entrusted to us through adoption. Since adopting our son, Eric, through American Adoptions in 2005, adoption has been a huge and wonderful part of our lives. We feel blessed to have experienced adoption, and we are extremely excited about adopting another child and having the opportunity to become parents again. Eric enjoys being around babies and is excited about the possibility of having a baby brother or sister.

Both of us come from very family oriented homes and were raised by caring and loving parents who stood by us through all our endeavors. Mike's family lives only a few miles away and Ingrid's family, while several states away, visit us all the time. We also enjoy traveling around the country to visit them. Our families all shared the thrill, excitement, and miracle when we were blessed with our son through adoption, and they are ecstatic that we are going through the process again. Your child would get lots of love and encouragement from grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and other extended family.

We both have very happy memories of our childhoods, which included family vacations, summer camp, swimming, riding bikes, going to parks and spending holidays together with family. A traditional Christmas Eve in Ingrid's family reflects their Swedish heritage as they enjoy a Swedish menu, dance around the tree to Swedish Christmas music, and light many candles around the house. Some of Mike's favorite childhood memories include Boy Scout activities, little league baseball, and fishing and camping with his dad. Even to this day, Mike LOVES to go camping. For Ingrid, camping has been more of an "acquired taste", but she enjoys it and looks forward to camping with kids! We mention all these things because we hope to offer your child a lifetime of wonderful memories such as the ones we were fortunate to experience.

We are both very involved in our church, where we help out with the kids program and Ingrid sings in the choir. If we are chosen, you will be granting your child with a loving, happy, and secure home supported by strong family values and ties. We believe it is very important from the start to teach a child right from wrong, polite manners, and respect and compassion for others. We will provide opportunities for your child to explore their interests and support your child in their hobbies, extracurricular activities and educational pursuits. We will provide as much love and support to your child that our parents gave to us.

We have a very open relationship with Eric's birthmother, and we talk about adoption in our house very openly and in a positive way. Be assured that your child will know how they came to be in our family. He or she will know that it was your generous love and unselfishness that allowed us the opportunity to have them be a part of our lives. If you were to select us as parents for your baby, we would be eternally grateful and you would be cherished in our hearts forever. Furthermore, we would look forward to keeping in touch with you through pictures and letters, and would be open to further contact if that is your desire.

Thank you for reading our letter. We hope it has given you a picture of what our family is like and how much love and affection we have to offer another child. We wish you a healthy and happy future and blessings for the birth of your child. Our thoughts and prayers are with you as you make your decision.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

With much admiration and respect,

Mike & Ingrid