To both of us, being a parent means providing a child with a loving and supportive environment for the child to grow and express themself. We don't expect to always understand everything the child is excited about or wants to try, but we look forward to growing and adapting with the child and fostering their growth- from curious baby, to opinionated teen, to a person with their own unique thoughts and experiences.

The "curveballs" may seem like an odd thing to look forward to, but nothing excites us more than that growth of an entirely new person exploring the world and finding their own interest and having their own ideas.

Eric has a strong sense of wonder and a willingness to learn. He is always writing, reading, or listening to something, and enjoys taking the mundane and analyzing it. He prefers podcasts or audiobooks over listening to music. He can be a little critical with his standards for media, and will talk your ear off about how a book or movie 'could have been better'.

This outlook gives him a hopeful optimism in the world and how it could improve, and drives him to continue to learn about anything he can.

Schyler's strengths lie in his tenacity and attention to detail, both of which have helped him become a great lawyer. Schyler loves a challenge, especially when it is something he believes in. Even when that may be something that others may not agree with, Schyler has the fight to stand up for himself and those he cares about.

Schyler also loves to research and plan. While Eric can get hyper focused on one thing, Schyler is always planning the next thing and covering the details. Schyler loves planning trips, trying recipes, and finding new decor for the house and garden.

Between the two of us, we have four families filled with traditions. An end of summer trip to the beach with several of Eric's aunts, uncles, and cousins happens every year. The trips were quiet for a while, but now that all the cousins are having kids it is a happy mess.

When Christmas rolls around (a favorite holiday for both of them), they are still figuring out how to squeeze all the traditions into a single December. Schyler's family does stockings for everyone, and all the children make little gifts to put in the adults stockings. Eric has a whole cookbook of Christmas treats from his grandmothers, though the shortbread are a must-bake every year. That's not even counting all events!

The two of us are living our suburban dream. We live in a subdivision that is filled with families. There are always children biking and playing outside.

The town we live in is growing every year, but still has a small town feeling. There are plenty of parks with playground equipment, splash pads, public pools, libraries and outdoor spaces.

Our town is just a short drive from two metropolitan areas. Between them, there is always something to do, whether it be attending one of the many festivals, going to the zoo, or just exploring.

Our home has four bedrooms, and two bathrooms. In addition to the nursery and our bedroom, both of us have our own spaces. Schyler has a workout room, and Eric has a study with a guest bed for when family or friends stay over.

Schyler's favorite part of the house is the master bathroom. We have a large bathtub that he loves relaxing in. Eric's favorite is his study. He plays games and writes on his computer while Schyler lounges on the guest bed reading or chatting.

There's a lot of greenery around our house, and we will often take small hikes right out of our yard. Schyler loves plants. He has them all around our house and has his own small garden. Eric is more about the wilderness. He hopes the baby likes animals- there is a field of horses not even 500 feet from our house that he will go watch.

Family is very important to us.

Schyler has three siblings, and Eric has a younger sister. Both of our families live close by, and we make it a point to see them as often as we can.

We get together with Eric's family almost every weekend. During our visits, there is always good food (Eric's parents are great cooks,) and we always play some kind of board game or watch a movie together. Eric's parents have no grandchildren yet– and are ready to spoil the child rotten.

Eric's extended family is big and tight knit– all of his parents' neighbors are family members. The cousins that Eric grew up with are all having children of their own, and he is excited for the baby to grow up in a strong familial community.

As for Schyler's family, it is a little harder to get everyone together as often as Eric's family. However, when it does happen, there is plenty of catching up, and as the 'cool uncles' we always get roped into playing whatever kind of game our nieces and nephew want. We can't wait to add another baby to the growing group.

Outside of family get-togethers, Eric has a game night with his sister and friends every Monday, and Schyler has one of his parents or siblings over for dinner once a week.

The two of us wanting children is not a new development. Even when we first met over a decade ago, we were discussing children and adoption. We are now at the age where all of our friends, siblings, and cousins are having children. Our enthusiasm to be dads has only grown with time. We hope this letter tells you about us and why we want to be dads.

Eric describes himself as a dreamer. He is a big reader, especially fantasy books. When Eric enjoys an author he will devour everything they have written. He also loves to write, putting all his ideas into characters and hobby novels. He keeps a collection of comics from when he was younger, they have a vibrant fun to them that Eric hopes to share with his child.

Schyler likes growth and improvements. The biggest outlet for this is gardening. He is working with our friends to redo the backyard into a more personal and lively area. If Schyler had his way, he would buy a new plant every time he went to the store. Even inside of the house, Schyler is constantly thinking of ways to make our home more cozy, especially the nursery.

Both of us enjoy traveling. Schyler loves big cities and cultural experiences, while Eric is a fan of the outdoors. Some of our favorite trips have been to Alaska, London, and Cuba. Even though we usually vacation just the two of us, when Schyler's sister was little we surprised her with a trip to Disney World. She was so excited and it was one of the most memorable trips we have ever taken. We hope to bring our child on many adventures, exploring landscapes and cultures all over.

We spend almost every weekend at one of our parents' houses. Whenever we are at Eric's side of the family, we often play board games. Eric's sister and dad often join in while his mom watches and makes funny commentary. Eric explains the rules, and hopes Schyler is paying attention. Whenever we have one of the young cousins over, Eric lets them sit with him and make 'suggestions' on what he should do next. The kids love rolling dice and Eric acts surprised at every result.

When we go visit Schyler's side of the family, we love starting up an outdoor activity with the kids. Eric will play tag, catch, or even a very poorly coordinated game of badminton. Schyler likes to take the children down to the waterfront and feed the ducks or fish. He sometimes has issues getting the kids to put on the lifejackets, and will have to do a little fashion show to make them seem cool. Our nieces and nephews definitely consider us the 'fun uncles'. Our number one priority is to always get them nice and sleepy for their parents.

The thing we enjoy the most about these visits is seeing the growth and development. Each of these children are growing so fast, using the lessons we teach them to become their own individuals. Even these momentary glimpses into parenthood make us so excited.

Kindness is the thing we are most invested in passing onto our child. Schyler enjoys wit, but the main reason he became a lawyer was to help people. Eric is easy to please and outgoing, but he finds the most enjoyment when everyone else is having fun as well. The things we love about ourselves and each other are not about the genetics that our parents gave us, it's the morals they taught us. If we can pass on patience, empathy, and goodwill to our child, we are leaving society and the world in the best hands.

We are excited about all the moments of being parents; big things like their first steps or first day of school. However, we are also excited for the small things like tummy time, bedtime stories, and blowing bubbles. We will send you letters and photos capturing them all.

We know this isn't an easy choice, but we hope this letter makes it easier. We know we are more than ready to become parents, and watch our child grow.

Eric & Schyler