We decided to choose adoption to grow our family after many years of infertility. We did not have any difficulties in getting pregnant with our son, but experienced a high risk-pregnancy with him.

When we tried to have another child we were not able to conceive and went through multiple rounds of IVF. Unfortunately, those resulted in multiple miscarriages. We were beyond thrilled when we became pregnant with our daughter after our third IVF. After a difficult pregnancy, our daughter was born premature and later passed away in the NICU.

Words cannot describe the grief of losing a child, and after that we decided we would not be trying to grow our family through another pregnancy. We love being parents to our son and want to have another child. After researching adoption, and speaking to those who have adopted or were adopted, it just confirmed that this was the right decision for us.

Jeff enjoys golfing and perfecting his world class cooking skills. He loves to cook a large Polish dinner for the whole family. On the weekends you will find him behind a grill, at the golf course, or in the yard playing catch. He coaches our son's sports teams including baseball, basketball, and hockey. Jeff also enjoys playing guitar and plays video games with our son.

Lynn enjoys spending time with family and friends. She enjoys baking, often making Baylor's favorite chocolate chip cookies. She is an active member of the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), volunteers in Baylor's classroom, and is often the parent chaperone on field trips. During Lynn's downtime she enjoys reading a good mystery. She likes doing projects around the house and is often found painting something or moving furniture. Lynn loves to decorate for the seasons and holidays and involves our son with seasonal craft projects like making a snowman village on the wall, doing holiday legos, or making a book of nature "treasures" she and our son find on their adventures. She likes going on bike rides and exploring new places.

If our adopted child is of a different race than us, we will do all we can to help them connect with their heritage. We understand that it is important that we consider and create an environment that embraces our child's culture. We want them to be aware of who they are, where they came from, and to be aware of the challenges they may face.

We have friends of different heritages that have offered to help us with cultural differences which we appreciate. We plan on reading books, providing toys, and celebrating holidays that are associated with their culture. We want to make sure that they are surrounded by others who look like them and that they can relate to. We have already looked into transracial adoption groups in the area, so that the child might make friends with other adopted children and their families. We are open to conversation that allows us to help prepare them for any challenges they might encounter.

We live in a wonderful neighborhood in a suburb outside a large city in Indiana. Our house is a two-story, five-bedroom brick colonial with a large yard and plenty of mature trees. We have a large, finished basement with lots of windows that we have set up as a play area that we spend time together as a family and our son uses with his friends. We have a great sunporch and patio where we like to gather to watch movies, entertain, and our son likes to use as the neighborhood hangout for nerf wars, hide and seek, and plenty of snacks for everyone.

We chose this neighborhood in part because of how family friendly it is with kids of all ages and lots of activities. We have a neighborhood pool and clubhouse which hosts lots of events like pool movie nights, a Memorial Day parade and BBQ with a bike parade and fire truck, Easter Egg Hunt, Christmas with Santa, and more. There are also biking trails in the neighborhood and we are close to a large children's park and a nature preserve where we often walk with our dog Lucy. We enjoy riding our bikes to the nearby tennis courts and local library. In the winter, there is a large sledding hill nearby.

Recently, a national magazine voted our community as one of the best places to live and raise a family in the Unites States. We have one of the best school systems in the state and many amenities which we take advantage of.

We are very fortunate that both of our families live nearby. We try to see both sets of grandparents frequently, whether it is at Sunday dinners at Lynn's parents (Sugar and Poppa) or game night with Lynn's siblings. During the summer, you can find us hosting impromptu pool parties and swimming at our neighborhood pool with family and friends. We are fortunate to have many close friends nearby and we often get together with the kids to play and cookout. Holidays are important to us and we try to celebrate them together as an extended family, whether it is decorating Christmas cookies, carving pumpkins, or having a 4th of July cooking contest.

Jeff's parents (Grandma and Grandpa) have a lake house which is only two hours away, so we spend many weekends there during the summer. Spending time on the boat, tubing, gardening with Grandma, fishing, and roasting s'mores are typical weekends. Jeff's parents love to do science experiments and take the grandchildren to museums.

We are very lucky that both families love to encourage and attend the miscellaneous activities and interests that our son is in. They are cheering on the sidelines while Jeff helps coach basketball, baseball, and hockey games.

We want to thank you for reading our letter and for considering us as parents for your child. We know that you are faced with what probably feels like an impossible task and our hearts are with you. While we know the joy that pregnancy and a birth bring, we also sadly understand the pain and sadness when that birth does not end how you would have wished. We experienced that with the birth and death of our daughter. We understand that sadness and have a small idea of what you are faced with. We also want to give our sincerest thanks to you for considering adoption.

We hope that as you learn about us and our lives that it might make you feel more comfortable with placing your child with us. We are childhood sweethearts and started dating our Sophomore year in high school. We dated through college and have been married for 13 years. Jeff is an Engineer and Lynn had a career in sales before she began staying home with our son Baylor. We have always supported each other in our lives and have tried to make the best choices for our family. Jeff's job offers flexibility and that allows him to coach our son, and to be there for all of Baylor's important moments. By staying home, Lynn has been able to really focus on the family. She is the after school cookie maker, the wake up from the nap snuggler, the family organizer, and keeps everything running smoothly.

Family has always been important to us and we try to create the best life possible for our son. We will do the same for your child. We promise that they will always know they are loved. That there will be lots of kisses and snuggles, laughter, and joy, we will support and encourage them in whatever their interests are.

In terms of openness, we would like an open adoption. While we would love to meet you and continue to have contact with you after the baby is born, we will respect your wishes in regards to what that contact will look like. We want to send you letters and pictures as your child grows. We will make sure that your child knows you. Whether they know you through meeting you, through stories we share with them, or a bit of both, knowing you ensures that our future child never doubts the unconditional love that you have for him or her. The fact that you are considering adoption and giving us the chance to be parents again is a beautiful act and we will make sure that your child views you, adoption, and themselves in a positive light.

Our future child will have many wonderful opportunities and experiences in his or her life. We love spending time with family and friends, traveling and having new experiences, entertaining, and just having fun as a family. Jeff is excited to toss the ball and do science experiments with our child and Lynn is looking forward to all the craft projects, and introducing them to legos and Harry Potter. Baylor just can't wait to finally be a big brother and wants to show them everything.

When we talk about our future child we imagine many wonderful memories, from baking Christmas cookies to family game nights with us and their big brother Baylor. We look forward to the frequent trips to the family lake house and taking them out on the boat. We think of taking them to Disney World and the ocean for the first time. We think of swimming lessons, story time at the library, going sledding, and introducing them to all the firsts of childhood.

We admire and respect you for wanting to create the best life for your child, whatever your final choice ends up being. Thank you for considering us.

Sincerely,

Jeff & Lynn