Our parents each, in their own ways, taught us that raising a family is one of the best, most important things you can do in your life. Helping a child through the world is about learning to see life from a new perspective and helping make the world a better place than we found it. We are so excited to watch the simple things become extraordinary through the eyes of a child. Something we take for granted, like watching snow fall, is suddenly the most exciting thing that’s ever happened. Sleepless nights and dirty diapers will be worth it to see the world with childlike wonder again. Our collective lives have taught us that life is short; we want our children to grow up knowing that they should help others, take no opportunity for granted, and to see every dip in the road as a chance to grow. No parent wants challenges for their child, but we want to make sure they see every awkward moment, every missed goal, and ever mistake as a chance to learn and grow. We both had great parents who were just normal people doing their best for the children they loved, and we are so well off for it. That for us is what this is all about.

We love to play games and to be outside, and we try to stay active. Abby plays in a soccer league and Rachael does Zumba. We are fortunate to live near plenty of lakes, rivers, and mountains where we can explore either on foot or in our kayaks. There's also a bike path that runs through our neighborhood and connects to other trail systems in our city and the region, and we take advantage of it often. We can't wait to explore it with a child and experience it in a whole new light.

When we aren't adventuring, we are often in our backyard where we have a vegetable garden every year. What we can't grow there we get at the farmer's market downtown - it's one of our favorite activities and we go every Saturday. They have live music, a splash pad and park, and plenty of restaurants to grab lunch after. It's the heart of our community, so going downtown always turns into a visit with friends and neighbors. Bringing a child with us will only make our weekends that much more fun.

When the weather keeps us indoors, we are likely curled up on the couch with our two cats watching a movie, or competing in board games with friends and family. In fact, it doesn't really count as a family gathering if games aren't played, and we look forward to having an excuse to start playing our childhood favorites again.

Rachael About Abby: My favorite thing about Abby is that she is a great friend to the people in her life; she’s steadfast, has endless patience, and is a great listener. She always leans toward compassion, creating a safe space for herself and others to grow into better versions of themselves. These qualities also make her a great teacher. She has taught me how to kayak, backpack, play kickball, and care for our two rambunctious cats. She has also taught me how love myself and others, even through hard times. She keeps me motivated and focused on what truly matters in life. I am very excited to witness her become a mother, to pass on these amazing qualities and create more great friends for this world.

Abby About Rachael: Rachael is passionate about the people and things she cares about and has a childlike enthusiasm that keeps my world light. If she spots a bird on one of our hikes (and she always does), she’ll point, squeal, and try to identify the species. She loves dinosaurs, musicals, and bits of pop culture I will never understand. I can’t wait to watch her share that excitement and love of learning with a child.

She’s also not afraid to speak her mind, a trait I admire and one that helps balance us as a team. While she easily becomes friends with everyone and every dog, she reserves her inner circle for those she loves most and fiercely advocates for the ones she holds dear. There’s no other person with whom I’d want to be a parent.

We live in a four-bedroom home with a large kitchen that opens up into the living room, set in a wonderful, older neighborhood with big trees and a small creek. Right now, our two cats have the run of the place, but they have promised to share. We love to cook and play games in the house, but our backyard is probably our favorite spot. We have a large vegetable garden and a fire pit where you can find us spending most of our free time from spring to fall. There's a playground and picnic area within walking distance and a bike trail that connects to trail systems that expand throughout the city and the region. We often take walks and compete to see who can spot the most hawks, turtles, or rabbits.

We absolutely love our community. Northwest Arkansas is a region full of growth and there is always something fun to do, no matter what your interests are. We have a world class art museum, children's science museum, and a great music venue, but we are also situated close to plenty of lakes, rivers, and hiking trails to explore. We are near restaurants with everything from Thai to Cuban cuisine and an international award-winning coffee shop. We have many of the same advantages of a large city, plus the benefits of living in a small town. It's a wonderful place to live and an even better place to raise a family.

Family is incredibly important to both of us and we are fortunate to have the love and support of so many people in our lives. Abby's mom, older brother, his fiancé and their young son all live nearby and we get together often for family dinners. We love having new parents to learn from and being able to witness our nephew reach new milestones. Abby's mom is a retired pediatric nurse and now loves being a grandparent. There is always a lot of laughter when we get together, and we would love to see how another child adds to the fun. Sleepovers at Grammy's and visits with cousins are fond memories that any child in our home will have.

Rachael's parents and sister live in Florida, but daily phone calls bridge the distance and her parents drive up in their RV any chance they get. They are eager to take their grandchildren on road trips to national parks and to shower them with love in that special way that only grandparents who live in a different state can. Rachael's sister is energetic, caring, and will be a wonderful aunt. Plus, she works at Disney World, so she knows how to bring magic into a kid's life. All of the important people, and cats, in our life are so excited and supportive of our adoption plan and can't wait to be a part of the child's life.

We know you have a lot of options and a very big choice ahead of you so we sincerely thank you for taking the time to get to know us a little bit. We have lives that are full of love and adventure, but we are excited to expand our family and our hearts.

We have been through plenty of mountains and valleys in the 7 years of our relationship-from 18 months of long distance and the death of Abby’s father to exciting things like buying a house and getting married-and overcoming those obstacles, making tough or complicated decisions together, has only made us stronger. These experiences have cemented our bond as a couple and solidified our decision to be parents, not only individually, but together. Raising a child is a huge decision and an important responsibility. You can trust that, no matter what happens, this child will be guided through life by two people who work as a team and are not afraid of the hard parts of life. We firmly believe that everything we’ve been through, good and bad, has led us to this moment and we promise to use all we’ve learned to help any child in our care grow into a happy, healthy, and loving person.

Besides, we know that the best way to handle the challenges of life is to have fun. We promise to expose your child to a variety of activities so that they can find that thing that inspires them-we’ll enroll them in sports, encourage them to join clubs, and sign them up for camps. They’ll have crayons and paints, as well as Legos and stuffed animals. They will undoubtedly learn the name of every bird and plant that we see, and probably the winning strategy in each level of Mario Kart as well. We’ll give them a healthy push to engage in any or all of these things as they grow, and when they find what they are passionate about we will support them fully in exploring that love. We promise to do this in a way that is structured yet fun, reasonable yet exciting. And we promise to leave the spoiling to their grandparents, who are so excited to be a part of a child’s life. This kid will certainly be surrounded by aunts, uncles, friends, cousins, and generally the type of family that radiates love and acceptance (even if they are a little weird).

As this child grows up, we promise to keep you as informed along the way as you desire. We’ll send pictures, write letters, and allow space for your relationship with this child to grow in a way that is natural and true, and in whatever role you choose for that to be. We want you to feel confident that your child is being loved and cared for, and we want them to know where they come from, which includes knowing you. In our eyes, the decision that you are making is a brave one, and we promise to always honor and respect you for that choice in our home. We will ensure that we consistently present this to your child in a positive light.

Your child is, and will be, loved, cherished, and raised to learn as much as they can about this amazing world and how to be a part of it. Thank you again for considering us.

Rachael & Abby