We have two children, Lewis and Margaret. We love being parents and have always dreamed of having a large family. We know in our hearts that our family is not yet complete, and we have turned to adoption to grow our family. We are excited to be on this adoption journey, and we cannot wait to add another child to our fun-loving family!

Lewis (Lew) loves adventure and has a big imagination. He loves to build things out of legos and create movie sets, cars or boats out of cardboard boxes. He also loves outdoor activities such as bike riding and pretending to work on a construction site while playing in dirt.

Margaret (Maggie) is very affectionate and caring. She loves to take care of her baby dolls and give mom and dad extra hugs and kisses. She is sassy, observant and wise beyond her years. She is the youngest grandchild out of 10 grandchildren but still tries to take care of her older cousins if they are hurt or feeling sad. She has a huge heart and is probably most excited about a new baby in the family.

We can't forget about our 9-year old Goldendoodle dog, Archie. He's a sweet boy and loves to run around with the kids in the backyard. He's protective of the kids and we often find him sleeping in the hall between their bedrooms to keep an eye on them.

We love to go on adventures. We try to incorporate adventure in our daily life with our kids. For example, we'll send them outside to look for leprechauns or tell them to pretend the floor is lava and they can't touch it. We like to get the kids' imaginations going all the time. Some of our favorite adventures are:

We have two favorite vacation spots. One is a vacation spot we travel to annually with Katie's sister, Kelli, and her husband and three children the same age as our kids. It's a week long beach vacation in Destin, FL. It's a very relaxing vacation. We mostly play on the beach in the mornings, then head to the pool for a swim. We usually try to fit in a fishing trip or boat ride on one of the days. In the evening, we'll try new restaurants or see a movie or go shopping at the beach stores. The kids love spending time with their cousins all day and night for seven days straight. They ask all the time when we're going back.

Our second favorite vacation spot is Disney World in Orlando, FL. We go there every other year also with Katie's sister's family. With the right planning, Disney is a magical place and we plan to keep going!

We live in one of the smaller villages in the western suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. We like to visit the downtown area for shopping, ice cream, dining and tree lighting in the winter, Halloween parade/trick or treating in the fall and fireworks in the summer. Next year, we want to try the candle light pumpkin float on the lake.

Our house is a mid-century ranch with four bedrooms. We spend a lot of time in the family room and basement watching movies and where most of the toys are organized. We've recently renovated the kitchen and now are spending more time there cooking and working on crafts and homework at the new kitchen counter.

We live on over an acre and have a fenced in backyard where our kids love to play. In the summer, we have an in-ground pool where they take swimming lessons and play with their cousins. We also have a swing set and a treehouse Bryan and his dad recently built. We have plenty of space in the back yard for kids to run around. We also like to visit the local parks (Rocket Ship Park and Lilac Park), arboretum and zoos.

One of our favorite things to do is spend time with family. There are lots of extended family (grandparents, aunts/uncles, cousins) to our kids and we celebrate birthdays, New Year's Eve, Easter, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Mother's day, Father's day and even Memorial Day and Labor Day together. We like to barbecue together and swim at our pool in the summer. We also like to go fishing, have camp fires and make s'mores. In the winter, we like to ski and set up some indoor play dates. Most of our extended family live within 20-80 miles of us.

Our families are very excited about the adoption and having another grandchild/ niece/nephew/cousin in the family. They are all very supportive and grateful to have this child join our family.

We also have some neighborhood friends that have babysat the kids since they were babies. They have a close relationship to the kids and are also excited about the new baby. We also have a few groups of friends from high school, college and work that we see often and also have young kids.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. We (Bryan and Katie) are a married couple of 10 years with two kids (Lewis and Margaret) and a dog (Archie). We live in a smaller village in the Chicago suburbs and we're very blessed to be surrounded by family members (grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins). We are even close in proximity and relationship to great-grandmothers, great aunts and uncles and second and third cousins. We vacation with family and spend all the holidays with them. We include them in our daily lives. Along with gratitude and faith, we believe family is of utmost importance.

We are enthusiastic to add another child to our family. Adoption has touched our lives in our own experiences, but more closely through family, as one of Katie's cousins has an adopted son. It has been a dream of ours for many many years to adopt and we feel there will be a sense of completion to our family when we are lucky to be chosen. We always wanted a large family and we believe adoption is a great way to grow our family.

Should you chose us, we will do everything we can so your child has a healthy and happy life surrounded by family and friends. They will know they were adopted from the very beginning and we are hope to share information about you, their birth parents, and the difficult journey to this decision. We want their life to be fulfilling and the world to be theirs to explore. We hope to teach them how to be grateful, respectful, hardworking and happy in life. We know they will be teaching us a lot too, and we are enthusiastic to learn from them. Fun and laughs are necessary, too! We will play a lot, stay active and go on many adventures together (the zoo, the arboretum, playgrounds, museums, amusement parks, pumpkin patches, the beach, visits to see family, etc.). Let's not forget there will be lots of love, hugs and kisses! We are an affectionate family.

We admire your courage in considering an adoption plan for you and your baby. As you face this heavy decision, please know that two strangers and their families are thinking and praying about you and would be blessed to meet you and your little one. If you so chose, we would be honored to be a part of this journey with you.

We're grateful you took the time to get to know us a little better. We are happy to share more information, so please feel free to contact us. We are happy to stay in contact with you and to send letters and pictures, if that is something you would be open to. You will always have a place in our hearts.

Sincerely,

Bryan & Katie