We try to split our time between being social and homebodies. In Wisconsin it obviously gets cold in the winter, so things slow down more then, but when the weather is nice, we are almost always out with friends and family or just together. Hiking trails in several county parks nearby have really become a popular spot for us recently. We both come from families that love sports, so cheering on the Brewers, Packers, Bucks and Badgers is in our blood. Once a month or so we go to visit family and usually spend the night at Michelle's parents' house.

While we love to be out and about, we also love to hang out and watch a movie, read books, or play games. All our grandparents loved to play card games and board games and they passed that down to both of us and the rest of our families. Nate loves to play video games when he has time and sometimes Michelle will get in on some of the classic games too.

We both come from families that love to spend time together. Michelle's family all live a little closer together than Nate's, so they all get together more often, but we still all love to gather for holidays or just to visit. Thanksgiving has always been a major gathering for both of our families and as our grandparents have aged, we recently started hosting it at our house with both of our families welcomed under one roof. Card and board games, football, lots of food and family time is what the day is about. A few years ago, we started a new tradition we call Cousin Christmas, where all the cousins in Nate's family get together for a big dinner and more classic games they played growing up. Most of the cousins have kids of their own so we try to pass down some of the games to the younger generation before their bedtimes. Even though this is new it feels like we have been doing it forever and it always brings us joy to share a meal and a game or two with the kids.

We plan to address cultural diversity by being open to discussion and exploring and experiencing different cultures. We will talk about culture and diversity as it is seen at the world level, country level, state level and neighborhood level and will encourage questions. If we do not have the answer, we will use that as a teaching moment and we find the answer. We plan to have lots of books that explain and explore cultural diversity. We have started to research different holidays and how we can incorporate them into our lives. We will encourage experiencing new things and look forward to those experiences with a child. From small things like trying new foods and talking about certain dishes and the history and significance of those dishes, to recognizing the history of other cultural milestones, we will express positive interest in exploring with them. We promise to encourage the child to ask questions and let them know that curiosity is perfectly normal. We will always respect and empathize with the child. We are preparing ourselves to be the best example and best advocates we can be.

We moved away from Madison to a smaller town a few years ago because we wanted more space and we found a community we've come to love.

Our home is a ranch style with three bedrooms. One of the main reasons we chose to settle here was how family friendly it seemed to be. Even when we were driving by during the winter there were kids and parents playing outside in their yards. We've gotten to know many families in the neighborhood and there are kids ranging from newborn to teenagers all around us.

The Fourth of July is a major celebration time for our town, celebrated with live music and food vendors at the biggest park in town for the whole week leading up to the big day. There are kid-focused events and a parade that goes for close to an hour with local sports teams, businesses and lots of cool cars and old school tractors all showing out to help celebrate our country. And of course there are fireworks- most of which you can see from our front yard.

There are lots of parks, including one that is only a few blocks away from our house. In the next few years a new pool is going to be built in the nearby park.

All of the schools in our district are close- many kids in the neighborhood walk or bike together when the weather is nice.

We have several family members that live a short drive away and most of the rest of them live less than two hours away. We recently started a new tradition around the holidays with all of Nate's cousins to eat a big meal and play several board and card games. During the pandemic family gatherings were reduced of course but we normally get together with both families for various holidays and birthdays throughout the year. April is full of birthdays for both families so we see a lot of each other then. Michelle's dad and our goddaughter Finn even share a birthday!

Our families are excited for us to grow our family through adoption. Nate has a cousin that was adopted from China so adoption is nothing new for his family and Michelle's extended family has all shared their collective delight to have another child in the family.

We are grateful that you have taken the time to let us share with you a little bit about us. Making this decision cannot be easy but please know that we are thinking of you at this time.

We met through friends while Michelle was a senior in high school and Nate was a freshman in college and we quickly became inseparable. We were married just 2 years later at age 20 and 21 respectively and have been together now for almost 15 years. Both of our parents have been role models for strong marriages, with both being together now over 40 years. Family is incredibly important to us, and we regularly visit our parents and extended families. Our families look forward to having another child in the family to spoil, teach and spend lots of time with.

Michelle currently works as an accountant for an audio/video equipment and service company which recently added a new office in Colorado. Her work keeps her busy, since her company covers a large part of the state but only has a few employees, but she can work from home several days a week. Nate is an IT manager at a beverage distribution company with offices all around Wisconsin. Every day is a little different for him, since he could have to help support salespeople, or install a new server, or just deal with paperwork. His company is also embracing work from home now, so he usually only goes into the office once a week. Both of our companies are very family focused and family owned and have promised flexibility with us as our family grows.

We talked about having children early on in our relationship and we both knew we could not wait to be parents. We both had cousins with younger kids so watching and playing with them was always fun and it seemed like a logical step for us to have kids of our own. Adoption was something we talked about as well because Nate has a younger cousin through adoption and it turns out his great grandmother was adopted as well, but we were never sure exactly how adoption would fit in our lives. A few years after we were married, we both were given infertility diagnoses. Like many couples, we tried several treatments and after nothing seemed to work, we felt our hearts turning to adoption to grow our family. Our families, friends and neighbors have all taken to learning more about adoption to support us on our journey so in its own way it has brought us closer to the people we love.

We will always share your child's birth story with them and assure them of how much you love them and that your decision was not made lightly. We promise to always speak about you in a positive light no matter what. We are more than happy to send letters, email updates, pictures and when the time is right if you desire, we are happy to visit.

Nate & Michelle