Our families have always been a part of important celebrations like birthday, promotions, and life changes. Every summer we spend multiple weekends at the family lake house with a great mix of friends and family. It is a place we go to unplug, challenge each other to ping pong tournaments and take long walks on trails or trips on the boat. Matt has even made the lake a special place for us since it was our 'first kiss' destination on the dock under the stars. Our holidays are always wonderful time spent with family. Gillian's family is known for hosting a 'Wing Ding' at Thanksgiving. Inviting friends and their families to their home is a long-standing tradition the night before Thanksgiving. The men of the family fry up a bunch of chicken wings, all while trading off wearing the ultimate chef hat which is shaped like a chicken wing. Matt's family celebrates an old Polish tradition call Oplatki. It is a Christmas Polish tradition of 'breaking bread' taking a loaf of any kind of bread and tearing off a big piece then speaking with each family member one to one sharing what you are grateful for about them and wish for them in the new year. Matt's Grandparents started the tradition and have passed it down to continue to foster a close family bond.

Matt About Gillian: Gillian is known for making others feel valued. We were long-distance dating in the first few years and our weekends became very important to us. One of the crazier weekends was a surprise birthday concert Gillian planned for Matt. He came to visit like it was any normal weekend, but Gillian planned for his brother and close friends to meet us at a concert venue to tailgate and attend a favorite country artists show all together. Gillian is also a goof ball. There are always plenty of silly dance parties or funny jokes being made when she is around. Your child will have a mother who encourages humor and an abundance of laughter when expressing themselves. Gillian is passionate about creativity and design. Between deciding paint colors, rearranging furniture, and putting up photos from our favorite adventures, Gillian is always at the helm of the inspiration.

Gillian About Matt: Matt is an incredibly generous person, especially with family and friends. He is happy to assist with tasks that range from creating balloon arches for a little girls Frozen themed birthday party to managing the demolition of his mom's kitchen for a renovation. There is truly no request that he would turn down as being reliable is a value he holds close to his heart. Matt is also a grill master. On the weekends you will most likely see him trying out a new recipe for smoking or grilling some type of meat. His Green Egg is a true test of patience and creativity for him each time he uses it. Matt is an avid golfer. He plays most weekends with friends and family, enjoys playing in local charity tournaments and is part of his company's annual golf event council to support various charity organizations. Your child will have a father who will be a hands-on participant in their chosen activities.

Matt rescued Brody at 8 weeks old, when he was still small enough to fit on his shoulders! Brody is an affectionate and gentle dog who makes friends with everyone he meets. Our family members often joke that he is the favorite of all the family pets due to his easy-going demeanor. Gillian quickly discovered that Brody is a loving and loyal companion once they were introduced. He is now her co-worker in the home office providing occasional security detail between multiple naps a day. Each morning she will cook breakfast for she and Brody to enjoy as a special way to start each day.

We live in a vibrant town with a bustling downtown that has a lot to offer families. Downtown is pedestrian friendly and easily accessible from our home just by walking. There are greenway trails that take you on a nature walk to and from downtown. We live outside downtown in a suburban neighborhood. Our house is at the top of a big hill with a cul-de-sac at the end. Our home has a large fenced-in backyard that is perfect for playing sports or allowing dogs to run. Our backyard has also been known to host a family of deer from time to time and it has been wonderful to experience nature up close. The grass leads to a covered patio that is under our deck and allows us to hang out on lounge furniture and enjoy the outdoors despite the weather. One of our favorite parts about the neighborhood is that we have access to two pools, one dedicated to swim team and one just for families to enjoy a nice pool day. Our home is walking distance from the family friendly pool, it has a splash pad for neighborhood kids and nice lounge areas to gather under umbrellas with friends.

Family is one of our top priorities in our lives. We are both extremely close to our families and they have shown tremendous support and excitement for our adoption journey. Your child will be the first grandchild on both sides of the family, they are sure to be treasured and loved unconditionally.

Matt is the oldest of three boys. Matt's middle brother lives within a few hours driving distance. Matt's parents live nearby as does his youngest brother. Matt's mom is a preschool teacher at a local church and his dad is in construction. We often travel with Matt's family to the lake and enjoy spending time boating and playing board games at the kitchen table.

Gillian has one older brother. Gillian's parents and brother are within driving distance of a few hours. Her parents are retired and often visit in Georgia; while visiting, they spend time golfing, cooking big meals. Gillian's parents look forward to becoming grandparents and plan to visit often to take part in making memories with your child.

Music was an immediate and natural bonding method for our combined families. Music is always on in the background when our families are gathered. One our favorite memories was a music planning weekend we hosted so that we could gather everyone's input on song choices for our wedding. We all ended up sitting around our backyard fire and passed Matt's phone around so each person could add a song to one playlist to collect the combined song preferences.

Thank you for taking the time to learn more about us. Our promise to you is that we are looking forward to embracing your child into our nurturing, safe, and compassionate home. Please know that we keep you in our prayers as you take this journey and wish you comfort as you make your decision.

We have been married for six years now and have built a wonderful life together. We both were raised in homes with parents that have been together for thirty plus years and have truly shown us the definition of dedicated marriages all while raising families. Their examples have been the perfect blueprint for our marriage and our future family. We look forward to watching your child be embraced by our families and loved unconditionally for the wonderful blessing they are destined to be.

We have always looked forward to becoming parents and expanding our family. Once we discovered our infertility, our natural next step was to explore adoption. We bonded even closer through our research and planning. We read more about the adoption journey and discovered that this would be a lifetime pursuit of caring for a child and helping them understand the beauty of their story in how they became a part of our family, but also still very much a part of you, and where they came from. We are hopeful to share this journey with you and your child.

For our future child, we hope to impart the values of education, inclusion, respect, and moral character. We want your child to embrace all the opportunity in life and be courageous as they make decisions, meet new people, and have new experiences. We want to encourage and participate in their interests or endeavors. And want to raise a kind, honest, responsible member of the community. We plan to share with your child the beauty and blessing that their adoption is from a young age. We wish for them to be proud of their story and to share in our joy of being chosen to be their parents.

We are exceedingly honored to be considered as potential parents to your child. Our promise to you is that you will be treated with respect and kindness always in both our words and actions. We are committed to working together with you to create a healthy relationship for the benefit of not only your child, but also for the benefit of all families involved. Please know that we will keep you in our prayers as you take this journey and wish you comfort as you make your decision. Our hope is to share your child's life and special moments through photos and updates if you'd like. We are also open to growing our relationship with you for visits in the future.

Adoption is a journey, a journey that takes a lot of courage and strength to decide or move forward with. We are prepared and excited to join in this journey with you and thank you for allowing us to share our heart with you.

Matt & Gillian