Jessica and Megan

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From Us to You

Dear Expectant Mom,

As we compose this letter to you, we are sitting outside next to our homemade stove, boiling sap we’ve collected to make maple syrup. Boil days include long hours by the stove, watching the fire burn, and keeping the sap boiling. However, it is work that allows the mind to wander. On this boil day, we find our thoughts turning to you.

We cannot imagine how difficult the decision is to place your child and to choose a family for them. We realize that you are entrusting the care and raising of your child to people you do not yet know. Your trust is something we take seriously and we are honored to be among those you are considering as adoptive parents for your child. We hope that through this profile you will know us better and understand the abundance of love your child will experience throughout their life.

We are both adventurous spirits. When we are not backpacking, hiking, or camping, we are working on improving our home; tending our large garden; or woodworking. We love opportunities to learn a new skill or push our current skill set to a new level. However, we also realize that your child may pursue different adventures from us and we are ready to walk alongside them as they learn what they enjoy. We have both had incredible support from our families in pursuing our passions throughout our lives. We want to pass on that loving support to your child throughout their life.

In addition, we will always honor where your child came from. We plan to be open with your child about their adoption by making a book of their adoption story and celebrating Gotcha Day every year. We want to ensure that your child knows that the first selfless act of love they received was from you. We would also like to pass on any cultural or family traditions that you might have which are important to you. Finally, we plan to pray with your child every night, and their birth parents and family will always be included in our prayers.

We are inspired by your selfless act of love, and should you choose us as adoptive parents for your child, we will strive to honor your example. We will always be open to learning from our mistakes in order to be the best parents we can be for your child. Love will be the driving force behind our parenting style, and your child will always feel cherished and loved beyond measure.

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Why We are Choosing to Adopt

We have decided to adopt because we have always wanted to raise children, but neither of us has the desire to be pregnant. Jess has been contemplating adoption since she was 14, working at a summer camp for children in the foster care system. We are both paramedics and have met and helped numerous children on 911 in our communities. This has helped further strengthen our desire to adopt. We are excited to provide a loving and stable home for a child.

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How We Met

We first crossed paths at work. Megan had already been working at her job for three years when Jess applied to join the same place. Interestingly, Megan was actually part of the panel that interviewed Jess. Jess was being interviewed as a potential replacement for Megan’s regular work partner, and when she got the job, she took his place on the schedule. As a result, we ended up working together frequently.

Our job in the ambulance involved long shifts and demanding situations, which gave us plenty of opportunities to really get to know each other. Over time, we developed a close friendship that lasted for two years. During that time, we both started to realize that there might be something more between us. However, we were hesitant to risk the amazing friendship we had built if the other person didn’t feel the same way.

It was during a casual conversation at Megan’s family cabin that these feelings unexpectedly surfaced. To our relief and joy, we discovered that we both shared mutual romantic feelings. Shortly after that conversation, we officially started dating, and about two years later, we happily tied the knot and got married.

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About Megan, by Jessica

After I met Megan, we connected very quickly and soon became close friends and confidants. Megan is someone to whom many people, myself included, have found themselves unexpectedly bearing their soul. I admire her ability to listen deeply, without judgment, and the ease with which she connects with people on a deeper level. Megan also has incredible emotional intelligence. She is often able to tell what I am feeling before I have even realized it myself. I am excited to see how her ability to read feelings and respond as she does with compassion and empathy translates into her parenting.

When Megan chooses to love someone, her love is unconditional and she is fiercely protective. She loves like she does everything in life, by giving everything she has. Caring for our little family is the first thing on her mind and she does it exceedingly well. She’s always pushing herself to be better and, as a result, I have become better as well. I love Megan to the depths of my soul and I cannot wait to see our love grow and extend to the child we raise together.

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About Jessica, by Megan

Jess is the most incredible human being I have ever met. She has a heart like none other. Jess has the unique ability to connect with people and make them feel loved. She always gives people the benefit of the doubt and sees the good in them. She is patient, loyal, selfless, and hard-working. I am blessed that she has chosen me to grow old with.

Jess is family centered. She works hard to help support our family in so many ways. She consistently puts our family before herself. Her parents that live in Washington are important to her. She does not let the distance prevent her from connecting with them. She will speak or text with her parents multiple times per week. I love that family is so important to her. It is one of the many things that drew me to her.

I am so excited to see Jess become a mother. She will put her heart and soul into motherhood. She will make your child feel cherished and loved.

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Lifestyle

We live a very active lifestyle. We only work two to three days per week because of our work shifts as paramedics. We cherish our time off together and try to make the most of it. When your child joins our family, our work schedules also mean that at least one of us will be at home with them at any given time. We enjoy working on indoor and outdoor projects around our house and like to do as much of the work as we can ourselves. We travel as much as our budget allows. We make it out to Washington to see Jess’ family three to four times per year. We also like to visit new places near our home. Both of us have a bucket list of many places we would like to travel to at some point in our lives.

We are avid campers, hikers, and backpackers. Two years ago, we backpacked around Mt. Rainier in Washington. It was over 100 miles and took us 10 days. It was one of the most difficult things we have ever done, but both of us would do it again in a heartbeat. During the hike, we talked many times about how someday we would take our future child on the trail with us.

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Careers & Passions

Both of us are paramedics and work for the same local ambulance service. Megan has been with the service for eight years and Jess for five. We both love the opportunity we have to serve in the community where we live.

We work long hours, but that means we only have to work 2-3 days a week. When we have a child, we are planning on working two 24-hour shifts each; one on the same day and one on a different day. On the day we work together, Megan’s mother is going to watch your child. This means quality grandma time every week! We will also each get one day of quality solo time with our child during the week, which we are both looking forward to.

Outside of work, Megan’s passion is woodworking. Since we bought our house, we have been slowly collecting the tools she needs for all kinds of projects. Recently, she built some American flags for a cancer benefit. They were so popular that now she has paying customers commissioning flags from her!

Jess’ passion outside of work is gardening. She keeps an ever-expanding vegetable garden in the backyard throughout the Spring and Summer. She recently finished the first course she needs for the county Master Gardener Volunteer program. Jess is really looking forward to taking this passion into the community.

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Our Pets

Finn, our pup, is an Australian Shepherd mix. When we got him, we knew that we wanted to have children, so we put a lot of work into training him. We wanted to ensure that he would be well-behaved and child-safe. He currently gets quite a bit of exposure to young children with our nieces and nephews. We monitor Finn’s interactions with children closely, and he has proved to be incredibly patient and gentle around them. Finn has a lot of energy, but is also able to settle and loves to snuggle with his humans.

In addition to Finn, we have been keeping chickens for the past two years. Currently, we have nine. They live in a separate, fenced-off chicken run and coop in our yard. Each one of them has a unique personality and provides us with plenty of comic relief. Our chickens supply us with fresh eggs daily, and compost for the garden.

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Home & Neighborhood

We purchased our first home together in November 2019 and have been living there since. Our house is over 100 years old and is part of a well-established neighborhood in our city. It was renovated about five years prior to our purchase and we have continued to make improvements. Our home is 1,250 square feet and has two bedrooms and two bathrooms. It’s a smaller home which helps us to live simply.

Our neighborhood is predominantly Caucasian, as is the city we live in. Many of the families there have been in the area for several years. Though, recently some new, younger families have moved to the area. We are close friends with the neighbors two houses north of us and often get together with them for meals and family events. There are multiple schools, both public and private, within walking distance of our home. There is also a large state park within a ten-minute car ride from our home, where we often hike with our friends and our pup.

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Racial & Cultural Diversity

Since beginning the adoption process, we have had many conversations between the two of us and with friends and family about a child potentially coming from a race or culture that is different than ours. One of our close friends adopted a child of a different race about 12 years ago. She is flourishing! Her family has been an excellent resource for us to talk to about raising a child of a different race, as well as adoption in general.

The town we live in is predominantly Caucasian. However, we live about twenty minutes from a major metropolitan area with a very diverse community where there are many opportunities to experience the cultural traditions of different races. If our child is of a different race, we will seek out relevant events and participate in them as a family. In addition, we will educate ourselves on the traditions of their culture, so we are prepared to incorporate them into our lives.

No matter what race your child is, we will raise them to understand and respect that there are a multitude of ways to do life, by exposing them to people of other races and experiences from other cultures.

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Our Families & Friends

We are both close with our families. Jess’ parents live in Washington and her brother in California. We make sure to take a trip to Washington three to four times per year. Megan has nine siblings and her family lives in various parts of Minnesota. Most of her family is within a short driving distance. We do regular family dinners with Megan’s family and spend most holidays with them.

We both work long hours on the ambulance, which has allowed us to develop close friendships with our co-workers and, as a result, their families. Many of these families have recently had children of their own. We have all talked about our children growing up together as adoptive cousins.

Our friends and families have been incredibly supportive of us through the adoption process. They are really excited for us to become parents.

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Family Traditions

We love being outside, so many of our traditions revolve around the outdoors. Every year around Megan’s birthday, we pick a state park nearby and go camping for about a week. Then, in the late winter/early spring, we head to a state park a couple of states away for a week of yurt camping. In the spring, we tap maple trees at a friend’s farm to collect sap and make our own maple syrup. It’s quite the process, but definitely worth it when the syrup is finished. Jess also keeps a large garden in our backyard, so we have fresh, homegrown veggies throughout the year.

The Winter weather where we live can be kind of rough at times, so we have plenty of indoor traditions, too. We both grew up watching NFL football, so we typically spend Sundays during football season relaxing and watching the games. We usually attend one live NFL game a year with Jess’ dad, uncle, and cousin. Around Christmastime, we hang stockings for each other and spend the next several weeks finding fun stocking stuffers for each other to fill them with. We can’t wait to discover new traditions to celebrate with your child.

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Our Promise to You

We will forever cherish the gift you have given us and hold you in our hearts. Your child will know of you from the beginning, and continue to learn of you throughout their life. We will ensure that they understand the first, selfless act of love that brought them to us. When we speak to them about you, it will always be with the utmost respect.

We will wrap your child in unconditional love, and strive to be the best parents we can be. We will love your child for exactly who they are and who they become. We will find opportunities to honor the heritage you have passed down to them, even if it is different from our own. We will help them grow to their fullest potential by supporting their passions and encouraging new experiences.