Michael and Maria

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From Us to You

Please know that you will have our support and that your baby will know nothing but kind thoughts about you. Your child will know how selfless you were in order for him or her to experience the life you dreamed of for them. We want to openly share about ourselves, our hopes, and our desires to become loving parents to your child.

We met a bit later in life than most couples and tried to have biological children but were not able to; God had another family plan for us.  After much soul searching, we knew that we absolutely wanted to have a family and that adoption was the way forward for us. We are excited, as is our family, to welcome a son or daughter and are already dreaming of Christmases, Easters, summer vacations, sporting and school events, and so much more.

Your baby will have a safe and secure home filled with love, faith in God, family, and opportunities to explore their talents.  We believe that exposing your child to music, sports, travel, nature (especially time at our cabin), and learning Spanish (and more about our cultures) will not only bring out their natural abilities but enhance their understanding of community and how they will be a contributing member of society. Encouraging children to be active and stimulated enhances their development and sets a pattern for them to follow into adulthood.  So with that in mind, we will help them find their interests and enroll them in swimming, music, soccer/football, cross country skiing (a family sport of ours), woodworking (with Michael as a teacher), skateboarding, biking, art classes and anything else they take a liking to.  We have a cabin in northern Wisconsin that was built by Michael’s grandfather.  The purpose was to have a place where family could gather and enjoy the outdoors and we do just that.  Michael has boxes of photos from birthdays, family gatherings, fishing, river trips, and so much family cooking.  We will continue to spend most of our summers there.  Your child will know how beautiful nature is and how much fun it is to be outside.

Keeping Maria’s connection to her family in Mexico is very important and it will also be an important part of your baby’s life.  Not only for the vital reason of family connection but also as a way to honor the culture through food, sites, and language. Maria has such amazing memories of running through her grandmother’s small town with her cousins. They would team up and go into stores to buy ice cream, dolls, and penny games, and see if they could charge it to their grandmother’s store credit. We want your child to have these kinds of memories as well. Travel will not be exclusive to Latin America; we also want to explore Michael’s Irish and Scottish heritage. Michael went to Ireland with his family when he was ten and he learned to ride a horse, walked the green hills, and dance the jig.

We leave you with our hopes and dreams of becoming parents and want you to know that we will take our role as parents seriously. Being chosen by you will be our greatest responsibility.

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Why We Are Choosing to Adopt

We have a wonderful life together, but the missing piece is having a child of our own. We were not able to have a child naturally, and when we came to terms with that, adoption was the greatest option for us.  Michael’s father was adopted and had a wonderful childhood and Maria’s mother was raised by her stepmother. We have seen firsthand the strong and true love adoption brings to a family.  We know our lives will be fulfilled, and that the blessings we have will be magnified.

We have a cabin that has been in Michael’s family for a long time. All of our adventures of swimming in the creek, hiking by the falls, and barbecues will mean so much more when we are able to share it with your child.  Michael will teach him or her where his great grandfather built the first cabin on the land. Becoming parents will give us and our extended family so many new joys and memories.

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Our Relationship with You

We want to have open communication with you as you navigate through such an important decision. We will be there alongside you to support you as you figure out what the best thing is for you and your baby. We want you to be comfortable with being open when you want to be, while still having privacy when you need it. We don’t only care about your physical wellbeing, we also care about your emotional health. We will provide you with letters and photos of your baby as he or she grows into their own person. We will always respect your boundaries.  We may never fully understand the emotional strength and toll it takes to place your child for adoption, but we are motivated to always be supportive of you.

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About Maria, by Michael

Maria is a perfect life partner for me. She complements and balances my personality. Maria is caring, empathic, and outgoing. Her intelligence and can-do attitude make tackling life’s many challenges possible and enjoyable. She has a buoyant, entertaining sense of humor that always keeps me smiling. Maria is loving, strong, loyal, and honest.  She doesn’t avoid tough conversations in our relationship. We talk about issues that are important to us, even if we have differing points of view. I always understand where Maria stands on a given topic. I love this strength in her. She keeps our lives on track and keeps our home an enjoyable place to be.

Maria loves children and is very good with them. She is confident and happy with a baby in her arms. I love to watch her as she holds children; she lights up when she interacts with them. She is great at reading their cues and keeps them calm. Kids are attracted to Maria. I think they love her beautiful eyes and smile as much as I do. I’m excited to see Maria with a child of our own because she has the makings of a wonderful mother and has so much love and experience to share.

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About Michael, by Maria

Michael has a very calm demeanor on the outside doesn’t always convey the depth of feeling and character that he possesses. He is very well-read but doesn’t let that come off as a know it all. It comes in handy when you’re trying to find the answer to something. He can also fix and build anything.  I think the best way to describe him is a true Renaissance man.  No one makes me laugh more than Michael.  He can make the most obvious observation funny or he uses something I call his “little voice” to point something out and make it hilarious.  I don’t think I have been able to stay mad at him for more than a couple of hours.  He’s empathetic and listens to what I’m saying and tries to put himself in my shoes.  He makes situations that could be dangerous (driving in heavy snow) feel ok and safe; he conveys strength and calm.

Michael is such a warm, calm and caring person; from the minute you meet him, you are put at ease and feel an immediate trust (I experienced this from our first date and have been told this from several friends and family).  I know that this has served our marriage well in tackling challenging times and it’s what anyone would want in a father.  The ability for your child to know that they have a father that makes them feel safe and can go to anytime for love and guidance. Michael is also so talented (playing the guitar, woodworking, photography) and I’m so looking forward to seeing him impart this knowledge to your child and seeing them have fun while they learn!

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How We Met

We met online and instantly liked each other’s profiles. We had our first phone call that same time day. For about a week, we continued to have many more long phone conversations, night after night. These chats created an attraction and anticipation that made our first date an event that was a self-fulfilling success. We were ready to get to know each other and had an amazing evening together. As they say, the rest was history and we were inseparable after that.

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Lifestyle

Our motto is, “Life is meant to be lived!” We are hardworking yet relaxed and always in search of new adventures.  One of our favorite things to do is visit our cabin, where we go hiking and swimming. In our city, we like to hit up estate sales, antique stores, farmers’ markets, and explore different neighborhoods – anything that gets us out of the house and moving.  Michael enjoys listening to music and going to record stores and looking for rare finds.  He also buys supplies for his woodworking projects.  Maria likes to meet friends for coffee, dinner, or a girls’ day out and go on long walks (up to three hours!) to explore the city.

We often think about how our daily experiences will change when your baby joins our family. They will get to go with Michael to the music store to buy guitar strings or hop on the piano at home to learn music lessons. We imagine them joining us on our trips to the antique store where we will talk about the awesome Tonka truck from 1920 that we found, or how to pick out organic and healthy food at the Farmer’s Market. We will take family art classes and bake at home. Hanging out with friends that have children will be central in our life.  An essential talent of Michael’s is woodworking (as was his father’s, grandfather’s, and so on) so spending time together in the shop making something is important. Your child will learn the sense of accomplishment and confidence that comes with building something with their own hands. At home, we will have set rituals; snack and time at the park after school, followed by homework, cooking a family dinner (no phones allowed but definitely music of all genres), and definitely bedtime stories (we have Michael’s and Michael’s father’s bedtime storybooks).

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Home & Neighborhood

We had been searching and searching for a home when we came across a listing for a duplex on a double lot with a huge, tiered garden. It was a great find and we signed our lease within hours.   The garden has so many flowers and trees and we get to enjoy the changing foliage with each season. We added our personal touch to the garden by planting hostas from our cabin, ferns, and morning glories. We will definitely teach your child how to garden and have plans to start with a small vegetable patch.

Our house is large with two bedrooms (one is used as an office, but will become baby’s nursery), another office, two living rooms, sunroom, kitchen, and a basement that we use as our entertainment area.  We live in a family-centered neighborhood within a block of a huge green park; we both call it our very own Midwest Central Park. The park has tennis courts, a large playground, and an artificial pond with swan pedal boats.  The park is always busy with families; especially on the weekends – the hotdog and ice cream carts are at the ready.  Within a ten-minute walk, there are many local shops, restaurants, and fun neighborhood food and art festivals.

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Our Personalities

Maria is very outgoing from the start. Michael is a bit of an introvert but if you get him talking about one of his interests (like the stars or space), he can really get going. Maria is always in contact with her far-flung friends and family (she loves to send memes, text, and talk on the phone), but it takes Michael a bit more to find time for a long conversation. Maria is very thoughtful and can find the perfect gift for anyone. Michael is thoughtful in other ways, like in his giving to charities and being a generous tipper.

We love to laugh and tease one another. To entertain us, Maria bought a mobile disco ball that we break out every so often to have our very own dance parties in the sunroom. We enjoy many of the same kinds of movies and events and frequently like to have movie marathons and attend summer street festivals.

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What Kind of Parents We Will Be

From the first months of dating, we have had very open discussions about what kind of parents we wanted to be.  We have wonderful childhood memories, but also times where we learned many life lessons that served us well in adulthood.  As a girl, Maria was not encouraged enough to speak up when she thought something was wrong or something was said that shouldn’t have been said, later to find out that she could have stopped a bully from escalating a situation with her best friend.  This became a learned life lesson, and she now speaks up and stands her ground when she sees wrong-doing taking place. When Michael worked at his family’s dairy farm one summer when his arm was broken, he knew he had a responsibility to get up and help out any way that he could. He learned that he was part of a family unit and not just there for himself.  We want to impart this wisdom to your child. We won’t have a “this is how it is” or “do as I say” attitude. Instead, we will use kindness, understanding, open communication, and certainly setting boundaries in a manner where your child will always feel safe and loved.  We will give him or her the opportunity to explore all sports, play musical instruments, and take art classes; really anything that they take an interest in so that they are well rounded and social.  We will be involved and present parents and look forward to going on family adventures, making sure we have dinner together and lively conversations about different topics or simply what we learned that given day.

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Our Families & Friends

We both come from large families that love to cook yummy Midwest and Mexican dishes and surround themselves withlots of music and dancing. 

Michael’s family has lived in the same state for generations and having a family connection has always been an important part of his life.  His parents are no longer alive but we see his aunts, uncles, cousins, great nephews, and nieces often. We are at our cabin or theirs whenever we have free wekends, during Summer, Christmas, Easter, Sunday football, and birthdays.

Maria has two brothers, a sister, mom, two nieces, and a nephew. We see them during Christmas as well as graduations and birthdays.  They live in Arizona and California, which is only a short plane ride away. Maria also has extended family, including 15 cousins, in Mexico – her home away from home. Her bond with her large extended family has always been obvious from the stacks of family albums. So much so that we were married in Mexico and had our reception at her uncle’s lake house. We both have been so blessed to have amazing and loyal lifelong friendships, and that so many traveled to be with us at our Mexico wedding!

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Faith

We both grew up in religious households and were shown that God is ever present and loving; faith is important to us.  Michael is Lutheran and Maria is Catholic and having faith has helped us get through low points in our lives.  Our commitment to each other is supported by our faith and we will bring up your child with faith in God and Catholic. He or she will be taught to respect people from all backgrounds and cultures. We as a family will join volunteer groups that help the less fortunate in our community. We currently donate to several local and international causes and will guide your child in choosing causes that speak to him or her.  We feel it is important to help those in need and will lead by example; engaging in acts of kindness, empathy and discussing important issues.

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Family Traditions

Michael’s earliest memories are of celebrating his birthday with his sister, cousins, and family at the cabin (with a Pinata to boot!).  He loved whacking that poor burro for candy!  His grandmother would make homemade donuts, put them up on a string and the kids would compete to see who could eat one the fastest with no hands.  Christmas was a special time, his mother was an excellent baker (frosting cookies was a big deal for everyone) and decorated the house with style and heirlooms past from generations. We inherited her handwritten Holiday baking recipe book and we make many of the favorites every year.  Easter was a time for church, sharing gratitude, and big family meals; we still have the Easter Tree that has handcrafted eggs that are over 75 years old.  Maria’s extended family lives in Mexico, so trips every Christmas, summer vacation, wedding, you name it, she was there.  With Spanish being her first language (your child will also speak Spanish), she always felt like she was home and grounded. Her grandmother was the best cook in Mexico, and Maria often watched as she made traditional dishes; pozole, menudo, empanadas, mole, etc.  Maria makes these dishes at home for Michael and our friends to enjoy. We can’t wait to pass along our family traditions with your child, and also create ones of our own!

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Our Promise to You

It will be an honor to raise your child as our very own.  We promise you that he or she will never lack unconditional love, guidance, understanding, and a solid religious foundation.  They will have the opportunities that every parent wants to give their child so that they can lead a fulfilling and purposeful life.  We go into this new life adventure with our hearts open and ready to love your baby and want you to know we don’t take it lightly that you have chosen us to be his or her parents.  We promise you that we will always endeavor to do our very best and that your baby will be the center of our lives.