Brad and Catie

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From Us to You

Hi! We’re Catie, Brad, Elliot, and Mini (our cat). We cannot wait to connect with you and are looking forward to giving your child a fulfilling future, a loving home, and a positive place in the world.

Throughout this journey, we can only imagine the unknowns you are currently facing. However, hopefully, you can lean into the comfort that your child will be loved, well-nurtured, and will always have a home within our family. We value diversity and reinforcing what makes an individual unique. Your child will only make the world a better place and we are eager to nourish each piece of them.

Parenting is the most incredible role that we have stepped into together. It has highlighted what we hold closest to our hearts and the people and community that will always be there for us and your child. We value the beauty that each person adds to the world whether it be in the form of diversity, thought, talent or culture and are honored to have the opportunity to nourish a baby whose life will add joy to and better the world. We are eager to support the small triumphs and big life milestones through laughter, guidance, and love.

Elliot has taught us the depths of compassion, patience and love. With this in our hearts, we are on the edge of our seats to connect with you and discover just how incredible life can truly be by sharing this love and compassion with your child as well.

Our family spends a lot of time together, a lot of which is outdoors, where we will often take afternoon trips to nearby Lake Michigan, the library, or an outdoor park. At home, we enjoy spending time playing with our cat, grilling, gardening, crafting, making forts, and enjoying quality family time.

With an older sibling to look up to in our household, your child will have a lifelong best friend and guide in addition to parents. As parents, we are dedicated to being good protectors, guides, and confidants from the time your child is a toddler needing a hand to hold while crossing the street all the way up to a young adult seeking belonging and advice as they navigate their own life path.

We’re sure that you will have many difficult decisions to make during your journey, but we are hoping that by getting to know our family a little bit more, you can be assured that your child will have a future that is theirs to write and parents who have built a home and a village to strengthen them along the way.

With great warmth and well wishes,

Catie, Brad, Elliot, and Mini

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Why We Are Choosing to Adopt

Catie and I both have a strong desire to bring a positive change to this world. We are excited to give your child a loving family, a caring home, and a beautiful life. Having our son opened our eyes to the amount of love that we can give to a child as parents which will fully extend to your child as a new member coming into our family.

Catie’s career is dedicated to providing compassionate care to others, and this desire to love another person will directly translate to her capability of whole heartedly loving your child. There is so much beauty in each person that sometimes the world doesn’t see and she is eager to shout from the rooftops the beauty and color your child offers to us all. Through having our son, Catie realized her calling to be a mother and has so much more love to give to another child. She is bursting at the seams to hold another little life in her arms.

I (Brad) have always made it a life goal to try and improve the world that we live in through one aspect or another. I’m excited to help mentor your child and to be a guiding voice as they grow and begin to learn about the world that we all share. Being “Dad” is one of the most incredible jobs that is always changing and I’m still learning day by day. I’m looking forward with hope to a day where I get to be “Dad” for another smiling little face.

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Lifestyle

We currently live in the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin just a few short blocks from the beach on Lake Michigan.

Catie works several nights per week at the local hospital downtown as an emergency room nurse, while Brad works a hybrid office job downtown as well. This ensures that our child has full time parental care at home. Some of the weekdays really highlight the strength of our family unit because Catie works into the night a few times a week and Brad will adjust to being in full Dad mode after a long day of work. This requires a lot of communication and emphasizes the importance of family time. It also gives Elliot the opportunity to see us both in the same role. We have our unique strengths but he can rely on us equally for day to day tasks. Whether it be preparing dinner or cutting the lawn, he sees we can both be parents who tucks him into bed or do the grocery run.

On weekdays, we spend time visiting libraries, the community center, and various neighborhood play opportunities with our son. On weekends we like to take family trips to the zoo, parks throughout the city, nature trails, concerts, and the occasional out of town adventure.

We are excited to include your child in our daily adventures. From a simple bike ride to making s’mores around the campfire, we are looking forward to welcoming your child with open arms.

Fun Facts As A Couple:

• We’ve had the opportunity to explore two countries outside of the U.S. as a couple, including Brazil and South Korea.
• We like to bike around the city.
• We met in the gym at school, which is still near to our home, and continue to remain physically active as a family.

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About Catie, by Brad

Catie is an incredible mother to our son Elliot and a best friend to me.

In her work outside of the home, Catie is providing essential care to patients in the city with serious needs. When she’s not at work, there’s a good chance Catie is making something yummy in the kitchen, getting a little reading or crocheting in, or chasing after a toddler.

She’s great at making sure that Elliot is always learning and also having fun which takes a LOT of creativity and dedication. I’m endlessly amazed by the ideas for games, crafts, and activities that she comes up with. It feels like she has something new almost every single week! I’m equally amazed when I come home from work and Elliot is proud to show me what new thing Catie taught him or helped him make.

The care that Catie takes in her parenting is truly inspiring. She has an incredible ability to meet big emotions with a calm and patient heart often accompanied by a reassuring hug. She approaches parenting not just as a daily routine, but as a beautiful chance to teach and guide them through mistakes, a new experience, or a challenge with seemingly endless patience. Beyond that, Catie has a gift for turning ordinary (and sometimes frustrating) moments into gentle life lessons with compassion that I can see Elliot connect with.

Catie makes sure to find the puddles worth jumping in, the shells worth bringing home from the beach, ice cream shops worth visiting, and the time to make incredible memories as a family. Catie’s warmth is the heartbeat of our home, and she has a way of cultivating joy and excitement into everything that we do together. There is nobody else in this world that I would want to adventure, parent, and spend my time with.

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About Brad, by Catie

Brad is a constant in my life. He works incredibly hard for our family and is dependable in crisis both large and small. He loves our son Elliot so much and is constantly bringing a smile to our faces.

Brad is a steward of the earth in our home, in the office, and as a passerby on a trail. His love of the earth gives me peace that the world will be a better place for Elliot and others.

I often find Brad outside with Elliot teaching him how to use a tool and absolutely making Elliot’s day by encouraging him to be confident and enjoy something as simple as the yard. He instills pride in hard work as well as love for the earth by making a game out of picking up trash in the neighborhood. Nothing is cooler than a trash picker to a three year old, and Brad makes sure they have a blast.

He is quick witted, a total goof, and constantly keeping me on my toes. One example being a weekend where we were trekking at a local hiking spot, he spontaneously suggested that we drive to Chicago simply to taste test a giant burger.

His curious mind is incredible company. He thinks he can beat me at dominoes but is a really good sport when he loses. This companionship is shared fiercely with Elliot.

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Our Son, Elliot

Elliot is currently just over three years old and is an abundance of energy, curiosity, and smiles.

As he has grown, he has found joy in friendships and family. He is laughing constantly at home, with his friends, or even to himself while his imagination runs wild.

He is constantly asking for a baby. Seeing his friends become big brothers and sisters gives him opportunities to learn what it is like to be “the older kid” and help out or simply play safely around a baby. He is so high energy and in another life would love to be a shiny race car but as soon as he sees an infant car seat or hears a baby cry out his demeanor instantly softens and his natural instinct is a nurturing protectiveness over them.

To name only a few things, Elliot loves running, Buzz Lightyear, snuggling with our cat, playing at the park, bedtime stories, taking baths, playing tag, having dance parties, riding his bike / scooter, and pointing out airplanes as they pass overhead.

He is outgoing, high-energy, and always looking to make new friends. He is also able to adjust really well to other children’s energy. This means that if he wants to keep up with “the big kids” he will muster up all his bravery and run along with them, and he can also take the hand of a little toddler and gently teach them something new.

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Our Home

Our home is in a culturally diverse neighborhood in the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. We have parks, museums, Lake Michigan, a nice downtown to visit, and plenty of friendly neighbors all within accessible walking and biking distance.

We are close to our city’s stadiums so that we are able to easily visit sporting events as a special family weekend activity. Our home has a nice little backyard with a thriving community of urban wildlife including bunnies, squirrels, outdoor cats, and the occasional fox. In the summertime, we have a large community of bees, butterflies, and other pollinators who like to visit our garden. We have the space to chase Elliot around, have an evening backyard fire, and cook out. Our neighborhood has a great library and community center with a multitude of excellent activities for learning children while also providing a great space to make friends.

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Our Family & Values

We are from two loving families that have spread out over time. Therefore, we often connect over the phone or coordinate trips with siblings and parents who live in other locations. Currently, some states that our family lives in include Colorado, Connecticut, Missouri, and Illinois.

Within Milwaukee, we have nearby cousins close to our age who love spending time with us and with Elliot.

Catie comes from a large family and has five siblings, 42 aunts and uncles, and 75 cousins (and counting).

We also have a close-knit group of friends nearby within Milwaukee and Chicago.

We will teach our children to be wise, always listen with an open mind and heart, make well thought out decisions, always be kind, and to treat others with respect. We also believe that seeking out opportunities to learn from different cultures, thoughts and lifestyles is important for fostering respect and an open heart.

Additionally, we would like to teach them so that they are capable of creating positive change, able to make good judgment, discover their own passions and independence. Regardless of their life path, we plan on supporting who they are as an individual.

We believe that it is important to truly listen and try to understand when someone has a belief different from your own. We will encourage open minded conversations at all ages to help your child see that they have good ideas to make the world a better place.

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Racial & Cultural Diversity

Regardless of the culture and heritage from which your child comes, we are excited to incorporate this aspect into our family’s traditions moving forward. We are looking forward to learning and exploring their culture with your child as they grow and become curious.

Catie and I hold no prejudice against any race, religion, culture, or ethnicity. We enjoy learning from other perspectives and are excited to bring your child’s background into our family.

We value diversity and want to foster the beauty each person contributes to a home and to their community. If given the opportunity, we are excited to learn more from your child as well. We have prioritized surrounding ourselves in a community that has friends and resources to encourage a child of any background to flourish.

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Our Pets

We have an old lady cat with a youthful spirit who is a big part of our family. She has loved our son Elliot from the very first day and tolerates his big hugs and occasional tug of the tail remarkably well.

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Favorite Traditions

We have already briefly mentioned many of the traditions and regular activities that we engage in as a family. However, some special moments that we are excited to include your child in would be our family camping trip to Door County, Wisconsin, Christmas time with family, trick-or-treating on Halloween, and family vacations.

Every night we read books before bed after we’ve spent all week visiting different local libraries and taking home stacks of books. It’s always exciting to share which one made us think of Dada or which one Elliot just HAD to pull off the shelf.

Every night we dive into the pile of books and there is a routine. Mama “tucks the toes” into blankie, and Dada reads the first book. Mini is already waiting for some pets as she is perched on the arm of Elliot’s toddler chair and we take turns making the voices and jokes from the pages come alive. The night ends by sharing a silly imaginative dream and the promise, “I love you Elliot. I cannot wait to see you in the morning.”

This year we had some unavoidable home maintenance right at christmas time. We were so excited for Santa to come and leave presents for Elliot. Unfortunately, due to the circumstances, Santa did not stop at our house. However, Elliot got to spend Christmas morning with his grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles and dogs! All his Christmas presents were delivered to him and Christmas morning was spent enjoying each other’s company, watching each other’s faces as gifts were exchanged and giving thanks. It didn’t matter what house we were in, the traditions were preserved and family was prioritized.

Elliot talks about halloween constantly. Whether we are licking a melting rocket pop in the July heat or trudging through a Wisconsin blizzard, Elliot is discussing his halloween costume options for the next year. Embracing the themes of any holiday is a fun way for Elliot to express himself and we love reminiscing on the family memories as well.

We also try to take at least one vacation per year. In the past, we have enjoyed taking trips to the Pacific Northwest to visit the beaches, mountains, and forests. Whether it’s summer or winter, we enjoy finding time and activities to spend together outdoors.

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Our Promise to You

We plan on supporting your child in who they are as an individual as they grow and raising them close to family and nature in a way that nurtures curiosity and personal growth. We will raise all of our children to see the world with an open mind and to grow into well-rounded, kind, and respectful individuals.

As parents, we will emphasize the importance of having a strong work ethic for personal development and lifelong success. We will encourage your child to connect to their roots while they discover their inner tools for success in life.

We also want to connect with you since you will be an important aspect of your child’s life story. We’re excited to share updates and milestones as they occur so that there is always a connection to you. Please know that your child will grow up knowing just how much they are loved, both by us and you. We promise to always honor their story and will share it with them in ways they can proudly understand and appreciate as they grow up.

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One Last Thank You

We would like to thank you for learning a little bit more about our family and why we believe that we would be a good fit as a loving adoptive home. While we’re certain that the decisions you’ll have to make won’t be easy, our promise is that we will help in any way possible by loving and supporting your child with all of our hearts in the same way that we currently do with our own beautiful son.

We’re excited to grow our family and to provide a loving, supportive, and nurturing home for your child to thrive and develop into their own individuality while also developing a lifelong appreciation for their story.

With love, Catie, Brad, and Elliot