Dear Birthmother:
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We are grateful to you for considering us as family for your child. We are moved by your selflessness and love for your baby.
Our names are Chris and Rhonda. We live in the Midwest, in a wooded setting just outside a large city. We have all the delights of a rural area — privacy, a lake, a welcoming community — with easy access to city resources. Both of our families live nearby, with Chris’s dad and brother living just down the lane. Chris is the co-owner of a custom woodwork mill, which has been in the family for more than 20 years. Rhonda is a stay-at-home mom.
Because of infertility issues and what the doctors had told us, we did not expect to be able to conceive a child. However, four years ago, through invitro fertilization, we had a son, Ryan, now four years old. We are grateful, every day, for the blessing of family. We long to bring another child into our lives. Both of us grew up with brothers and sisters — siblings with whom we are still very close. We want to give this gift of life-long friendship to our new baby and Ryan: someone to share childhood with, to make memories with. Each family dinner, each holiday, each shared day of shopping or going to a ball game with a sister or brother, reminds us of the unique bonds between siblings. We cannot give birth to another child, but we hope that we can have the family we dream of through adoption.
Rhonda: I am the middle child of three, raised in the Midwest, in a large extended family. My grandparents lived next door. (As kids we used to stretch our arms as far out as possible to try to touch both houses at once.) My parents taught us through example. They were loving and concerned parents, opening our home and their hearts to our friends, making sure that we understood that we were to treat others as we, ourselves, wanted to be treated. We weren’t wealthy, but we always had enough to share with others who had less than us.
What we always had was lots of fun. We celebrated holidays with great enthusiasm. Easter day began with church and then was filled with family, meals, and baskets of candy. I remember comparing the contents of my Easter basket with those of my sister and brother. A toy was always nestled among the candy treats. Ryan and I decorate eggs now. I can’t wait for the day when I can watch Ryan and a brother or sister compare their candy, decorate their eggs, and laugh with excitement as they search for eggs left by the Easter bunny.
 Rhonda is a master at baking cakes. |
Every year we’d go on a family vacation. My mom and dad hung a map of the U.S. in our house, marking all the states we’d visited. Each trip would include some educational experience: a tour of NASA to see the space shuttle being transported to the launch pad or a visit to Niagara Falls. My dad loved to visit factories. There’s a chocolate factory in our town — now what child wouldn’t love to tour a chocolate factory? I am looking forward to a family visit there — and we’ll definitely have to include my dad.
Summers were spent outside, playing in the neighborhood with my sister, brother, and our friends. My grandma had a great strawberry patch in her yard and a grape arbor. I can still taste the amazingly sweet berries and tiny grapes. Perhaps because of these strong childhood memories, I knew that Chris and I had to live in the country with our own raspberry bushes on the edge of our woods. Ryan and I go berry picking as soon as the berries ripen, and I sometimes manage to bring a few berries home for muffins — in spite of Ryan’s inclination to eat every berry in the pail between bushes. I can’t help but smile when I think of Ryan and a little brother or sister going berry picking on their own
The very best time of the year, now as well as when I was a child, was Christmas. We’d decorate every room of the house. On the night we decorated our tree, my dad hung the lights, and we’d all add the decorations. Every year, we made cookies and candy together. On Christmas Eve, all of our relatives, neighbors, and friends would stop by. Every kitchen counter was loaded with food — and eggnog made by my grandma. My mom had a small gift for every child, with something special for those who wouldn’t have much at home. I want to raise my children with the same excitement for the holidays — and the same commitment to sharing our blessings with others.
Before having Ryan, I worked for a manufacturer with national and international clients. I spent my days monitoring inventory and orders and talking with buyers and suppliers, both in the United States and overseas. I loved my work and even planned to return to it after Ryan’s birth. However, I surprised myself by realizing that the best job I could imagine was being a mom. So now I spend my days reading books and playing cars, playing hide and seek and making craft projects, kissing a boo-boo and encouraging Ryan to explore his world. He begins all day kindergarten next year, and so I will have plenty of time to devote to our new baby. I long to have another child with little toes to tickle, belly laughs to savor, and even diapers to change. I imagine a day when I have to caution my kids to stop talking to each other -- and go to sleep. Or call the two of them in from the backyard where they’ve been exploring in our woods or chasing Abby, our dog, in the backyard.
 Chris is a fun-loving husband and dad. |
I run a cake business from our home. Ryan loves to help me bake and decorate cakes and cookies. I get a lot of compliments on my creations, and I take real pleasure in my work. It’s especially gratifying when I bake for our church or another charitable fundraiser: cookie centerpieces or favors. My parents’ tradition of doing for others is ingrained in me, and I want our children to learn the importance — and satisfaction — of contributing time, as well as money, to those in need.
Chris and I started dating two years after we first met. I was immediately smitten. He has this wonderful smile that is positively infectious. He loves to make weekend plans for the family, and we love the fun he creates. He leaves me soap messages on the bathroom mirror. He’s very intelligent and extremely hard working. And he’s a man of his word. His friends know that they can always count on him — and so do I.
I love to watch Chris with Ryan. He is a wonderful dad and role model. I am often amazed by his patience and compassion. He’s a great story teller, and there’s little I enjoy more than seeing “my boys” curled up and reading a book together. They work together on home projects, with Ryan toting his own set of tools. Chris is always ready to give — and get — a hug. With a love so big, it’s easy to see him with another child at his side, on his shoulders, in his lap. I picture him out in the yard with his kids, playing ball, fishing in our lake, or riding bikes together.
Chris: I grew up with two younger brothers and a younger sister. My oldest brother, Keith and I own a family business that our father started more than twenty years ago. Having my own business gives me the flexibility to be at school meetings and assemblies, and even to bring Ryan to work with me on occasion. He loves to visit, checking out what’s new since his last visit, and he is always eager to help me do my work.
 Ryan enjoys working on projects with his daddy. |
My dad built and still lives in the house where I grew up. And I built the house, with my father and grandfather’s help, where Rhonda, Ryan, and I now live. My brother lives next to us. When I was a child, I used to walk the path between my house and my grandparents, with my mom waiting at our front door and my grandma waiting at hers, watching me on my way. My grandma always had lunch waiting for me, and a piece of cherry pie. Now I watch Ryan as he bravely makes his way from our house to his grandparents where there’s always a cookie waiting for him. It’s a wonderful feeling to fish with my son in the same lake I fished as a child. I remember exploring the woods with my brothers and sisters, and I know Ryan and the baby we adopt will have great adventures in those woods. When you have a sibling, you always have company: someone to encourage you to try something new, someone to cheer for you when you achieve the unexpected, someone to whisper and laugh with at night, when you’re supposed to be asleep already.
 Our lake house is a great place to get away and enjoy our family. |
We have a lake house on the lake where I grew up spending my summers. I love to boat and water ski. Some of my favorite memories are lazy summer days at the lake, on the boat with friends, playing games, listening to music, and being in the water. Now I love my days at the lake with Rhonda and Ryan. We often have family and friends with us. Last Thanksgiving, Rhonda’s whole family came for the long weekend. We cooked all day on Turkey Day, told family stories, feasted, and then spent the evening playing games and watching a movie together. We all enjoyed it so much. We plan to return as a group next year — and every year thereafter.
My family was very involved at our church. Faith and our church community was a big part of our lives. We would help out with maintenance and building projects, providing the doors, floors, and woodwork from our family mill. My father and grandfather built a set of fryers for our church chicken fry, and the whole family would work on this annual fundraising event. Everyone helped out, cleaning, seasoning, and flouring the chicken, filling the metal crates with the uncooked pieces, and then lifting the crates in and out of the enormous fryers. At the end of the day, everyone would go home smelly, tired, and with a full belly. Now Rhonda and Ryan are part of the chicken brigade — and a part of the church community that has been so important in my life.
 Abby is a wonderful, child-friendly pet. |
My parents raised me with a strong work ethic. I watched my dad and my grandfather work hard at their jobs and then come home to work hard around the house. We had lots of fun—family vacations and weekends at the lake — but getting the work done first was a lesson I learned from them. They also raised me to take care of my things and to be careful in how I spent my money. Once, when I was a teenager, my grandpa wouldn’t let me throw away my old gym shoes, because he was sure he could fix them and I could get more wear out of them. Sure enough, he did. And while I don’t fix up worn-out shoes, I love to find and repair an old car or lawnmower and make it work. I guess there’s some of my grandpa in me.
I always tell Ryan that he has a terrific mom. Rhonda is a naturally happy person, bubbling with enthusiasm for all that she does. People are drawn to her kindness and become devoted to her for her sincerity and commitment to those she loves. I love to watch her baking with Ryan, both of them covered in flour, laughing and enjoying the work and each other. Rhonda’s cakes are real art. They are beautiful, delicious creations. But, they are also works of love, and she’s never too busy to find a way to include Ryan in the creative process.
One of our favorite spots is the porch swing at the back of our house. I often find Rhonda and Ryan there, reading, playing or just enjoying the view of the woods and lake. Rhonda’s love is enormous and longs to bring another child into her heart. So do I.
Rhonda and Chris: Our house is our haven. We carefully filled it with comfortable furniture that would be perfect for curling up in on a cold winter day in your pajamas, in front of a roaring fire. Chris’s mom is an interior designer, and she helped us make our dreams for our home come true. No part of our house is off-limits. It’s meant to be lived in, filled with family and friends, kids wrestling on the floor, coloring at the kitchen table, and setting up elaborate forts in any room. Our first floor is open, one room flowing into another, so whether you’re cooking in the kitchen, reading in front of the fire, or playing with cars on the living room floor, everyone is together. We have two bedrooms on the second floor — plenty of room for another child. Our finished basement is where we retreat to play pool or watch a race on TV. It’s a wonderful home and we love it. But we are eager to add another child to our family and our lives.
 We live in a secluded spot, but close to a community with lots of resources and children. |
Although our home is secluded from cars and commotion, we are really just minutes away from schools, our church, neighbors, and the rest of our family. Rhonda and Ryan love to go to the library just down the road. Nearby, there are many community resources for families and children, including sports programming, swimming pools, museums, and theaters.
Many of our friends have children, and we love to get together for BBQs and bon fires, or just to watch a football game. We always plan some kind of kids’ activity, like crafts painting, glitter art, or beading. In the summer we have yard games or swimming if we’re at a friend’s house with a pool. Since both of our families live nearby, we get together often, sometimes with as many as forty relatives. And the grandparents are always eager for a chance to babysit. They are all eagerly awaiting the arrival of another grandchild to love.
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Our lives are filled with blessings. We have a healthy, happy child. We are financially secure. We live in a wonderful community surrounded by family and friends. We long to share our happiness with another child.
We hope that we are the family you want to raise your child. We will share with him or her the story of the courage and love you showed in bringing your baby into this world and choosing adoption. If you would like, we would be happy to keep you updated on your child’s growth, through pictures and letters.
If you have any questions or would like to know more about us, please contact our attorneys, Steve or Joel Kirsh, at 1-800-333-5736. If they are not immediately available, they will be paged and promptly return your call.
Our very best wishes,
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