Letter
Hello from Minnesota!
Joy is the oxygen of doing hard things.
Sitting on our front stoop with Mustard
We're Kyle and Emily (and Mustard the Goldendoodle). Life together has led us through 4 states, 2 countries, and the deep desire to build community wherever we are-including in our own household. In each place we've called home, we have friends that have shared their lives with us, even when we don't share DNA. We have been welcomed into new cultures; we have received hospitality and care. Now, we can't wait to welcome a child into our family and offer them a home of love and belonging.
We love the quote "Joy is the oxygen of doing hard things" (Gary Haugen). As we've stepped into hard things over the years, we've also cultivated joy along the way. A few things that bring us joy are:
-Cooking and Eating: Great things happen around full tables.
-Accents and Impersonations: We crack ourselves up doing voices pretty regularly.
-Our Faith: We're committed Christians, and our faith gives us hope and motivates us to serve others.
-Adventure and Travel: Whether trying a new bike trail in our city or hiking a crater lake across the globe, we're energized by exploring new places.
We know you're in the middle of doing some hard things right now as you consider the possibilities of adoption. Our hope is that you also have pockets of joy to sustain you. Two of our family values are courage and intentionality, and while we may or may not get to know you more, we're grateful for your courage and intentionality to get to know us here!
We love the quote "Joy is the oxygen of doing hard things" (Gary Haugen). As we've stepped into hard things over the years, we've also cultivated joy along the way. A few things that bring us joy are:
-Cooking and Eating: Great things happen around full tables.
-Accents and Impersonations: We crack ourselves up doing voices pretty regularly.
-Our Faith: We're committed Christians, and our faith gives us hope and motivates us to serve others.
-Adventure and Travel: Whether trying a new bike trail in our city or hiking a crater lake across the globe, we're energized by exploring new places.
We know you're in the middle of doing some hard things right now as you consider the possibilities of adoption. Our hope is that you also have pockets of joy to sustain you. Two of our family values are courage and intentionality, and while we may or may not get to know you more, we're grateful for your courage and intentionality to get to know us here!
Our Story
We were the perfect match of silly and serious.
Hiking in Minnesota
The year was 2008. Taylor Swift was in her Fearless era, and "Love Story" had just hit the airwaves. Around the same time, our love story was just beginning on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay where we met right after college in a program for young adults studying Christianity. For both of us, our faith was and is foundational to our sense of purpose in the world, and we knew we wanted jobs that would make a difference in people's lives. At the same time, we both loved to laugh and enjoyed a good dance party as much as a deep conversation about our favorite books. Our first date was actually a cha cha lesson! We were the perfect match of silly and serious. During this time, Kyle really encouraged Emily to pursue becoming a pastor, even though she hadn't grown up seeing many women in that role before. Emily also encouraged Kyle in one of his dreams of living in another country.
We got married in 2010, finished graduate school in North Carolina, and in 2015, we moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo for nearly three years. Emily taught Christian theology to university students, and Kyle led a university research center. Our time in Congo will forever be one of the most transformational experiences we've ever had. We built amazing friendships that continue to this day, served with an incredible team, and learned that, most of the time, the best "help" we can offer others comes through our own willingness to be vulnerable. In 2018, we moved to Minnesota where Emily serves as a pastor focused on local service and global relationships. Kyle works from home for a solar energy company that he helped start with our friends in Congo.
We got married in 2010, finished graduate school in North Carolina, and in 2015, we moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo for nearly three years. Emily taught Christian theology to university students, and Kyle led a university research center. Our time in Congo will forever be one of the most transformational experiences we've ever had. We built amazing friendships that continue to this day, served with an incredible team, and learned that, most of the time, the best "help" we can offer others comes through our own willingness to be vulnerable. In 2018, we moved to Minnesota where Emily serves as a pastor focused on local service and global relationships. Kyle works from home for a solar energy company that he helped start with our friends in Congo.
Why Adoption
We have always wanted to become parents.
Selfie during golden hour at the park.
We have always wanted to become parents. After years of struggling with infertility, our doctors suggested more advanced interventions. This didn't feel like the next right step for us, so we decided to take forty days in the winter of 2019 to prayerfully reflect on the future of our family. The only rule: we couldn't talk about it with each other! We took time to rest, reconnect, and pray (separately) about new possibilities. At the end of the forty days, we were both 100% ready to pursue adoption.
We thought about the incredible love and welcome we have received over the years in new cultures and homes. We thought about how much we adore our nieces, nephews, and our friends' kiddos. We thought about the deep and unwavering desire in our hearts to parent a child. We felt ready for this new adventure of adoption. In particular, we were excited about the possibilities of open adoption and helping our future child stay connected to their biological family, culture, and heritage. If you were to place your child with us, know that we are eager for you to be part of their ongoing story.
We thought about the incredible love and welcome we have received over the years in new cultures and homes. We thought about how much we adore our nieces, nephews, and our friends' kiddos. We thought about the deep and unwavering desire in our hearts to parent a child. We felt ready for this new adventure of adoption. In particular, we were excited about the possibilities of open adoption and helping our future child stay connected to their biological family, culture, and heritage. If you were to place your child with us, know that we are eager for you to be part of their ongoing story.
Our Promise
The greatest gift we could offer would be to instill in him or her that they are lovable, capable, and worthwhile-in short, to give them wings.
At a park near our house
When I (Emily) was first thinking about becoming a pastor, Kyle was the first person to tell me to go for it. He believed in me and was excited for how that journey might unfold for us. When I (Kyle) brought up the possibility of moving to Congo, Emily was always willing to take the next step of discovery, partnering with me in the risks and unknowns of an overseas move. Through ups and downs, dreams and disappointments, desires and adventures, our relationship has always been about giving each other wings. Now, as we dream about becoming parents, that is what we hope to do more than anything for a child. The greatest gift we could offer would be to instill in him or her that they are lovable, capable, and worthwhile-in short, to give them wings.