We both love hiking and being in the outdoors. We've taken many trips up and down the East Coast and gone hiking in some pretty awesome state parks. We've also done small portions of the Appalachian Trail together, and went to Colorado and hiked parts of Rocky Mountain National Park. There are some pretty great spots in and around where we live and we like to get out every weekend. We both do gardening and make our own pickled vegetables. We like to play golf although our favorite little course closed during the pandemic. Jason runs 5K's and Kate usually walks them. We both like to read. Oddly, we both like doing renovations around the house. We've actually done all of the work in our house ourselves because both of our families have contractors in them, and we've learned quite a bit from them.

We're both pretty into sports. We like going to Philadelphia Phillies games. Jason graduated from Penn State, so we have season tickets to those football games. To be blunt, there's a 100% chance Jason will try to convince your child to go there for college. Kate will be there to make sure your child makes the ultimate decision.

Becoming parents has always been a dream of ours. We both love children so much and there is an empty hole in our family that only the pitter-patter of little feet can fill.

We have been trying to start a family for 6 years. Kate has a condition that makes it difficult, but not impossible to get pregnant. We decided to try fertility treatment first. However, after years of unsuccessful treatments and surgeries, we both decided it was time to move on from the idea that we would have a biological child together and explore other options.

We were always open to the idea of adoption. Kate, for years (even before we got together), thought she would adopt some day. It is more important to us that we have children in our lives to raise, to care for and watch them grow, than it is that our child is biologically ours. We feel adoption is the right path for us, and we are excited to begin our adoption journey!,/p>

We have a lot of family traditions that we would love to pass on!

Christmas is a big time of year for us, both of our families always baked cookies and handed them out around the holidays. It's always a big to-do in our house, we make the dough for 12 different types of cookies and then decorate them ourselves. We also go out and get a new ornament every year and do a whole day of Christmas shopping together.

Kate's family has a beach house which we use every summer with all of the various cousins coming together and spending time playing at the beach.

Jason spends every Oktoberfest in lederhosen and making pretzels for a big German club. All of our friends come with their kids and have a great time. They also make fun of Jason in his homemade lederhosen which Kate and Jason's grandmother made!

Our neighborhood is diverse and very family friendly. Jason is the Zoning Solicitor for our Borough, so, we know when all the events happen. Our town holds annual events like Arts on the Avenue, Fall Fest, Halloween Hayrides, July 4th fireworks, and Christmas sleigh rides. The Main Street in our town has tons of shops, restaurants, an ice cream shop, and a farmers market on Sunday, all within walking distance from our house. Also within walking distance there are 4 playgrounds, a 6-mile-long park, museum, planetarium, and community pool. We live half a block from the elementary school.

Our house is completely renovated (most of it DIY, we think it's fun!) with 10 total rooms, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a partially finished basement. Jason's favorite room is the finished basement where he has his man cave/office. Kate's favorite room is all of the others since she designed and decorated them herself.

We've built some cool features in the backyard, including a pergola, a shed, and three raised garden beds. Every year, we plant a large variety of vegetables and fruit. Jason makes delicious pickles out of the cucumbers. But don't worry, there is still plenty of room for a swing!

We both have large families with lots of kids, so, your child will never be lonely. Both of our parents live close by, so they will have grandparents who adore them at their fingertips!

We enjoy spending time with our families and we always have a lot of fun together! This includes vacations to a family beach house, Christmas Holiday fun (baking and decorating cookies, trimming the tree) and season tickets to various sporting events at Penn State and in Philadelphia.

Because we both have large families, there will always be children of the same age to play with and grow with. This includes cousins who would love someone to play along with! Wren and Webb are our niece and nephew and they are very active. They also have already developed a pretty good sense of humor in that they call Jason the "poop lawyer" because his job involves planning for municipal sewers. Whether that's a good thing, we're not exactly sure, but, everyone seems to find it funny!

This cannot be an easy decision for you. We are sure you're feeling conflicted. Unlike many couples that are going through adoption, we both have friends who have adopted. We have seen them with the birth parents and heard that their biggest concerns were that their child would think they didn't love them or care for them. If you decide to choose adoption, you will never have to worry about that with us. You would have as much or as little interaction with your child as you want. We can email you and send pictures, set up Facetime calls, and maybe even a yearly visit if you so desire. Additionally, we would make sure that your child would know as much or as little about you as you are comfortable with. At the very least we will absolutely tell them that you love them, and you did what you thought was going to be the best for them, for their future.

We hope that when you get this letter, you understand just how much the opportunity to raise a child means to us. We have been through several miscarriages, including one that was in the second trimester. Life has been very difficult for us since then, as all we ever wanted was to be parents and have the opportunity to share our lives, knowledge, traditions, and happiness with a child. Christmas and Thanksgiving are times of the year when we particularly feel the sting of not having a child. We have so many fun traditions that we want to pass on to a child. We grow our own veggies, we love to cook, at the holidays we make 12 different types of Christmas cookies and the day after Thanksgiving we always decorate our house for Christmas, and we go pick out a new ornament for our tree. We have been married for more than a decade (11 years). The only thing missing from our lives is a family of our own. If you choose adoption, the opportunity that you are giving us would truly bring joy into our lives and allow us to complete our family. We have so much to share, so much we want to do with our child, and so much love to offer.

We want you to know that a child will never go wanting with us. We both have careers that allow us to work from home, so a child will always know they can count on us to be there when they need us. Whether they choose to play sports, music, art, etc, both of us have flexible enough schedules that we can be there for it all. At least one of us will be home after school, at night to help with homework, and to have quality family time. Both of our families are large and would love to have another grandchild to spend time with and be a part of their lives. Everyone in our family enjoys spending time together. As parents, we look forward to taking our future child on vacations, hikes with friends, and family day trips to the beach. We both have fond memories of doing those things with our families and with each other. We can't wait to share that with our little family too.

In the end, please know that we are here to love and support your child. If you choose adoption, and choose us, you won't be alone, and your child will know not just that their birth parents love them, but will know you if that's what you want.

Sincerely,

Jason & Kate