As a couple, we're both busy with graduate school, but when we have free time, we enjoy doing several things together, especially road trips. These long car rides give us plenty of "windshield time" to read books to each other, listen to music and podcasts, and talk about big and small things in life. We also enjoy playing both new and classic board games and card games (Samantha beats Andrew more often than not except in chess!), snuggling up to a movie or TV show (Andrew is an old man at heart who loves black-and-white films, while Samantha is more into thrillers), and going for walks at our local city and state parks.

Individually, Andrew enjoys reading (especially theology, history, and mystery novels - there's the old man at heart again!), writing (especially fiction and poetry), exercising (especially weightlifting and hiking), practicing his Spanish, and (slowly) learning to play the piano.

Samantha enjoys playing the piano (she was the top pianist in the state in the classical division for her junior year and runner-up for her senior year), painting (starting to branch out into self-taught watercolor painting), spending time with friends (especially coffee dates), swimming, kayaking, babysitting, and (slowly) working on her Spanish.

Andrew: I love too many things to count about Samantha. For starters, I appreciate her godly attitude toward the ups and downs of life, her gorgeous smile, and the way she can always cheer me up at the end of the day. I also love Samantha's hard work ethic, positive relationships with friends, family, and coworkers, and her strong desire to do right by other people. I love the way that she honors and supports me in all of my aspirations. I have no doubt she will be a marvelous mother for any child.

Samantha: Anyone who knows Andrew knows how wonderful of a person he is, and he is an even better husband. Andrew seeks to honor God above all things and always puts me as a close second. He is selfless, kind, caring, humble, hardworking, handsome, and a wonderful cook. He goes above and beyond to support me every day as well as help others, regardless of the personal sacrifice. I have known that Andrew would make one of the best fathers of all time by our third date, and it is one of the things that first attracted me to him. I couldn't ask for a better partner in marriage or parenthood than Andrew.

We will tell our child how adoption is a beautiful part of our family's story. We will highlight how the Gospel that we hear in church every Sunday is about (among other things) how God has adopted us into His family through Christ.

Our desire is to make the conversation about adoption one that we have both early and often rather than treating it as a stigma or as something that needs to be kept under wraps. Our child will grow up around several family members and close friends who were also adopted, which will make it more natural to bring up the topic when the time comes for it.

One of the ideas we have is to create a family photo book that includes a picture of the birth parent(s), which will allow the child to have that connection to the past. This resource, when coupled with regular visits with the birth parent(s), will hopefully help our kiddo feel connected to both parts of his or her identity.

We live in a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house within a small suburb of a Midwestern town in Nebraska. We love watching movies or playing video games or board games in our entertainment room (i.e. the basement). We also love the fact that the nursery and the master bedroom are right next to each other, keeping us close. In addition, we get plenty of use out of our kitchen because we both enjoy making home-cooked meals (Andrew is an especially great baker). We love walking our doggo and catching up with our neighbors throughout the week, and I'm sure they'll be delighted to have another member joining our neighborhood family.

Our town is the perfect blend of urban conveniences (plenty of places to eat, shop, go swimming at public pools, go hiking or walking at state and local parks, and visiting an out-of-this-world zoo) and a small-town feel (friendly atmosphere, several families with kiddos next door to us, general sense of neighborliness).

Both of us are quite close to our extended families. Andrew's parents live here in town, and we love getting together to share a meal and play some board games or card games at least one day a month. We also love spending the night before Christmas Eve together exchanging gifts and homemade desserts, as well as reading the Christmas story.

Samantha's younger sister and brother-in-law live nearby with our nephew. Samantha and her sister love their monthly sister meet-ups grabbing coffee, garage sale hunting for great bargains, and watching countless hours of "House Hunters" together. Samantha's dad lives on a small family farm about 2.5 hours away from us, and we enjoy sneaking off to join him in farm life about once a month. Samantha's mom unfortunately died in 2019, but we still preserve many of her favorite activities as a family, such as singing around the piano and snuggling up to movies.

Both of our families are excited and can't wait to meet your sweet bundle of joy!

We are humbled and honored that you are taking the time to consider our family as adoptive parents. Please know that you are in our prayers as you and the baby travel along this brave path. Although many things are unknown, you can be certain that we promise to provide a warm, nurturing, and joy-filled home to the newest addition of our family.

We met in our last year of college after being introduced by Samantha's best friend. It didn't take long before the two of us knew this would be forever, and we were married just over two years later. We have loved growing closer together during our 3.5 years of marriage, and we can't wait to show that compassion to a beloved child.

Andrew is a freelance writer who is currently studying to be a Lutheran pastor. We love the flexibility that his work-from-home job currently provides. Lord willing, he'll be able to be a stay-at-home dad when we first take our little one home with us.

Samantha is a fourth-grade teacher who is currently studying to be a school counselor. While she loves academics, she is also committed to fostering the growth of the whole child (social, emotional, and mental), and she can't wait to do the same for our little one.

We have always been excited at the prospect of being parents. In fact, by our fourth date, we were dreaming of what it might look like to grow our family together. Each of us comes from sizable extended families which include several adoptees, and we've always wanted to make adoption part of our family journey. After about 2.5 years of actively trying to conceive, including receiving fertility treatments, we realized that God's perfect plan for us was adoption all along.

We are excited to share the goodness of God with a precious child who will be raised to love God and love other people. Even apart from Andrew's current studies to become a pastor, we are already involved in the life of our church. We teach littles in Sunday School, run a high school youth group, and do regular volunteer activities (such as stocking a local food bank or helping older church members do their yard work). We want to share the joy that comes with helping others with our child.

Even though our lives can be busy, we will prioritize the needs of our child. Samantha is looking forward to having many adventures with the child during her summers off, and Andrew is thrilled to have one-on-one time with the baby since he works from home. We will also follow the example of our parents, who spent regular family time and came to our events (from volleyball games to choir concerts) even though they were also quite busy.

As the child grows, we will be delighted to share letters and pictures with you, as well as maintain an open level of email and phone contact. We would also love including you in the child's major life events, such as Baptism, Confirmation, birthday parties, and travel for annual get-togethers.

We're committed to speaking early and often to the child about adoption, especially about your selfless decision. One of the ways we plan to do this is the creation of a family photo book that will have a page devoted to you and lifting you up.

Thank you again for considering our family. Know that no matter what you choose, you are brave, you are loved, and you are valuable beyond measure.

Love,

Andrew & Samantha