We want to start by saying “thank you” for taking the time to learn a little about us. We know this may be a time of confusion and mixed emotions for you as you face some difficult decisions ahead. Although we can’t presume to understand what you must be going through, we know you must be a strong, loving and selfless person to have made the decision to provide the best life possible for you child even if it involves your own sacrifice. As we hope to help you with your decision, we would like to share a little about our lives with you. We have been married for over 11 years. Through the many joys, successes and a few disappointments that life has brought us, we have learned a lot about each other and our love has grown stronger. We talked about children and our desire to be parents from the very beginning of our relationship. We had discussed adopting even before we were aware of our fertility problems. Marla’s sister is adopted, so we know that adoption is a wonderful way to build a family. We were blessed with the adoption of Isabella. We love being parents and are looking forward to again expanding our family through adoption.
About EricEric is a kind, loving and supportive husband and has the biggest heart. He is a wonderful father, very affectionate and protective of Isabella. He is a man of God and strives to make his Christian values a part of his everyday life. Eric is hard working, and very giving of his time. He is always helping friends, family or neighbors with construction or yard projects. Eric owns his own construction company. Two of his fondest childhood memories are building the church floats and putting on puppet shows for the younger kids.
About Marla
Marla is a great Mom. She is loving, nurturing, patient and strict with Isabella. She is an incredible wife; very loving and supportive. She is thrifty and loves to bargain hunt. She is very committed to God, family, and to our marriage. Marla likes to be creative, and she has entirely decorated our home. She has done all of the beautiful sewing projects in the nursery as well as painting a mural on the nursery wall. She is employed by the Federal Aviation Administration; giving our family excellent health benefits. Marla’s job requires her to work 12-hour shifts. Isabella is at the baby sitters 2-3 days a week.
About Isabella
We adopted Isabella in December of 2004. She is a happy, outgoing and loving child. She is a joy to our entire family.
We have an open adoption with Isabella’s birth mother. We have face-to-face visits two or three times a year, and we e-mail pictures.
It is our hope that we will have an open adoption with our next adopted child’s birth family.
We both enjoy a very close relationship with our families. Eric’s parents live 10 miles from our house and love being
grandparents. Marla’s mother lives two miles away, loves baby-sitting and being grandma. Her dad lives in Washington State.
All adore Isabella. Your baby would be dearly loved and welcomed by our entire family.
Marla’s sister, Dixie, has two children; Andrew is 11 and Aven is 7. They live in Memphis. We have season passes for
Silver Dollar City, near Branson, and meet Dixie and her children as often as possible. During the summer Andrew and Aven
come and stay for one or two weeks. We enjoy taking them to the zoo and museums. The children love being outside exploring.
So when they visit us, Uncle Eric helps them catch fireflies and frogs at our pond.
Our Home
We were immediately attracted to our neighborhood because of its restful country setting. Our home, which we built, is on five acres in a quiet, safe neighborhood two miles from a small town just outside of Kansas City. Our home has two bedrooms and two bathrooms on the main level, and an office that can be turned into a bedroom. When we finish our daylight basement, we will have an additional three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a family room and a craft/exercise room. Our large backyard is full of trees, flowers and a pond. Eric has plans to build a wooden swing-set and a playhouse. Many small children live in our neighborhood. We are at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac, so we have very little traffic on the street. We have chosen a safe place to raise our family, where there is plenty of fresh air for playing, riding bicycles and even fishing in the pond.
Our Hobbies
We enjoy traveling and spending time with family and friends. We enjoy taking Isabella on walks through the neighborhood, reading books to her and curling up on the couch to watch a good movie. We have had the opportunity to travel, visiting many European countries, the Caribbean, and “The Happiest Place on Earth” - Disneyland! We can’t wait to share these places with our children.
We know it’s difficult to learn about us in such a brief letter. We are grateful that you have taken the time to consider us. We promise to love your child unconditionally and provide him or her with all the opportunities to become a kind, loving and confident person for whom you can be proud. We admire your courage and strength and will always tell your child of your love and the great sacrifice you have made.
Eric and Marla
