Hello expectant parent,
We are Matt and Amanda. We first and foremost want you to know that we have so much respect for you. We know that there are endless situations that could have brought you to this point, but we admire the love you have for your child. Although, we are hopeful you will choose us to parent your child, our greatest prayer is that you will be able to make the best decision for the beautiful life you have created.
About Us
We met during our college years about 11 years ago while “home” during the summer. We have been married for almost 10 years now, 7 of those years were spent out of state for schooling. We are back “home” now, and we love living close to our extended family. We have two children, Mav (7) and Reuben (4). We can’t imagine our lives without them. Our children are the center of our world, and we are so excited to be going through this process to add another to our family.
About Matt by Amanda:
The three things I love most about Matt:
#1 His perseverance. His work ethic amazes me. He is basically the energizer bunny; he just goes and goes and goes.
#2 He is an amazing father. I’m always in awe of how he handles our boys. I’m a stay at home mom, so I get a lot of time with our boys, especially the younger one who isn’t in school yet. I sometimes get to the point, where I just don’t know how to handle a situation with them, and I feel like I have tried everything. Matt will come in and magically there are giggles and whatever the issue was, is no longer a problem.
#3 His humility. Matt has plenty of things to be proud about, yet he is so humble. He is just always trying to improve and be his best. He is confident in the skills he has developed, but he is still willing to get better and help others along the way.
Matt’s interests include basketball, golf, watching sports, biking (often to work, and sometimes in crazy snow), swimming, lifting weights and staying fit, board games, and computer games.
About Amanda By Matt
The three things I love most about Amanda:
#1 Amanda’s love for children. One of the first things I noticed about her was how much she enjoyed being around children-as well as how much children enjoy being around her.
#2 Amanda is driven. She is good at multi-tasking, prioritizing, and getting the most out of her time.
#3 Amanda has a strong character. She has a toughness about her that I love and admire. She is a great defender of her children and our family. Her strength of character is an inspiration to me for how to approach life.
Amanda’s interests include biking, volleyball, basketball, gardening, board games, running (with our sweet dog, Arlo), crocheting, and emergency preparedness and off grid energy.
Mav and Reuben
Mav has the kindest heart. He truly is a gently giant. He is quite large, strong, and active for his age, but is the most caring kid. He has always been so good at playing with younger children and is in love with babies and toddlers. Many of his friends have young siblings, and he is in awe of them. He loves holding and feeding and trying to entertain our newest little nephew. He really is the perfect big brother, a protector. He is over the moon about the prospect of another sibling.
Reuben is a carefree preschooler. He loves hanging out with his friends and his older brother. The two words most often used to describe Reuben among family and friends are sweet and hilarious. He has a special way of connecting with people, and in typical 4-year-old fashion keeps us very entertained. Reuben will be a great friend and entertainer for a new sibling.
Mav and Reuben’s interests include Jiu Jitsu, soccer, basketball, t-ball/baseball, building forts, outer space, gardening, and science.
Our Lifestyle
We love to be active as a family and keep things fun. We enjoy taking advantage of the great outdoors close to home. We have many nearby opportunities for hiking, biking, and rafting. We live in town but hope in the next year or two to move onto a few acres. We recognize the importance of exploring and just being outside for our kids and we are fully committed to giving them the best we can. We have lots of traditions. We love gardening, and our kids’ favorite part is the pumpkin patch. We love using them to carve for Halloween and as decorations. December is full of family traditions. One of our favorite Christmastime tradition is sleeping “under the tree.” We bring down mattresses to our family room (that has one of our Christmas trees) and watch Christmas movies and eat pizza. Another favorite is the 12 days of Christmas. We pick someone or a family and bring them 12 little gifts in the days leading up to Christmas (as anonymously as we can). We have done Amanda’s grandparents, a widow that lives nearby, and Matt’s sister and her family.
In Closing
Thank you for considering us to raise your child. If you do choose us, we look forward to meeting you and hopefully maintaining contact with you and/or your family. Our number one priority is that any child that comes into our family knows they are loved not only by us but by those who gave them life.
We feel blessed to be on this path of adoption, because we truly feel this is the right path for our family. We are excited and hopeful about the prospect of expanding our family with another child, and we are excited to welcome their birth family into our circle of love. We wish you the best as you decide what is best for your child, and we pray for your strength in that decision.
With Love,
Matt and Amanda
