New Dear Birthparent Letter

Since we've moved, we revised our letter to potential birth parents. A lot of it is still the same, though.

Greetings,

Welcome to the pages of Becky, Tom, and our young one, Paul. We hope that these few paragraphs will be a good use of your time and provide an honest representation of our family so that you are able to make a well-informed decision about us. The space here is very limited, so if there is anything else you would like us to share, please don’t be shy about contacting us.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. . .

Even if you haven’t made your mind up, we want to thank you for even considering adoption for your precious child. We want you to know that we are ready to jump on board to help you however we can. Please let us know what level of openness and communication is important to you so that we can help you feel that your child is secure and well cared for. We want to accommodate your feelings and needs and be sure to never betray your trust.

Our philosophy as parents. . .

We want our children to know of our love for them. We believe strongly in encouraging our children’s developing individuality. Our common parenting goals are: to bring our children up in the gospel, spend lots of time with them and attend all of their childhood functions, teach them good manners, provide them with an excellent education, and expose them to many different experiences so that they can be their best selves and each choose a unique path through life.

Becky’s thoughts on Tom as a dad. . .

Most importantly, Tom is a positive spiritual influence in our home. He was born to be a dad. He always encourages Paul’s exploration by taking him out to jump in mud puddles and teaches him to hold on tight when he climbs on his play set. He has enviable night-time endurance for calming a sleepless infant, a high tolerance for messes, and marathon story reading stamina. It also seems like he can build or fix anything.

He is a patient, selfless, generous, gentle, dedicated, providing father; proficient in belly-button beeping, piggy-back ride giving, toy assembling, playground building, toe tickling, block building, game playing, diaper changing, hall walking, stroller pushing, fishing items out of the toilet bowl, obsessively kissing, story reading, “I love you” saying, hug giving, silly song singing, cuddling and rocking, stink detecting, car seat carrying, toe counting, and always being there for the family.

Tom’s thoughts on Becky as a mom. . .

Becky is a sophisticated, culturally refined influence in our home who keeps everyone organized, productive, clean, fed, and out of danger. She is extremely creative, witty and sometimes sassy.

She is a protective, peace-making, smile smiling, patient, multitasking mother; skilled at swiftly swaddling, making up nicknames, diaper changing, burp coaxing, barf dodging, doctor appointment making, story reading, “I love you” saying, hug giving, pacifier finding, onesie snapping, lullaby singing, snuggling close holding, temperature taking, photographing, teeny tiny nail trimming, always teaching, and single-sided conversation holding.

A very short resume. . .

Tom:

Education: Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering

Mission: France Bordeaux

Employment History: Mechanical Engineer; formerly an IT Specialist and Computer Repair Technician

Becky:

Education: Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing, minor in Art History;

Master of Education in Teaching and Teacher Education, Secondary English

Mission: Russia Moscow

Employment: Full-time mom, occasional Technical Writer; formerly an Art, Creative Writing, and English Teacher; Newspaper Editor/Writer; and Photography Studio Manager

Feelings on adoption. . .

We have been praying to know what to do about the future of our family. The prompting came to both of us that we are to adopt a child. The feeling came again and again and was so strong that we couldn’t deny it.

Tom:

It has been an honor to be able to be parents to our son. Realistically, parenthood has been a lot of work for us, full of sleepless nights and sacrifice, but despite this, having Paul has been blessing and a wonder. We would embrace the opportunity for our family to grow and for him to have a sibling. I feel that there is a child out there who is meant to come to our family.

Becky:

It took seven years of trying and the science of fertility treatment for us to bring our little son into the world. My pregnancy with him was unusually difficult and I was on bed rest for four months with pre-term labor. Still, I would be willing to do it all again if I could just get pregnant. However, I am unable to continue fertility treatments because I have developed allergies to fertility drugs. For awhile we thought that maybe Paul was destined to be an only child, but I feel inspired that adoption is the right path for us to take.

Hobbies and interests. . .

Our “artsy” side takes us to plays, musicals, museums of any kind, and art galleries. If there is any type of festival or fair, we’ll go and check out new goofy fair food like fried twinkies (not that these are good), towers of onion rings, or caramel apples. We like to try a new restaurant almost every time we go out and sample cuisines from other cultures. We also like gardening. It’s so cute to see the little kids picking and eating cherry tomatoes straight off the vine. In our laid back family time we make homemade ice cream, sing songs, pop popcorn, read stories with Paul, go swimming, walking, make videos, and take lots of pictures.

Tom:

Every so often, I hear the call of the wild, which leads me to take the family camping or picnicking. I loved participating in scouting and earned my Eagle Scout award. I also like hiking, mountain biking, and swimming. I am an amateur guitar player, do some woodworking, and a lot of building things and tinkering. I build computers and fix mechanical things for fun. My favorite books are Tom Clancy novels, Harry Potter, and other mystery/spy books.

Becky:

I like playing the piano- it is very relaxing for me. My passion is writing: non-fiction stories, poetry, and I write in my blog almost every day. In high school, I loved drama and had the lead in a high-school musical. In college, I spent my time attending poetry readings and wandering around art galleries. I also toured Italy to further my studies of classical art. I love reading cookbooks and cooking organic gourmet dinners for the rest of the family. I like to take time to study nutrition and healthy living. I enjoy planning social events, dinner parties, and entertaining guests. I make elaborate birthday cakes and like to help my mom decorate wedding cakes. I take pride in organizing the family budget, balancing the checkbook, and making sure we have our food storage in order. I have collected Dr. Seuss books since I was in high school and now have branched out to other children’s authors. My favorite author is E.M. Forster. I love old black and white movies, especially Audrey Hepburn ones. I have a huge collection of fortunes from fortune cookies.

Paul, the potential big brother. . .

Paul, three years old, is a loving, social child with tender feelings who would make a super big brother. He is growing up fast and always changing. He loves to say his prayers and sing primary songs. He is our little marathon runner and loves to run for the joy of running. He goes outside spontaneously throughout the day to run barefoot in the grass and kick his soccer ball. He also loves swimming, riding elevators and escalators, playing computer games, trains, puzzles, climbing, sliding, and playing in the mud. His favorite thing to do at home is pop popcorn. He loves books and likes us to read about ten to him each day. His favorites are: “Corduroy” and “Thomas the Tank Engine”.

Our big families. . .

Becky:

My family is very scholarly. I am the second oldest of six children. I have four brothers and one sister- they all live nearby. All of my siblings are well educated and have bachelors or advanced degrees.

My parents are gifted in many ways: intelligent, intuitive, and level-headed. They live in Arizona and are fabulous grandparents to all four of their grandchildren. They read stories to the grandkids and use all the characters’ funny voices. Grandpa takes the grandkids on rides in the red wagon and teaches them all the funny silly things that grandpas should- like how to make drums out of container lids, and how to bark like different types of dogs. Grandma is cuddly and gives lots of hugs and kisses and treats. Aside from being a gourmet cook, she makes wedding cakes.

Tom:

I am the oldest of seven children. I have four sisters and two brothers. Both of my brothers and one sister are married and most live in Arizona. There are five nieces on my side of the family. My parents divorced when I was in my teens and they are now remarried and live in Utah and Oregon. My grandparents have served many missions and are currently temple workers in Utah.

Our home and neighborhood. . .

We live in a beautiful green and friendly small town outside of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The schools in our area are great. Our house is a single-story red brick home, surrounded by trees, grass, and flowers.

If we connect . . .

We hope to be able to meet you, to listen to your story, and to learn about your personal goals and wishes for your child’s future. Feel free to read our blog about our adoption journey: http://adoptingpumpkinmuffin.blogspot.com/. If you select us to become adoptive parents, this blog is where we will post pictures and stories about your child who comes to be with us. That way, you can log on any time to keep up on his or her important milestones in life.

As you are learning about us and other prospective parents, we hope you will find the desires of your heart. If you feel that we are meant to parent your child, we promise you that we will give him or her love, adoration, and the best life we can. Every child is an important little person and we would treat him or her as such.

Thanks for reading and best wishes in all regards,

Tom and Becky