We feel strongly that an open adoption is in the best interest of all parties involved: the birth family, the adoptive family, and, most of all, the child. When we envision our future raising an adopted child, we want the existence of a connection to a birth parent to be as natural and normal as breathing air. We want to not only foster that connection from a young age, but to celebrate it as a crucial part of our child’s story. While the idea of openness can be scary, as it requires honesty, empathy, and vulnerability, we firmly believe that the child will thrive as they begin to learn about and understand their connection to their birth family as they grow. Understanding where you come from is incredibly important for a child as they figure out their place in this world. Beyond its importance for the child, we feel an open adoption is also important for both the birth and adoptive families. Our hope is for a true relationship to develop from that first conversation and that it becomes one based on open communication, mutual respect, and honesty. We can only imagine the range of emotions the birth parent must feel as that first conversation happens, and as the relationship continues to grow after birth and throughout the years, we are fully committed to including the birth parent in the child’s life through photos, videos, letters, the child’s drawings, life updates, and in-person visits. Flexibility is key in this area.

While we do greatly enjoy downtime and relaxing in our home, we are very active people who love being outside. We feel lucky to live by the mountains, and most of our activities involve experiencing nature and breathing fresh air. We particularly love snowboarding - we grew up doing it and have such fond memories of learning to ski as kids with our families and friends. We love watching young families on the slopes and picture ourselves doing this with a child of our own. When it’s warmer, we regularly get out to hike or bike with our pup, and look forward to throwing a bike trailer or car seat on and making this a family activity!

Beyond this, we are huge music lovers and really enjoy going to laid back music festivals in the summer, where we can listen to music and make new friends while the kids get to run around, make friends with each other, and create their own adventures.

While it is impossible to distill what it means to be a parent into a paragraph, ultimately it means offering unconditional love, support, and guidance while helping a child discover their own path that will lead to them becoming who they were meant to be.

It means being a guidepost, a constant presence, and providing encouragement and wisdom through a strong, trusting relationship as they experience life’s joys and challenges.

What we anticipate loving most about being a parent is the opportunity to witness a child’s discovery of the world and watching them grow and develop their own unique personality.

We also are so excited about creating meaningful, lifelong memories together- to us this doesn’t necessarily only mean the big exciting things like trips or once-in-a-lifetime experiences, but the mundane, everyday things like daily walks, game nights, and family traditions that will develop organically and will be unique to our own little family.

Both of us have been fortunate enough to grow up around lots of siblings, aunts and uncles, and cousins - our families made and continue to make family reunions and get-togethers a priority. Recently, Stephanie’s family spent countless hours renovating an old family lake house which is used regularly for family meetups. These usually involve lazy lake days, s’mores, and on July 4th the town sponsors a “bed race”, which is exactly how it sounds! Most recently, the family visited Colorado for the holidays and we got to take everyone skiing, snowshoeing, to soak in the hot springs. Most nights end with board games, which some of the kids are now old enough to participate in (and sometimes win)!

Kendal’s family loves to explore the world and we have taken family trips to 4 continents and counting! We consider travelling and exploring other cultures a “love language” that deepens the bonds among us as family members. Having grown up in the mountains, being out in nature, whether camping, hiking, or just relaxing, is a family tradition! We are lucky enough to live in the same place as Kendal’s parents and siblings, and we regularly get together, which typically includes a local hike, bike ride, or camping trip. We all have wonderful childhood memories of exploring in the mountains together and envision this same lifestyle for our future family.

Both of our families are so excited to have a new family member to love and share these special life experiences with!

We may be biased, but we feel that we live in a very special home in a very special, historic neighborhood in Colorado with great community vibes and access to nature. Our neighborhood strikes just the right balance of peaceful, safe, and energetic; the streets and sidewalks are wide, there are parks and playgrounds dotted throughout, and most houses have a front porch where we can always count on neighbor families to be hanging out with each other and waving at us on our daily walks when it's warm enough! We live a half block from a trail that winds through the neighborhood and has a chain of parks with playgrounds crawling with neighborhood kids - this is always a go-to to meet up with our friends with kids so they can run around and scream while we catch up. Our neighborhood hosts several annual events, including creek cleanups, ice cream socials, and an annual Summerfest with music, food trucks, kid-related activities, and good company - nearby residents even bring their families to this one!

Our home is truly best described as a gingerbread house- it’s cheerful, colorful, and even has hearts on the shutters! We love our house and its natural warmth and character, and we enjoy hosting in it. On cold nights we love to play board games by the wood burning stove, and in the warmer months we sit out on our big back patio with a fire and friends watching kids and dogs playing in the yard.

Words feel inadequate to express the depth of our respect and admiration for you. We can only imagine the range of difficult emotions you must be feeling right now, and the courage it must be taking you to consider this extremely difficult decision. We know this is a deeply personal journey for you, and we want to share a glimpse into our hearts and home, hoping to offer you some comfort and clarity.

We are Kendal and Stephanie, and we have dreamed of building a family for as long as we can remember. We have been in a loving and stable marriage for over 15 years. While we certainly expected to have a family earlier in our relationship, we have continued to make it a life priority to build a partnership based on mutual respect, unwavering support, and a shared passion for life. Our home is filled with warmth, laughter, security, and a strong thirst for life, and we envision our future sharing these things with a child, through bedtime stories, outdoor adventures, and providing the unending support every child deserves.?

We know you must have many questions and concerns about adoption, and we want to make clear that we are committed to open and honest communication from our first meeting and throughout the child’s life. When we envision our future raising an adopted child, we want the existence of a connection to a birth parent to be natural and normal. We want to not only foster that connection from a young age, but to celebrate it as a key part of the child’s story. While the idea of openness requires vulnerability and can be scary, we believe that the child will thrive as they begin to learn about and understand their connection to their birth family as they grow. We are fully committed to including birth parents in the child’s life through photos, videos, letters, the child’s drawings, life updates, and in-person visits. We also recognize that as life changes occur there may be ebbs and flows, and we understand and respect the need for flexibility- with open communication, we feel openness will be successful and beneficial.

We promise to provide your child with a nurturing and enriching environment. We value education, creativity, and the importance of exploring the world around us, and we are eager to have them both share in our passions and develop their own. While we enjoy camping, biking, hiking, and reading, we also look forward to seeing the world through a child’s eyes and guiding and fostering their sense of curiosity about the world as they grow. We also believe in fostering a strong sense of identity and celebrating individuality, and are committed to raising a child who is compassionate, empathetic, and confident in who they are.

We know that no words can fully alleviate the weight of your decision. However, we hope that by sharing our hearts with you, we can offer you some peace of mind. We promise to cherish your child with all our love and to provide them with a lifetime of happiness and opportunity. We will honor their birth story and ensure they know the incredible love that brought them to us. We are filled with hope and anticipation as you consider what is likely the most difficult decision of your life, and recognize the importance of you feeling heard and understood throughout this process.?We are here to support you in any way we can.

With deepest respect and heartfelt gratitude,

Kendal & Stephanie