We met in high school. Austin had transferred to Rachel's high school in our junior year. We barely knew each other until one day, we went on a class trip together and stayed up all night playing card games on the bus ride. The next day, we were both exhausted but had no regrets. We became great friends, eating lunch together, talking on the phone all night, and hanging out with our friends.

Austin knew the key to Rachel's heart; he would surprise her with cookies or other treats during the school day. Sometimes, he would skip class to go to Rachel's class so they could see each other. It was obvious to everyone but us that we both liked each other.

We finally started dating near the end of our senior year. We've been together through college, starting careers, through medical problems, through hardship, and through the joys of life, and we've loved each other the whole way through.

Our intention is to make sure that this baby knows their origin their whole life. We will have lots of adoption books for toddlers and kids that we can read to them so that they can see their story reflected in others. The older the child grows, the more questions we expect them to have. We plan to be completely open, answering all their questions in a manner appropriate for whatever age the child may be.

We will tell them about our journey to finding them; and we will tell them about their journey to finding us. We will create an adoption lifebook for the child to always have, so that they can see how much we wanted to welcome them and how much we loved them before we ever met them.

We also want the lifebook to show how much you love them. We would love to include any information or pictures about you and your family that you want the child to have.

We hope the baby will always be able to open it and see their origins and how special and loved they are.

We enjoy spending time together playing games, watching tv and movies, and enjoying our separate hobbies together. Rachel loves crocheting, baking, and reading, and Austin loves reading and writing. We also both enjoy walking in good weather. Austin's entire family is also musically inclined. They all play several instruments, and Austin has kept that love of music. He loves playing piano and guitar in his free time, and he has written some original piano melodies.

Austin's love of board games and video games led to him creating games for Rachel, their friends, and him to play together. These are original adventure role playing games our friends get together monthly to play. We have so much fun, and it's something that we are especially excited to introduce a child to. It allows for so much creativity and imagination, and it would be such a fun tradition and bonding activity to do with a child.

We both have very close-knit families who are thrilled at the prospect of welcoming a child into the family. Rachel's family has no grandchildren yet, and her parents are already planning how to spoil this baby. Rachel can't wait to introduce a child to all the family traditions, especially holiday traditions. Every year, Rachel's family all band together to bake an extremely large amount of kolaczki, little Polish cookies that they eat on Christmas. Spending all day in the kitchen making kolaczki together leads to so much love and laughter. Even when it's not Christmas, Rachel's family might be making pierogi, finding fun local adventures to go on, or just spending the day together playing games.

Austin's parents have already perfected the grandbaby spoiling process with our niece, so they are excited to have another baby to spoil. Our niece is also so excited at the prospect of a cousin. We spend so much time with Austin's family playing games, watching movies, or just visiting. We're also looking forward to bringing the child to visit Austin's aunts, uncles, and cousins in New Orleans for a proper seafood boil!

We live in a small, cozy neighborhood in Tennessee. We're so excited to bring a baby home to our neighborhood, which is just full of young families. The children in this neighborhood have so much fun running around together, playing sports games in the green space in the middle of the neighborhood, riding bikes together, or just playing some make believe game running around on the sidewalks or behind the houses. The neighbors are all friendly with each other, and they even plan fun events for the kids. One year for Halloween, one of the neighbors set up a little haunted hayride for the kids!

Our home has been waiting for a child. We currently have a room for crafting, a primary bedroom, a guest bedroom, an entertainment room, and an office for Austin. There's room for so many toys for a child to make a mess with! We love the idea of painting with the child in the craft room, of playing games as a family in the entertainment room, of the living room turning into a personal playpen for the baby.

We are so honored that you are reading this letter and considering us to be the adoptive parents for your child. We know this must be an incredibly difficult decision, and we want to tell you all about ourselves so you can make the best decision for you.

We met in junior year of high school. We were both in theatre class, and we loved when we got to be in plays together. We were very close friends until the end of senior year when we finally started dating. We've been married for fourteen years. We've been lucky enough to both have great careers. Austin is a software engineer, and he's working at an excellent company with a great work culture. Rachel is an attorney who works for the government, and she loves her agency and believes in their mission. We have been through medical issues together, and we've come out stronger on the other side. We love each other so much, and we know we are lucky to have each other.

We are so excited for the chance to add to our family through adoption. We have a niece and a goddaughter we adore, and they've made us very excited for a child. We have so much love in our hearts that we want to give a child. We've been through tough times together, and we know that a new baby won't always be an easy time. We are ready for it, and we and our families are ready to give this baby all the love and support in the world. There will never be a day that this child doesn't know they are loved by so, so many people.

We want to provide a child with the best possible life. We are looking forward to watching them grow up and going to their sports games, or dance shows, or science fairs. We can't wait to teach them to ride a bike and how to swim. Rachel can't wait to bake cookies together; Austin can't wait to teach them how to play piano. We can't wait to find out what the child will love--what will be their favorite foods, their favorite movies, their favorite hobbies.

We will absolutely send letters and pictures with updates about your baby to you. We would also be open to additional contact if that's something you want. We could exchange emails or phone calls, and we would be open to future visits. When this child asks where they got their eye color or their nose or their smile, we want to tell them that they're from you. We understand that this is complex, and every situation will be different. We also understand that situations can change over time. We never want you to be a mystery to this baby. We want them to know who you are, to know that you love them, and to know their origin story. We want them to be proud of who they are and where they came from.

Thank you again so much for reading this and considering us.

Austin & Rachel