Dear Birthmother,
Hello and thank you for taking the time to read our letter. We know that you are putting much love and thought into your decision about placing your baby for adoption. We respect and admire your courage. Our daughter, Janie, came into our lives through adoption, and we are excited to build our family once again. Janie’s birthmother is a true blessing, and because of her we received the most precious gift we could ever imagine. We hope that through this letter, you will come to know that we will welcome your child with hugs and kisses, open arms and loving hearts. We also hope that during your pregnancy you will experience good health and whatever you decide for the future will bring you the peace and happiness you deserve.

About Us
It all began with a wave and a smile. Seventeen years ago while pedaling her bicycle down the road, Sharon was passed by Mark, who turned around, waved and gave a big smile. All of a sudden, this fast bicycle rider became a slowpoke who always seemed to be waiting for Sharon at the next stop light. We became fast friends and spent the summer bicycling and going to barbecues with friends. We fell in love and have been happily married for 15 years. We have so much in common, and can truly say that we have each found our soul mate and best friend. We have a wonderful marriage, and love being together. We can honestly say that the love and bond we feel for each other is stronger today than the day we were married.

It has been almost three years since our daughter Janie came into our life through adoption. We have been blessed to have her in our life, and each day brings more fun and new adventures that we can share together as a family. Our home is filled with the love, warmth and laughter we had always imagined. Our ideas regarding parenting and family life are very similar. We both feel that a child needs lots of love, patience, guidance and caring. We believe that a special bond between parent and child needs to begin as early as possible, which is why for her first year much of Janie’s time was spent close to our hearts in a Snuggly or baby sling. We wanted Janie to feel content, special and included. This way, when out shopping or taking walks, spending time with friends or family, or just being at home, Janie would be at our level, we could talk to her often, hold her close, and give her lots of kisses and words of encouragement. We feel it’s never too early to boost a baby’s emerging self esteem! We also knew that when we had a family, we would want to be with our children as much as possible, and are very fortunate to be in a position to have realized that dream.

When it comes to having fun, we enjoy many activities together. Hiking and exploring the outdoors is top on our list, and we often take long walks through the lagoons close to our home. Janie enjoys trekking through the wilderness with us, to stop and inspect ladybugs or watch ants climb a tree. We love animals, and Ollie, our dog, is usually always close by. We also like to drive to a duck pond near our home where we can throw out bread crumbs or cheerios for the hungry ducks. Splashing in the neighborhood pool, visiting the zoo, playground, and visiting Janie’s friends are all activities we enjoy sharing together as a family.

Sharon & Mark
Sharon is a loving, caring and patient mommy, who loves being a stay-at-home mom. Her greatest joy is spending time with her family. Some of the things she loves to enjoy with Janie are reading books, attending their Mommy & Me classes, and going to the park to play in the sand and have fun swooshing down the slide together. Every week they visit the library and have fun checking out books together. Throwing pennies into the pond in front of the library is always fun and brings lots of jumps and giggles. Sharon likes to read, swim, work on her scrapbooking, and take walks with her family. One of her favorite times of the day is after dinner, when she, Mark, Janie and their dog Ollie take a relaxing evening walk, with Janie always proud to be the one holding Ollie’s leash.

Mark is a patient, warm-hearted dad who is very dedicated to his family. He loves spending time with Janie, and his patient nature has given Janie the opportunity to enjoy a life filled with learning and exploration. Their special times together include dancing and playing instruments together at music class, having fun while getting messy with finger paints, and potting plants or exploring the world of insects at the Botanical Gardens Children’s Center in our neighborhood. Mark has many interests. We met while bicycling, and he still likes to pedal around the neighborhood. He enjoys painting, sculpting, visiting art museums, swimming and hiking. He also likes to explore the outdoors, and he and Janie have spent gre Àat times bird watching at the lagoon, while also stopping to explore the insects and bugs that cross their paths.

Sharon and Mark are both interested in the natural health industry and together they created a mail order business run out of their home that caters to students and practitioners of herbal and natural medicine. Mark also gives monthly talks to the public at a Wellness Center in their neighborhood. Mark’s work schedule is very flexible, and so he is fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time with Janie. He is thankful to own a business that is not only successful, but allows him the free time to build the close father-daughter relationship that is so important to him.

Janie
Janie is a friendly, energetic young girl, who loves people and especially children. She greets other children enthusiastically with a Hello Friend, what’s your name? She loves to do lots of different things like playing with her friends in the neighborhood, reading with mom and dad, and swimming in her pool. Above all else she loves music. She loves singing, dancing and playing musical instruments, especially the drums. Janie also has a huge heart. If another child falls and hurts themselves at the park, she is always concerned. She will run over to them and ask them Are you okay? She will hold out her hand to a child who has fallen to help them get up. If we are at the zoo or park and she sees a baby in a stroller, she likes to walk over and say hi to them, and likes to pat them gently on the head. She very much would welcome a little brother or sister into her home to kiss and hug and make better if they cry.

Our Home & Family
We are both fortunate to be surrounded by loving and active family members. Sharon’s relatives are all close by, and birthdays and holidays are always loud and fun-filled with Janie running and playing with her cousins. Janie’s grandma has a flair for the holidays and so no one would be surprised if Santa shows up for Christmas or Peter Rabbit makes a run for eggs on Easter. Sharon’s sister has also adopted a child into her family, and her child and Janie have all the acceptance and love any other child in the family would bring.

We live in Encinitas, California, a small beach community just north of San Diego. Our home sits on a quiet cul-de-sac, which makes it safe for the children in the neighborhood to play. We really love the area, and chose it because of its park-like setting, and family-oriented atmosphere. The grounds are beautiful with lots of grass area and trees. We enjoy getting out and playing games and tag and throwing the ball around with Janie. Every year there is a neighborhood barbecue, with music and jumpers for the children. It is a lot of fun. We also have a playground we visit often, and a swimming pool, one for the older children and adults, and a kiddie pool, just for the little ones.

On Raising Children
We believe that unconditional love, guidance, exploration, laughter and a feeling of belonging are the greatest gifts we can give a child to help them grow up happy, self-reliant and confident adults. We try to teach by being an example to our child. We will be there for them when they need comfort or advice, and we will emphasize the values of kindness, generosity and acceptance of peoples differences to help them to realize their own wondrous potential. We both graduated from college, so we understand the importance of a good education. We believe all the time you spend with children; exploring, reading and playing together begins the love of learning that is so important for successful school life. Sharon also has a degree in speech and language pathology, and has learned how to play with children in a way that fosters good communication and social skills. We understand that learning and fun can go hand in hand. We believe in being honest regarding the adoption process and how it has built our wonderful family. We have children’s books about adoption, and will read them often. It is very important for us to relay to our children how much they are loved by their birthparents, and how the decision to place them with us was a difficult but courageous decision made out of love for them and their future. We stay in touch with Janie’s birthmother with pictures and letters, and would like to discuss with you whatever level of openness you would be comfortable with.

Thank you for taking the time to read our letter. It is hard to get to know a person in a brief letter, but we hope you have an understanding of who we are and how committed we are in raising our children in a loving and caring manner. We love each other, and our daughter Janie very much, and are very excited about welcoming another child into our lives.

If you would like further information about us and would like to talk to us, please contact our adoption facilitator, Cindy Simonson at A Act of Caring, 1- 800-556-5635

Thank you and best wishes,