Dear Birthmother,

As you make this difficult decision in your life and for your child, we thank you for wanting to learn about us, and for considering us as your baby’s adoptive family. We can only imagine what a difficult situation this must be and we admire your courage. Our prayer is that that God gives you wisdom and peace as you make decisions.

Our names are Tim and Norma, and we have a son named Jacob. Tim is a California native (Caucasian-Native American), raised in Oregon. He graduated with a degree in Biblical Studies and has taught middle school for 16 years. Norma was born in El Salvador but moved to Boston when she was 14. She has a degree in Human Development, and a Master’s Degree in Language and Literacy. Norma enjoyed teaching 2nd and 3rd grade for about 12 years but she's now pleased to be a full-time wife and mom. Our son is a joyful 18-month old with a very charming, friendly personality. He enjoys music, taking baths, being tickled, kicking balls, playing with water and so on. As he’s gotten older, he’s become quite the entertainer – our lives are that much richer today because Jake is part of our hearts and daily living.

After meeting and becoming good friends at church about ten years ago, we were married in 2001 and consider our wedding day one of the happiest days of our lives. We still attend the same church, have many friends there, and have a very active church and social life. Tim plays the guitar and leads worship while Norma is involved in a ladies group. Our Christian faith is the foundation for our lives and we’re thankful for the many blessings we enjoy.

Our son Jake is an amazing gift from the Lord who came to us through adoption after unsuccessfully trying to conceive for a few years. God’s ways are perfect and we’re now thankful not to have conceived because if that had been the case, we perhaps wouldn’t have Jake today. Adoption had been our hearts’ desire even from before we were married, thus, when faced with the inability to conceive, it was natural to pursue adoption.

We met our son when he was twelve hours old and words cannot fully express the joy our hearts felt. Delighted to have become parents, we were in awe of Jacob’s birthmom and the sacrificial decision she had made. She is a brave young lady who at 17 couldn’t take care of Jake but wanted him to have a family that could provide, and thus she placed him with us. We love and respect Jake’s birthmom, and we have formed a close relationship with her – we’ll never forget the sacrifice she made. We’re in touch periodically via phone calls, emails, pictures, and occasional visits with her and her family. We attended her graduation and saw her during the time of Jake’s first birthday. We are pleased that Jake will grow up knowing and respecting his birthmother, and also knowing that she loves him very much.

We desire to raise our children in a Christian home, and provide them a loving, and stable environment with a dad and a mom. Since Norma is fluent in Spanish, we’re raising Jake bilingual and we’ll do the same for our next child. Neither of us has siblings but the number of “nieces and nephews” is growing as our closest friends are many families with multiple children. Since our own extended families live in Oregon and Boston, we love to visit them whenever possible. However, we have a close-knit church family and our children get together on a regular basis to play with each other.

We have been blessed with a three-bedroom house, “our sanctuary,” on a tree-lined street in the foothills of Los Angeles, where we love to spend our time. We have two cats, Phoebe and Peppermint, and an old goldfish named Flounder. Our family likes to entertain and visit with our many friends. During the day, Jake and mommy stay busy with play dates, going to the children’s garden, going to story-time, or simply playing at home. Tim is interested in the gym, reading about current issues, and music is a hobby for him. He’s also part of a Christian band and performs occasionally in different cities and music festivals. During his time off he enjoys working around the house and around the garden. Norma loves reading, cooking, and hosting friends. Like Tim, she is also interested in current issues and loves music too. As a family we enjoy dining out, taking walks, going on impromptu outings, and we sit down daily to eat dinner together. We also love reading to Jake and playing with him. Our family attends a Bible study regularly, and we go to church on Sundays. Jacob likes his nursery class at church and loves playing with the other children there.

Our family is thrilled to see what is ahead as we would like to love, nurture, and share our lives with another little one. This being our second adoption experience, we know it may be different from our first and although we believe in the benefits of an open adoption we realize that all situations are unique. We’ll respect and be sensitive to all parties involved and look forward to discussing a mutually agreed upon plan for ongoing contact. We can only imagine the challenges you’re facing at this time and how difficult the choice of adoption must be, thus we pray you’ll have peace with your decision and that you continue to be wise, strong, and courageous in all that you do.

Our family is represented by Nightlight Christian Adoptions. If you want more information about us or would like to meet us, please contact Nightlight at 888.933.2237.

Thank you for reading our letter, we appreciate your consideration.

ADOPTIVE FAMILY INFORMATION AT A GLANCE

Date of marriage : March, 2001

Children : We have one son, Jacob, who’s 18 months. We had the privilege of adopting him at birth. He’s a joyful little boy with a very charming, and friendly personality.

Interests and hobbies : As a family we take walks around our neighborhood, and every day we sit down to eat dinner together. We attend a Bible study, and enjoy going to church on Sundays. We like to entertain, visit with friends, and dine out. We also enjoy going on weekend trips and stay at cozy Bed & Breakfasts. During the day, Jake and mommy stay busy with play dates, going to the children’s garden, attending story-time at the library, or simply playing at home. Tim enjoys the gym, listening to and playing music and as a guitarist he has recorded a couple of CD’s with a band. Norma also loves music and she enjoys cooking, and hosting friends. Norma is interested in foreign languages; she is fluent and literate in Spanish and speaks a little Italian which is something she hopes to pass along to our children. Jake enjoys all things little boys love to do like playing with water, kicking balls, being read to, music, and so on.

Home : We live in a three-bedroom home located on a tree-lined street, on the San Gabriel foothills. We have a beautiful view of the hills. Our house has a good-size back and front yard. Most of our close friends that have children live nearby.

Pets : We have rescued 2 cats, Phoebe and Peppermint. Phoebe is the BIG one and Peppermint is our petite kitty. They love to tease and chase each other around the house. We also have goldfish named Flounder who is 7 years old!

Finances : We own our home and our two cars, have financial security, and have prepared well for the future.

Why are you interested in building your family through adoption? Parenthood has always been our hearts’ desire and God blessed us with Jacob through adoption since we have never been able to conceive. We are thrilled to pursue adoption again and we eagerly wait to see what is ahead. We’d like to love, nurture, and share our lives with another little one.

Openness to birthparent(s) : We will always be grateful to the birthparents and due to our first adoption experience we believe in the benefits of open adoptions. However we realize that all situations are unique and thus we’ll respect and be sensitive to all parties involved. We plan to foster a supportive relationship with the birthparents before and/or after placement and we look forward to discussing a mutually agreed upon plan for ongoing contact that may include pictures, letters/emails, and some visits.

Childcare plans : Norma will continue to stay at home and care for our children full time.

Statement of Faith: We are evangelical Christians and believe that salvation is through faith alone by Christ alone.