To The Birth Parent(s)
We are excited to have this opportunity to make a connection with you. We support and are open to the adoption plan you are comfortable with, including open adoption. Your child will always know about their adoption story and their roots, and you will be loved and respected in our home. We will love your child with all of our heart, offer compassion and affection, instill confidence, and build trust and empathy. We will introduce them to new things and show them the importance of respect and kindness. Our goal is to make sure your child has a loving home, and a family who will always support them no matter what. Thank you for considering us in this process.
Our Values
We have many values we'd like to share with a child, including kindness, compassion (for self and others), responsibility, respect, and honesty. Another thing we highly value is education. We both have worked in higher education for over ten years and believe education is very important. We believe children should forge their own path and therefore we will encourage a child to pursue their own interests. This is especially important when children reach college age. It's not important what path our child goes down at that point, as long as they are able to do something they enjoy that supports the lifestyle they want to have. We would support our child regardless.
Our Thoughts on Parenting
Our goal is to be open and supportive parents. We plan on nurturing and caring for a child with love, kindness, patience, and respect. We believe it's important to encourage children, show empathy, and treat them with respect. Modeling good behavior and being patient, especially with discipline is important to us. I (Candice) had a college professor who always said, "you can't teach a horse with shouts and expect to obey a whisper." Staying calm, helping the child through their emotions, and having a conversation about the behavior when they're in a better place is how we would approach discipline.
Our Childcare and Schooling Plans
Our initial childcare plan is to stay home with our child for 5-6 months after initial placement. We both have three months of parental leave at our jobs and will stagger that time, as to have the maximum amount of time at home before our child enters a daycare. When that time comes, we both have flexible work schedules and typically don't work over 40 hours a week. That ensures that we will have time in the mornings, evenings, and weekends to spend with our child as well as special days off and vacations.
There are a few different types of childcare and schools that stick out to us initially. Candice likes the idea of a Montessori education, where children can develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, enhance their creativity, support their emotional development, and foster a love of learning. Ryan likes the idea of a nature school where children can learn about and appreciate the natural world around them. Regardless of daycare, preschool, elementary school, or higher, our goal is to make sure our child is supported academically, socially, and emotionally, can explore their interests, and feel safe being who they are.
Thank You
Thank you for reading our letter. We are very excited to parent and love a child with all our hearts! We will introduce them to new things and show them the importance of respect and kindness. Just know your child will have a loving home and a family who will always support them no matter what.
