Hi, we are Amanda and Ryan. Thank you for taking time to learn about us. 

Our story as a couple began in high school in 2003. We first met in the high school marching band, where Ryan played the trumpet, and Amanda played the flute. During this time, we also worked together at McDonald’s, where we bonded over discussions of chicken nuggets and high school football games. Three years later, while both studying in college, Ryan proposed to Amanda in the old high school marching band practice lot. After five years together, we got married in 2008, celebrating in cake-smashing style.

Throughout our marriage, we have traveled around the world and across the country. We have taught English together in South Korea for three years, lived in Colorado for three years, and moved back to our home state of Michigan. 

Even early on, we talked about wanting someday to build a family through adoption; we always felt God put that desire in our hearts. Finding a home and stability in a community that we love, we are ready and can’t wait to welcome a child and build memories with them surrounded by our friends and family. 

We are grateful for your heart and pray that we get to meet you soon.

When I met Ryan, he was a very shy 16-year-old, but he has always had a very strong work ethic and has been very loyal to his friends, his family, and his faith. He excels at telling dad jokes and is an amazing dog owner, making sure that our mini goldendoodle, Eeyore, gets enough food, exercise, and socialization. 

He is an amazing uncle who, over the past two decades, has pushed our nieces on swings, given them piggy-back rides, and shared ice cream and a few tears when one of their hearts was broken. He has read stories and even put on puppet shows featuring “Marvin the Moral Manatee.” 

We have worked together at six different jobs, and I know that I can always depend on Ryan. No matter how busy life gets, he finds a way to show up and be there for the people that need him, whether that’s giving friends advice, praying for the men in his life group, or helping his parents. 

He will be an amazing father who prioritizes helping with homework, playing games, running around outside, and helping others. His dependability is one of his greatest assets, there isn’t a single doubt that when someone needs his attention, Ryan will always be there to help.

Fun Facts: 

• Ryan loves board games: he meets up regularly with friends for game days, and dreams of having family board game nights filled with Ticket to Ride and Settlers of Catan.  
• Ryan wasn’t always a dog person… until Eeyore came along, and now he spends most evenings with Eeyore walking around the neighborhood or playing fetch and keep-away in our backyard. 

Amanda’s friends would say she is a compassionate rock whom they can lean on, always willing to lend an ear. Amanda’s co-workers would say she is dependable, witty with new jokes, and that she makes work more fun with games and activities from her role on the party planning committee. The children she has cared for in babysitting and daycares would say she is full of imagination and genuine love, always ready to read another story, invent a new game, or just hold them a little longer. 

I admire Amanda’s creativity; she loves to paint and color, and I imagine her thinking up spontaneous crafts and activities to do with a child. I admire Amanda’s humility; her prayers are filled with thankfulness for the people in her life. Through her words and actions, she will show a child that life is full of blessings and that every person has value. I admire Amanda’s sense of adventure; I imagine her taking a child to the park, the beach, or exploring some new town on a fun weekend. I admire Amanda’s resilience; life often doesn't go as planned, but Amanda is the perfect partner to face any challenges with, side by side. No matter what happens in a child’s life, I'm confident that they will never doubt Amanda’s unending love and support.

Fun Facts:

• Between daycares, student teaching, and teaching English in Korea, Amanda has taught every age group from six-weeks to 83-years-old!  
• While working in day care centers, Amanda’s favorite thing to do was to make paintings using the babies’ feet! Her two favorite paintings were of umbrellas and penguins.

We have a cozy, ranch-style home with a fenced-in backyard where our dog, Eeyore, loves to zoom around. He likes running back and forth along the fenceline with our neighbor’s dogs, and we are so grateful to have kind neighbors on both sides who are willing to lend a hand or a tool for yardwork. We are lucky to have Ryan’s dad routinely come over and teach about home repairs and updates, like putting in new flooring in the baby room. 

We are thrilled we found a home in a neighborhood where we see kids playing outside and we hear the sound of power tools humming as our neighbors work on house projects. In a park a few blocks away, we enjoy walking our dog while getting to see kids in our community playing together on the slides and swings, the little league softball bleachers filled with families, and kids running in their soccer jerseys on the weekends. During football season, we can hear the football game announcer and the marching band from the nearby high school. 

We’ve loved living in a small town where our church, the grocery store, the library, the children’s play café, the schools, and a unique downtown river showboat are all within a couple of miles of our home. Our favorite way to start a Saturday begins with the ding of the bell welcoming customers into our local coffee shop and bakery.

Amanda grew up in a large family, and most of her aunts, uncles, and cousins on her dad’s side all lived within a block of each other. They loved getting together to play guitars, drums, and sing. Unfortunately, Amanda’s parents have both passed away, but her sister lives an hour away and spends time with us every couple of months to eat dinner and play board games. Her mom’s side of the family gathers once a year in Buffalo, where we eat authentic Buffalo wings and Hungarian food, go to parks, beaches, and festivals. They are all so excited for us to become parents.

We are happy that Ryan’s parents and sister are only two hours away. During the summer, we go to his dad and stepmom’s house for backyard grill-outs, golf cart rides with our niece and nephew, water balloon tosses, and fireworks. It’s awesome that Ryan’s mom, dad, and stepmom are all friends, so we spend family time all together. Ryan’s parents love being grandparents and cannot wait to make memories while spoiling a new little one. 

Our friends are like siblings and some friendships are two-three decades strong. Ironically, one of Ryan’s best friends is the brother of one of Amanda’s best friends! We have become “Aunt Amanda” and “Uncle Ryan” to many of our friends’ children, and we are eager to have a child bond with our friends and have fun with our nieces and nephews as they spend time swimming at the beach, swinging at the park, and playing games. They all have been so supportive and are excited for us through this adoption journey.

Christmas is our favorite holiday. Every year, Amanda puts together a homemade scavenger hunt with clues for Ryan to solve. We also like to commemorate each year by gifting each other a unique Christmas ornament that represents something special we did that year, like a sailboat ornament for a sailing class we took in 2023.  

The  4th of July, Memorial Day, and Labor Day holidays are usually spent with Ryan’s family eating BBQ and watching a home firework show. Amanda loves going to holiday parades, especially to see all the marching bands. We have a tradition of hiking at Empire’s Bluff during Memorial Day weekend. We enjoy attending a handful of outdoor festivals, including flower festivals, kite festivals, and art festivals. Once, we got to use an antique typewriter to write a silly poem about Eeyore!

On many summer weekends, we head to a Lake Michigan beach and go boogie boarding, swimming, kite flying, ice cream eating, and walking down a pier. The beach is truly Amanda’s happy place! We hope to ride the carousel with a little one there someday. 

We have become big fans of miniature golf and try a variety of courses around the state. Ryan usually wins, but Amanda is getting better! Amanda enjoys participating in themed 5ks, especially ones where everyone dresses up as Dr. Seuss characters. Fall is Ryan’s favorite season, because that means football! We both love going to high school, college, or NFL games, but find baseball or hockey games thrilling in-person, too. We hope to share all these hobbies with a child, and we’re excited to see what new interests the child will be drawn to.

We just want to say “thank you” for taking a few minutes to learn more about us. We have been praying for a child and for you for many years and we are grateful that you are bringing this miracle into the world. We can’t wait to share our lives with a child, and we will ensure that they know you, their birth family and cultural background, and their adoption story. Whether there are in-person visits, phone calls, or text updates, we will respect the level of openness that you are most comfortable with. 

We promise to raise the child in a home where they feel safe, supported, and nurtured. We will strive to make sure that the child has self-confidence and knows that they are loved unconditionally. We will pray with the child and teach them about God’s love for them and for all people, emphasizing the values of compassion and respect. 

We cherished the experience of living among different cultures and languages during the three years we were in South Korea, and we want to share that appreciation for diversity with the child. We will also help the child with their schoolwork and encourage them as they pursue after-school activities, friendships, and career paths. 

We pray that God will bless you and the child, and help guide you in your decision. Whatever choice you make, we know it will be made from a place of love.

With love,

Ryan and Amanda