Doug and Erin
Dear Expecting Mother,
Our names are Doug and Erin, and we appreciate you taking the time to read a little bit about us. Writing about ourselves is easy, but knowing what to write to you is not. All we know about you is that you're probably facing a very difficult and emotional decision. We also believe you're making that decision out of love, and you want to make sure your choice gives your baby the best life possible. We're anxious to begin our family through adoption, and we chose open adoption, knowing you will always be a part of that equation.
We met at a birthday party in Pittsburgh. Doug was in the Marine Corps, stationed in Washington, D.C., and was in town to visit for the night. After being introduced by a mutual friend, Erin asked Doug to pretend he was her boyfriend for the night, to avoid someone else's unwanted attention. We clicked, and a couple weeks later, the boyfriend status became official. Doug was a deserter investigator, and travelled all over the world. Erin was going to school and working full-time. We were very busy, but took turns driving back and forth between Pittsburgh and D.C. for a year and a half. Then we got married and moved to northern Virginia.
After Doug finished his contract with the Marines, we decided to come back home to Pittsburgh. We bought the house that Erin's grandfather had built in the forties, and completely remodeled it ourselves. After ditching all the wood paneling and bad fifties tile, we were left with a comfy home we're pretty proud of. It's on a quiet dead-end street, two doors down from Erin's parents, and less than ten miles from Doug's parents. We have a big back yard with a huge old oak tree that would be perfect for a tire swing. There are a lot of young families with little kids in the neighborhood, too.
We're both only children, and both grew up in the suburbs. Our faith is very important to us. Erin even sings in the choir and volunteers in the nursery at church. We also greatly value time with family, whether it's huge, fun get-togethers with Doug's extended family, or relaxing on the deck with Erin's parents. We both read for fun, and value education. Erin is artistic and creative, and she keeps busy gardening, and doing DIY projects around the house. Doug enjoys doing most anything outdoors, especially fishing.
We have a lively Boston Terrier named Rigby who has gigantic ears and the sweetest personality. We also have an African Pygmy hedgehog named Bertie, who's a lot like a spiny hamster, but shy and gentle. She mostly just runs in her wheel. We both love going camping, taking Rigby to the dog park, and hanging out with friends. We also love snuggling up in front of the fire with a movie. Doug can quote pretty much every movie he's ever watched. Erin can barely remember what movie we saw last week.
Ever since Erin was a teenager, she's known that eventually she wanted to adopt. She feels like God gave her the gift of complete openness to adoption in preparation for our infertility diagnosis. Luckily, Doug was on the same page, and we decided to adopt before we even found out for sure that we couldn't have children. For us, adoption has never been a runner-up or last-resort option. It's always been part of our family plan.
Doug is a security supervisor at a casino, and Erin is a supervisor at an advertising company. Doug's mom, who's a homemaker, has offered to provide daycare for us until Erin can shrink her workload to part-time. Both sets of our parents are very excited for us to welcome home their first grandbaby!
Doug: "When I first met Erin I was blown away by her intelligence and class. She also has a drive and dedication to everything she does. She finds it hard to just relax, and sometimes I have to force her to sit down.
The love and caring she shows for others is boundless. I love cuddling with her and watching TV. Every once in a while, I'll look over and see tears running down her face. She thinks I love seeing her cry so I can make fun of her, but she's wrong. I love seeing how sensitive and sweet she is. She's such a loving and caring person, it will be impossible for her not to be the perfect mother. I know that Erin will be able to instill all of her many virtue into our child."
Erin: "Doug is a wonderful husband. He's incredibly supportive, and never hesitates to show affection for the people he cares about. He expresses his love so easily, and it's not unusual for him to send me a random text while I'm at work, reminding me how happy he is that we're together. There's never been a day that I felt any doubt that he loves me, and I trust him completely.
He's laid back, but works very hard to be a good provider. Doug's sense of humor is one of the things I love most about him. We laugh and have fun all the time, and he helps me to never take myself too seriously. We cook dinners together, and sometimes, he grabs my hand and we slow dance in the kitchen, even with no music on. I know Doug can't wait to be a father, and I know he'll be the kind of dad who will give hugs, and support and unconditional love to our baby."
We hope you will consider us as adoptive parents for your baby. We recognize the sacrifice you're making and promise that we will love and cherish him or her with all our hearts, and never take for granted the gift we were given. We're working with The Children's Home of Pittsburgh, which is a licensed adoption agency, with a counselor on-call 24-hours a day. They can be reached at 1-800-961-7704 or http://www.childrenshomepgh.org/. You can also contact us directly at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . We'd love to hear from you to answer any questions you might have! Our thoughts and prayers are with you.
Sincerely,
Doug & Erin
