Hello, we are Rob and Carissa. Thank you for taking the time to read our story and learning more about us as prospective parents.
Our story began in 2007 when we both met at our former place of employment, a nursing facility. Rob was the lead cook and Carissa was a nurse’s aide. We had noticed each other for quite some time but did not talk much until, by chance, got on the topic of our families and found out that we had several friends in common. After that, we started talking every day that we worked together. As time passed, we realized that we had a lot of the same interests and hobbies, such as the love for animals, racing, family, and being outdoors hiking, camping, kayaking, and going to the beach. Rob finally got up the courage to ask Carissa out to dinner and was very excited when she said, “yes!” After that date we were inseparable, and we got engaged just eight months later. On August 15, 2009, we were married at an outdoor beach ceremony at Carissa’s grandmothers’ home on the hottest day of the summer.
It was very clear shortly after we got married that we wanted to have kids and started trying for our family. However, after five years of trying, failed fertility treatments, and several miscarriages, it was evident that having our own biological children was not going to happen. After several conversations and researching adoption, we knew that adoption was how we wanted to start our family. We are very excited to be on this journey and cannot wait to welcome a beautiful child into our lives.
As a little boy, I was always busy and had to be doing something with my hands. I kept my parents very busy, chasing after me from sun up to sun down. As I grew up, I was exactly the same. I always had to be doing something with my hands to keep myself busy. I loved working on cars with my dad and built my own race car that I would race at local dirt tracks on Fridays and Saturdays.
After high school, I worked in healthcare as a cook, but eventually I changed careers and began to work in construction. I really enjoy my job. It keeps me busy all day long and working hard which I greatly enjoy!
When I am home, I enjoy working on various projects such as fixing small engines, and working outside. Working outdoors is something that I have enjoyed since I was small whether it’s yard work, helping Carissa with the gardens, snow removal, or building small projects for our home. My hope is that I will be able to pass my hard-working attitude onto a child. I want to be able to teach the child how to work with their hands and teach him or her new things every day.
Rob’s Favorite Hobbies:
I am the second child of six and the oldest girl in my family. My mother often referred to me as “a little mother,” as I was always trying to help care for my siblings. I guess you could say that this is where my love for healthcare started! I knew at a very young age that I wanted to work in healthcare and care for patients in some form. Once I got to college, I decided I wanted to become a medical assistant. I worked very hard to finish my degree, graduating in 2014 with high honors and 3.96 GPA.
I now work as a Care Team Coordinator, and care for patients dealing with chronic illness, mental health, and most recently, opioid addiction. I have also been using my medical training and skills to work at the COVID drive-thru vaccination clinics put on by the local hospital in my area. I take great pride in all my work, and the dedication I’ve put in over the years to get me where I am today. This is something I hope to instill in a child. I want to show them that if they work hard, anything is possible!
When I am not working with patients, I greatly enjoy spending time outdoors with Rob and the rest of my family, especially my nieces and nephews. When I am with the kids, there is so much love and excitement that I’m always smiling! I know that as soon as we adopt, that same love and excitement will be a mainstay in our home.
My Favorite Hobbies:
We live in a two-bedroom home with a large living room and kitchen. While our home isn’t large, it’s very cozy and perfect for a small family where we can all spend time together making memories and laughing. Our favorite room in our home is our living room where we can watch movies together, entertain guests, and spend time with our dogs and cats. The living room walls are also decorated with photos of our family, wedding, friends, and our pets along with a farmhouse décor. Our spare bedroom is just waiting for a little one. It’s the perfect size for a child to have as both their bedroom and play area.
Our neighborhood is pretty small. There are only four other homes on the street. Everyone around is really friendly. We watch out for one another, have bonfires together and deliver Christmas cookies to each other during the holidays. We are the last home on the road, right next to a beautiful pine forest that is owned by the State of Michigan. The forest is filled with many different hiking trails that Carissa runs on, and where we take the dogs and goats for walks on during the warmer months. The trails also take us to local lakes and campgrounds near our home.
The community we live in is small, but very beautiful. There are lots of parks and lakes here, and we’re just 25 minutes away from a larger city with museums, theaters, many different kinds of restaurants, and so many different festivals year-round.
When they say family is everything, they are one hundred percent correct. We both come from large families. Rob is the youngest of five children, while Carissa is the second child of six. Everyone, from our parents to our siblings to our nieces and nephews, is excited for us to adopt, especially our nieces and nephews! They can’t wait to have another cousin to play with.
Rob’s parents and siblings all live about 25 minutes, away except for his oldest sister who lives in Florida. His family always celebrates the holidays together. Thanksgiving is spent at our home every year, and Christmas Eve is spent at his parents’ house wearing our ugly Christmas sweaters. For the summer holidays, Rob’s father will have a cookout and invite family and friends over to try his latest grilling masterpiece. Rob’s parents look forward to the adoption because this child will be their youngest grandchild to love and spoil!
Carissa’s parents, and most of her siblings, live about 35 minutes away, except for two of her brothers who live a bit further away. Despite the distance, texting and video messaging keeps us all in touch. Carissa loves watching her two-year-old nephew play with his trucks while talking with her brother! She also has several nieces and nephews here in Michigan, with more on the way. Holidays and special family events are far from quiet with all the adult’s chit-chatting and chasing the nieces and nephews around while everyone is laughing. Carissa’s family is excited about the adoption. They are looking forward to adding another child to the family to play with during family get togethers and all of the giggling and extra hugs.
We greatly enjoy spending time together and especially outdoors enjoying the day. During the warmer months we love to load up our camper and take the dogs camping with us. There is nothing better than sitting around a bonfire making smores, relaxing, and enjoying the great outdoors. When the weather is nice, we float down local rivers in our kayaks, spend the day at the beach, or explore nearby hiking trails. During the cold months, we head out to local lakes to go ice-fishing. We greatly look forward to the day that we are able to take a child camping, fishing, hiking, and to enjoy the great outdoors.
We also enjoy cooking and baking during the colder months. Carissa loves to try new crockpot recipes and baking Christmas cookies for family, friends, and coworkers. She looks forward to the day that she has a little one that can sit at the kitchen table with her decorating Christmas cookies, while also sneaking in bites of the cookies and licks of the homemade frosting!
Our other love is our animals. Our three dogs pretty much go everywhere with us, and our two cats are great companions. They all have such unique funny personalities that we cannot help but love every minute we get to spend with them. Our two goats and two ducks live in a barn that was built by Robs’ grandfather many years ago. The goats think they are lap puppies and will follow us around until we sit down and they are able to sit on our lap! All the animals are great with our nieces and nephews, and we know they’ll love the child that we adopt!
Thank you for taking the time to read our story. We wish you all the best during this journey of deciding what is best for you and your baby. We look forward to the day that we are able to bring a baby home to love and nurture and help grow.
We want you to know that if you choose us as your child’s adoptive parents, we will do everything in our power every day to make sure that the child is loved, cared for, nurtured, accepted and educated. We imagine that you have several difficult decisions to make and we want you to know that we will respect any level of openness that you choose to have with us. Adoption will always be talked about openly and positively in our home. We will make sure from the very beginning to tell your child how much you loved them and the sacrifice you made on their behalf. We’d also be happy to send pictures to keep you updated on your child’s progress.
We greatly look forward to the day that we are able to become parents. If you choose us as your child’s adoptive parents, we will forever be grateful for you trusting us to raise your beautiful child.
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