Hello there, we’re Garrett and Kim!  We can’t underscore how thankful we are to you for taking the time to read about our journey together, the families we come from, and the family we hope to build.

We met in the late winter of 2020, via online dating in Illinois.  Our first date was at a local sushi restaurant.  Garrett, who had never indulged in sushi, happily obliged, speaking to the spontaneity and openness that our relationship blossomed into.  Despite some cautious eating at first, the date and sushi went well, and it’s a story we now get to laugh about when we go out for our monthly sushi date night.

2020 was an interesting first year together, but it was filled with joy.  The outdoors was our escape, as we both found backpacking, hiking, and camping in local, state, and national parks to be our shared hobby.  We moved back to Michigan, Garrett’s home state, in early 2022, and were engaged not long after, during a trip to Hawai’i.  That day's cover story was “we’re going to the beach to see sea turtles” – Kim didn’t see any, but it was still the best day ever.

After our wedding in 2023, we knew the next step was expanding our family.  Due to a congenital heart condition that Kim was born with, we quickly realized that adoption would be the safest path to this.  It didn’t deter us, as we have always known we wanted to share our love, time, and traditions with a child someday.  Parenting isn’t biology to us; it’s a journey that we cannot wait to start.

When I first met Kim, it was clear that her passion and career ran together.  In her final year of vet school, I was able to see plenty of her in-field action.  Her ability to immediately understand any ailment that befell every animal she encountered and know the perfect remedy without a single word being uttered from her patients to give her a clue, amazed me.  

This love of animals has defined her and our relationship from the time we were dating, through being engaged, and into our life as a married couple.  Whether it is swimming with manatees in Florida, sea turtle watching in Hawai’i, searching for Pika on rocky outcroppings in the Rockies, or camping to watch a grizzly bear or bison through binoculars in Yellowstone, animals are always a focal point.

Kim has been a practicing veterinarian since getting her doctorate in 2021.  To Kim, animals are people.  I realize not everyone thinks that, but there are some teachings from it: understanding non-verbal communication, problem-solving, quick thinking, and most of all, showing empathy.  Kim has refined these skills with her patients over the past few years; she’s more than ready to practice them as a parent.

Fun Facts About Kim:

• Although typically a dog and cat vet, she once had to operate on a chicken – he is still happy and alive.
• She loves the show Fringe so much that she named her first two dogs (Olive and Walter) after the show’s main characters.
• At a foot shorter and 50 lbs lighter than me, she’s still convinced that she can eat more than me – I concede.

When I first met Garrett, it was clear that he had all the skills of a natural-born leader.  After a few years working in engineering service and sales, as well as doing leadership and mentorship volunteer work with his national engineering organization, he moved to an engineering project manager role to utilize the Chemical Engineering degree he’d earned from college, and the leadership he had developed in the field.  It allowed him to be a mentor through kindness, and he encouraged people to hit their goals while displaying a positive attitude.

In his personal life, he calls his family and friends once a week to make sure they do not lose touch and they know he is there for them if needed.  At home, besides going to his weekly volleyball sessions with his coworkers, he finds time to keep the house up-to-date and to cuddle with our pups.  

Garrett will be an amazing dad with his leadership abilities, goal-oriented drive, and patience.  He will strive to make a child happy by filling their life with humor, love, and the value of work and dedication to a goal.

Fun Facts About Garrett:

• He’s an avid bowler – not in the 300 club, but he once bowled a 292 in high school (allegedly).
• Travel is important to him – he’s been to 45 of the 50 states, and I’ve been with him for 15 of them.
• He was once pied in the face at his job because of a bet he made – he’s always willing to have some fun.

We live in a charming two-story home in a Southwest Michigan suburb that we purchased in 2023.  It still has some of its original golden oak warmth from its 1990s origin, but we have spent a good deal of time updating areas that represent what we love most about it.  The kitchen is the focal point of our home, as we’re both lovers of cooking, especially health-focused meals that allow us to experiment with unique foods.  It’s also a wonderful location in the winter, with a fireplace nearby that allows us to bake plenty of cookies while staying warm by the fire.

We wouldn’t be pet lovers without a fenced-in yard to allow our pups space to run around and play.  We cannot wait to have a little one play with them and roll around in the freshly-cut grass while we set the table for an outdoor meal on our patio.

Outside of our home, we live in a friendly neighborhood filled with young families, near the community trail and park system.  During the vibrant life of summer, we both arrive home from work to the sounds of kids running, biking, rollerblading, or the occasional Barbie car being operated on the sidewalks.  We have great relationships with our neighbors, with plenty of stops during our nightly walks to chat.  The area becomes a winter wonderland with plenty of snow, and our neighborhood stays warm with holiday parties and a dedicated sledding hill that is a well-kept secret.

We were both blessed with deep connections to family members that developed while we were growing up.  Specifically, we both realized the value of grandparents, as both the “fun” versions of our parents and as mentors later in life.  Since we’re living in Michigan, and the child’s future grandparents live in Chicago and Milwaukee, we’ve leaned on that mentorship and deep connection to stay close through monthly weekend trips to see them.  With extended family down in Ohio, we have been blessed with the fact that we are now the central meeting point.  We get the joy of hosting Christmas with our family each year, and the first Thanksgiving we hosted was in 2025!

Between visits, we have a scheduled call each week to catch up with everyone, and it typically includes planning our next visit or trip.  Camping and attending the state fair are traditions during the summer, as we all get excited about voting on the many, varied food categories.

We’re so excited for our parents to become grandparents, and we know they are, as well.  When we decided to grow our family through adoption, there was no fear in telling them.  They’ve always been so supportive in our choices, and this was no different.  Kim’s father is already talking about how excited he is to teach a child about woodworking and the art of garage sale hunting, and Garrett’s mom is an ultra planner for all family events.  Easter egg hunts, birthday parties, and Christmas presents are in good hands.

We LOVE the outdoors.  Whether it is hiking, camping, backpacking, or skiing, our happiest moments are when we’re in nature.  On top of this, we both enjoy working out as a way to connect with each other and push ourselves emotionally and physically.  We are so excited to have a little one with whom we get to share these workouts, not only because of the fun these moments will create, but for the good habits this will help form for their future.

Our hobbies are very health-focused, but our traditions are all about letting our hair down.  We’re huge foodies, so all of these traditions will have something delicious for a child to try:

Spring: Travel is the name of the game.  Growing up in the Midwest, it can be a bit grey and dreary this time of year.  Places like Hawai’i, Greece, and Yellowstone allow us a break from the grey while we discover a new place.

Summer: The annual camping trip!  This is our favorite trip of the year, as we snack on fresh cherries and the freshest ice cream at our favorite confectionary.  We’d love to show a child the cows in the field as we eat an ice cream flight on the patio.

Fall: Cider mills, football, pumpkin carving – the list goes on.  The entire season is a tradition for us, as we both agree this is the best time of year.

Winter: Homemade hot chocolate and a weekend of baking cookies at home – it’s a messy, fun weekend that leaves us feeling full both emotionally and physically.

Your time is incredibly valuable, and we are so appreciative that you’ve taken the time to get to know how we were raised, how we met, how we live our life together, and of our desire to start our parenting journey.  We aspire to share this life we’ve built with a child.  Your nurturing contemplation of adoption is likely a difficult one, possibly the hardest you’ve ever considered, so there are some promises we want to make to you and the child.

We promise to teach a child the beauty of nature, the value of friends and family (even the furry ones), the magnificent power of the human body through a healthy lifestyle, and the value of a good education.  We will empower them to be who they are and above all, we will love them.  They will know their adoption story from an early age, and we will continue to share it with them as they grow.

Whether you want an open adoption or not is completely up to you, but we would like to make our intentions clear.  We hope to sit down with you one day and share the feelings of the remarkable growth of the child.