Hunter adores every part of Nicole, but he particularly loves how steadfast she is. If she’s ever lost her temper, he can’t remember when. She is kind to everyone she meets, and immediately won over his family the second she walked through the door with her warmth and earnestness. Hunter deeply respects her commitment to her family, and was never more proud of her than when we helped care for her mother through a fight with cancer. She’s his rock.

While dating, Nicole knew that Hunter was the one by how thoughtfully he took care of her elderly 18 year old grumpy cat while she was recovering from a surgery. Hunter’s huge heart and passion is what Nicole fell in love with. She looks up to and respects his commitment to doing the right thing and standing up for others in his everyday life and through his work as a journalist. She knows he will be an amazing father, passionately cooking healthy meals, and being present for every moment. Hunter is Nicole’s sounding board and gentle voice nudging her in the right direction when she is unsure.

Our family traditions mostly take place during the winter holidays. We wait to put up Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving, but make it a bit of a party when we do, with music, cookies, and lots of joy. When we’re with Nicole’s family, we make gumbo on Christmas Eve, get ice cream and look at the lights, and have sausage and biscuits with strawberry jam on Christmas Day. Hunter’s family makes Mexican food on Christmas Eve, and Italian on Christmas Day, and Thanksgiving involves watching football while deep frying turkey. In both families, Christmas Eve is new PJs day. Christmas is very important to us: whenever we travel, we always get an ornament from wherever we go for our Christmas tree.

Every other year, Hunter’s extended family gets together at the river for an informal family reunion where we relax, play games, listen to live music, and wander through the local antique shops and weekend market. For Mother’s Day Nicole and her sisters like to treat their mom to a fun English high tea brunch. Additionally, every week on either Sunday or Saturday morning, Hunter and Nicole make breakfast and watch Tottenham Hotspur’s Premier League games, using halftime to talk about the upcoming week and have a productive start to the weekend.

Nicole is close with her two sisters that were both adopted from China. All three girls were in band and swimming in high school and went to the same university. As adults they prioritize going on sister vacations and supporting each other whenever possible. Recently, Nicole and her sister Gabby drove 17 hours round trip to ensure they were there in person to support Cecily’s graduation from Pharmacy school. In Nicole’s extended family there are also two cousins adopted through the Texas Foster Care system that are of bi-racial background. Through both of these adoption situations the extended family has become more aware of how to support transracial adoptions.

We’re very blessed that both of our families live in the same state and are very supportive of us adopting a child of any race and ability. Every single person in our extended family is truly excited for this next step in our lives, especially the grandparents! Traditionally, for the holidays, Nicole’s family does gumbo, lots of cookies, and Christmas morning biscuits with sausage. Hunter’s family does Christmas the exact same way every time: Mexican food on Christmas Eve, Italian on Christmas Day.

Nicole’s parents and two sisters live 30 minutes away and we enjoy driving over for the day to spend holidays and birthdays with them. Her family is particularly familiar with adoption: both of her sisters are adopted from China and she has two cousins that were adopted through the foster care system. Nicole’s side of the family has this strange calming effect, no matter how crazy any holiday planning or life event can get, her parents are always steady.

Hunter’s parents live a little over three hours away by car. We try to make it out there as much as possible. When the whole family does gather it’s quite a crowd: three brothers, three sisters, a sister’s husband, a niece, a nephew, and eight dogs. Hunters’ family are passionate and fierce advocates: they can get excitable, but you can feel their love in how overjoyed they get about things. We’re particularly excited to bring another kid into the family to play and grow up together.

We live in a large, multicultural Austin, Texas suburb within walking distance from an elementary school, multiple playgrounds, and a neighborhood pool. Our HOA is one of the best in the state in terms of giving back to the community, they’re always setting up events for kids to hang out together in a safe environment. We live in a solid school district that provides nearly every extracurricular under the sun for kids of all ages. The district is also blessed with tons of kid-friendly amenities, like parks, museums, and events at the local library. Our neighborhood community offers lots of outdoor trails, lakes, and ponds: you can often find wild rabbits jumping around our front yard.

We’ve lived in a three-bedroom, two bathroom house with plenty of room to grow alongside our cats, Memphis and Matilda, for around five years. One of our favorite spots in the house is our shaded back patio and our backyard. We love relaxing outside in the cool after a long day. Both Hunter and Nicole currently work from home, and have flexibility during the day. We try to host either friends or family once every other month, and we love cooking a big meal for everyone coming over.

Thanks for taking time out of your day to get to know us a little bit better. The decision ahead of you is not an easy one, it’s one that we, for medical reasons, can never fully comprehend making. No matter what you choose, it will be for the right reasons, even if you don’t choose us. Our hearts, thoughts, and prayers are with you during this time, and always.

Around eight years ago, when we were dating, we faced a similar decision in regards to losing something we both desired. We’ve been planning on adopting since as a safe path to our lifelong dream of becoming parents while also prioritizing Nicole's health. We shed tears and agonized over whether this way was the right way forward for us: it was not an easy call to make. It is, however, the only way forward for us.

When we married six years ago, this path was already determined, but our relationship began years earlier when we met at a Methodist student ministry at Texas Tech University, where we both graduated. We reconnected while working in Austin, and have been inseparable ever since. Over the years, we’ve carved out a beautiful slice of life for ourselves, and count ourselves blessed with strong connections to both of our families.

Nicole’s favorite quote sums up our attitude towards family: “Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind.”

Our promise to you is that you are included in that statement. We strongly believe that being open and honest with an adoptive child is the only reasonable path forward, and we’ve seen the success Nicole’s parents have had with her two adopted sisters as a proof of concept for the strategy. As the birth mother, you’ll never be disconnected from your child, regular texts, pictures, emails, annual visits, are all on the table for us. It takes a village to raise a child, and the more loving adults your child has a relationship with, the better. Our parents taught us selflessness, hard work, and unconditional love, all values that we hold dear and deeply wish to pass on to others.

Our home is calm, but devoted; passionate, but cozy. Nicole’s career alongside her natural demeanor has given her the tools to be a perfect mom, patient and devoted. Hunter’s work as a journalist has blessed him with both an unwavering sense of integrity as well as a deep appreciation for the arts. Our mornings are filled with the smell of coffee and the squeaks of our little boy cat, Memphis, as he begs for a five minute advance on his breakfast. Our evenings are crammed with laughter, cheesy movies, and whatever Tex-Mex recipe Hunter found and is attempting to cook that day.

No matter what or who you choose, we want you to know that we recognize your bravery in considering adoption, and us. This can't be an easy sacrifice to consider, and we want to reassure you that if we’re chosen, we will provide love, stability, and open communication for you and your child.

With all the love we have,

Hunter & Nicole