Amanda and Dan

Hello,

We are Dan (32), Amanda (35) and Lillian (3) – a warm, welcoming couple that is thrilled to grow our family through adoption. If you choose us to parent your child, we will ensure that she/he has the best opportunities to achieve his or her full potential. Most importantly, we will love and cherish this child always. Your baby will become the center of our world from the very first moment we meet.

info@centerforfamily.com
800-869-1005

About Our Families

Our families are a big part of our lives. We’re extremely fortunate to have loving, supportive parents, brothers and sisters. We are an interracial family, and we have been loved and accepted as a couple by all generations on both sides. Dan’s parents live a mile away, and they take Lillian to school every day. Amanda’s family lives in Ohio, but they see us on Skype regularly and visit often. Amanda’s parents are both remarried, so Lillian has six grandparents who can’t wait to spoil another grandchild!

Our extended family is not defined by blood. Amanda was raised with aunts, uncles, and cousins that are not her biological relatives, but they are her family in every meaningful sense of the word. Dan and Amanda also have cousins and friends who were adopted. We understand that the most important thing about a family is love, dedication, and acceptance (not DNA).

About Us

We love to laugh. If you visited our home on a random evening, you would probably smell something delicious cooking, hear music in the air, and find us playing outside, dancing, or sharing jokes. In fact, it was laughter that brought us together in the first place.

We met in 2004 at a mutual friend’s house. At the time, we were both in graduate school. Dan noticed Amanda, but was too shy to introduce himself. A few weeks later at a party, Dan made a joke that Amanda overheard. She let out her wonderful laugh, our eyes met, and we’ve been together ever since. We have been in a loving relationship for nine years and married for four. Our relationship is built on love, respect, and laughter. We are best friends.

Two years ago, our family was challenged when we decided to have another child. We didn’t have any trouble getting pregnant, but Amanda had multiple miscarriages. Although we were devastated, we had always talked about adopting a child (even before Lillian came along). We viewed our fertility problems as a sign that we were truly meant to adopt a child.

Our Personalities, Professions & Lifestyle

In some ways, we’re opposites. Dan is always early. Amanda is always late. Dan is task-oriented while Amanda likes to “stop and smell the roses.” But in more important ways, we are alike. We’ve always wanted the same things – a home filled with laughter, a happy marriage and a life surrounded by friends and family. Life isn’t always easy, but we both try to appreciate it everyday. Gratitude is an important part of how we live our lives.

Thankfully, we both have careers that we love. Amanda has a Ph.D. in psychology and works for a non-profit organization that serves children in Chicago’s most underfunded neighborhoods. Dan has a Master’s degree and facilitates an online education program. He loves helping people learn! We both work hard to make the world better a better place. This is a value that we will instill in our children.

However, our most important job is raising our family. We love being parents and we are a dynamic parenting duo! We fill our weekends with fun family activities. We enjoy the Children’s Museum, playing at the many parks in our neighborhood, and spending time at the beach every chance we get!

Our Parenting Style

When Lillian spends time with Daddy, they are usually playing sports, singing, or playing the guitar or piano. When she’s with Mama, she does art projects, reads stories, and plays “make believe.” When we’re all together, we’re downright silly! We make up goofy songs, read stories in funny voices, and have impromptu dance parties.

Our daughter Lillian is a happy girl who cracks jokes from the moment she wakes up, until the moment she falls asleep at night. Lillian loves playing with her friends at Montessori school. Her teachers say that she is one of the class clowns! Lillian is kind, attentive, and caring. Before going to bed, she covers Floyd up with a blanket and sings him lullabies. She will be a fantastic big sister.

Floyd is a very important member of our family. He is incredibly gentle with children. He lets Lillian play with him, snuggle him, and chase him around the backyard. Floyd is a peaceful soul who rarely barks. We love him to pieces and couldn’t ask for a better pet!

Culture & Community

Diversity is very important to us. We value learning about as many cultures as possible. In fact, Amanda has been to 20 countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas! We live in a very diverse suburb north of Chicago. We chose this community because we want our children to have an excellent education that includes learning about world cultures. In addition, our community has lots of fun things for families to do together.

Looking Forward

Although we came to adoption through some pain, we’re happy to be where we are right now. If there’s one thing we know, it’s that our family is not complete without another child. We are really looking forward to loving and nurturing another baby.

As adoptive parents, we are committed to honoring you and the unbreakable bond that exists between you and your child. We believe that you can’t have too many people in your life who love you. We want our child to know of your everlasting love for them. We are happy to be part of an open adoption and would like to talk with you about possible ways to stay connected.

Please contact us by sending us an email at or calling 800-869-1005 or send our counselor Tobi a text message at 847-366-6351. You may also send us an email at info@centerforfamily.comdandy.acfb@gmail.com.
With gratitude and admiration,
Dan and Amanda