Shannon and Jerry

Hi!  We are Shannon, Jerry and Kate from Colorado.  We are honored that you are considering our hearts and home for your precious child.

We cannot imagine the difficulty of the decisions you have had to make over the past weeks and months and the one you are now facing.  We have so much respect for you and hope you will find comfort in knowing that your child will be loved unconditionally every day of their life if they find a home with us.

We deeply value being parents and have made the following commitments to our daughter Kate (adopted) and her future sibling.

Our Commitment to Our Children

• We will love them unconditionally every day.
• We will teach them how much their birth parents love them and how selfless and courageous they are.
• We will teach them how much God loves and cherishes them.
• We will teach them the importance of honesty, integrity and hard work.
• We will give them every opportunity to pursue a college education.
• We will cherish them for who they are.
• We will show them forgiveness and grace.
• We will listen to their hearts and encourage them through all of life.
• We will give them love, grace, support, guidance, a full childhood, and endless hugs.

It’s fun to know we have a history that we were unaware of until we started dating.  One evening, after we were engaged, we were looking through some of Shannon’s childhood photo albums.  Jerry pointed at a photo and said, “That’s me, and that’s my mom, and my brother.”  Apparently, we had gone to Vacation Bible School together as kids at the church that Shannon’s grandparents and Jerry’s parents attended.  We went to the same summer camp, although not at the same time, and even attended the same high school briefly.  Even with all that, we didn’t start dating until after college.  Jerry moved to Nebraska to attend dental school when we bumped into each other at church.  We started dating and knew it was forever.

We married after a year and half of dating and have been inseparable ever since.  We had been married 12 years when we were finally ready to start a family.  Then, among other things, we learned that Shannon would be unable to carry a child to term.  After exploring our options, we decided adoption was right for us.  We are so glad we did.  We adopted our sweet daughter Kate in 2013 and we couldn’t be more grateful to God and her birth family for this precious gift.  Now we would love to welcome another child into our family so that our children can experience the gift of a sibling in each other…someone with whom they can share their dreams, their fears, and life’s best moments.   We picture our children giggling and playing together; and we dream of someday gathering regularly with our children and grandchildren.

Although we started a family later than most, we see those years together as a blessing.  We have a long-standing, stable and loving marriage.  We love our family, and spend lots of time together hiking, biking, 4-wheeling, camping, playing games, sharing meals together, going to the park, zoo, pool, etc.  We have so much love to give and can’t wait to share it with another child.

Favorite Family Activities:

• Hiking
• Four-Wheeling
• Camping
• Walking
• Family traditions
• The zoo
• Family outings
• Hanging out with Friends

About Jerry, by Shannon

Jerry is a man of integrity, hardworking, yet easy going and always ready to get outside and have fun with family and friends.  He loves to hike, bike, four-wheel, walk, play with Kate, play the guitar, play sports, and spend time as a family.

I have been in love with Jerry for over 20 years and I fall deeper in love with him every year.  I can’t imagine spending my life or raising a family with anyone else.  Nothing warms my heart more than to watch him play with our daughter, Kate.  He can make her laugh like no one else can.  I look forward to seeing our new little one join in the fun.

Jerry is an orthodontist and professor at a nearby university.  He loves the fact that he and the doctors he trains can make a difference in the lives of their patients by boosting their confidence and giving them a reason to smile.

What I Love about Jerry, by Shannon

• Not only is he smart, he is wise
• His family is a priority
• He stays calm in all circumstances
• He is easy going and easy to get along with
• He always does the right thing
• He loves spending time outdoors as much as I do
• He provides financial and emotional stability
• He loves God and his family
• He is completely trustworthy

About Shannon, by Jerry

Shannon is a beautiful, intelligent and loving wife and mother.  She is affectionate and fun loving and somehow manages to keep our family humming along while minimizing the chaos of daily life.  Shannon also has a knack for bringing out the best in people.

Her favorite things in life are her family, her friends, being outdoors, her church, and good food.  She loves to hike, walk, go on outings like the zoo, the park or the lake, play games, do puzzles, work out, and watch movies.  She deeply loves Kate and helps her to explore a wide variety of experiences in life and gives her every opportunity to uncover what she loves the most. As parents we have learned that, when kids get upset, they may not know why they are upset or they may not be able to explain it.  I love how, when Kate is upset, Shannon always stops to listen and help Kate figure out what is wrong and how to make it right again.

Shannon is a market analyst by trade.  She loves to make sense out of all types of information and help businesses use it to make better decisions.  Currently she is taking time off work to be a mom.  Although her family is her first priority, she still finds time to work on a graduate program in statistics.

What I love about Shannon, by Jerry

• She is a good role model
• She is intelligent
• She is emotionally, physically and mentally strong
• She is beautiful, inside and out
• She seeks for balance in life
• She loves to learn
• She gets involved
• She has a deep spirituality
• She is compassionate
• She loves to have fun

Kate is full of life.  She is genuine, sweet, outgoing, and kind.  Her favorite things are dancing, play dates, playing piano, singing, playing dolls, and playing with her daddy.  She is curious and loves to explore; and she loves to plan fun activities like puppet shows and dance parties for the family.  I can’t even begin to describe how excited she is to have a little brother or sister.  Kate has always wanted a sibling.  Now she is full of hope and anticipation that her dream may become a reality.  She can’t wait to play with them and teach them all that she can.

What We Love about Kate

• She is a fashionista
• Her sense of adventure
• She asks the best questions…like “Where did God live before he made heaven?”
• She is genuine
• She is kind and compassionate
• She is so much fun!

Our Families

Family is about loving each other no matter what.  It’s a safe place where each person is cherished as unique and encouraged to discover and develop who they are.  Family is about sharing and creating the moments in life that matter most.  And although life is known for bringing challenges, family is the immovable foundation that gets you through it.

We are blessed with family that is almost as excited as we are to welcome baby number two.

Shannon lost her biological parents when she was a child, but was so blessed to be adopted by her grandparents.  Shannon has a biological brother, Rod, and, through her adoption, three additional siblings, Melanie, Mark and Darlene.  She is also blessed with a huge extended family of cousins, aunts and uncles whom we enjoy visiting about once per year.

Jerry grew up in Arizona with his parents and two brothers, John and Byron.  He also has wonderful aunts, uncles and cousins sprinkled around the southwest whom we enjoy visiting as often as we can.  Kate adores her grandparents and uncles, and they are so excited to welcome another child into the family.

Although our families don’t live near us, we talk with them weekly and enjoy visits as often as we can.  We can’t wait to make the call to tell them our baby is one the way.

Our Home and Community

When we settled into our neighborhood in 2010, we both said, “what a perfect place to raise a family.”  With a state park at the end of our street, we enjoy the bike paths, parks, beach, pool, etc.; and our school district is one of the best in the country.  Our home has all that we dreamed for: four bedrooms, four baths, a wonderful family room where we spend many hours together, a great yard, and a playground right behind our house.  We even have a playroom with lots of toys and an enclosed trampoline for plenty of wintertime fun.  We have begun to build many memories here and have visions of future slumber parties, movie nights, birthday parties and holiday gatherings.

Family Traditions

• Annual trip to southwest Colorado…so beautiful
• Decorating the tree as a family while listening to Christmas music
• The zoo lights, a carriage ride, and the Christmas parade at the mall
• Camping on our beautiful mountain property
• Thanksgiving (and many other activities) spent with Kate’s godparents
• Annual Easter brunch with friends
• Regular trips to Arizona and California to visit family and friends

In Closing

Thank you so much for learning about our family.  We hope this has provided a little glimpse into who we are and that it will help you as you make this difficult decision.  Should you choose us to love and care for your child, we promise a full life, stability, grace, and unconditional love and acceptance.  We are all so excited to open our hearts and home to our newest family member.