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David & Tanya are hopeful adoptive parents from Utah waiting to adopt a baby.

If you are pregnant and considering placing your child for adoption, please read the following Dear Birthmother Letter.

Hello from Dave and Tanya Dear Friends,

Hi! Our names are David and Tanya. Thank you for taking this opportunity to learn about us. Because you are reading this letter, we know you are considering a loving home for your precious child. Because we are unable to have children ourselves, we are grateful for adoption and the power it has to bring families together. Adoption is a huge blessing in our lives!

Six years ago we were blessed with the amazing experience of adopting our first child, Emma. Two and a half years ago we were blessed again. This time we adopted a charming little boy named Nathan. What a joy they both are to us! Emma’s and Nathan’s birth parents have a special place in our hearts – not only for the decision they made to place Emma and Nathan in our family, but also because of who they are. We are still often in touch with both of their birth mothers through e-mail. We love to hear how they are doing and eagerly anticipate their reactions to new pictures and news about Emma and Nathan respectively. Emma’s and Nathan’s birth fathers were also involved in the adoption process. We will treasure the friendships we have with these sweet and brave young women and young men forever. We have already created another special place in our hearts for you as we think about and pray for the birth parents of our third child.

Here is a little bit about us. We met while we were attending college when we attended a birthday party for a mutual friend. Dave always claims that when he met me it was “love at first sight.” Over the next 4 months we spent a lot of time together, going to college activities, spending time on dates, and going on lots of walks. On the morning Dave asked me to be his bride he picked me up for a picnic breakfast under my favorite tree on the college campus. Following breakfast we climbed the tree to have a good view of the valley. Then he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. We were married a few months later in the Idaho Falls, Idaho LDS temple.

Now, eleven years later, we still enjoy spending time together. We enjoy sharing our hobbies and interests with each other. Dave has taught me to appreciate watching sports, and I have taught him to enjoy reading good books and getting dirty while we are camping or hiking! We are always up for a good movie or outdoor adventure. We also love traveling and seeing new places. Our favorite family vacations include trips to Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho and Illinois. Our membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is important to us. We love the opportunities we have to serve. We especially cherish the time we get to spend as husband and wife when we go out on dates and attend the temple. We value our time together!

A Little About Dave (by Tanya) The best words I can think of to describe my sweetheart are calm, funny, and just plain good. He is a hardworking, tender-hearted and good-natured husband and father. Dave consistently sets an example of love towards others. He has a generous heart which shows in his willingness to give his time and other means to help others. Dave chose a career that allows me to be a stay-at-home mom. He works in software quality for a major health care company and excels at what he does because of his loyalty and his incredible work ethic. He provides well for our little family and has made it possible for us to be completely out of debt other than our mortgage. Dave served a mission for the LDS church in Sao Paulo Brazil. He still speaks fondly of the people from that country.

Dave is a great tenor singer and enjoys participating in our church choir. I love to hear him sing. His favorite hobbies are watching and playing any sport, staying up on the latest technology and watching movies. Dave also enjoys other past-times like playing strategy games and finding ways to improve our home. I love Dave for many things including his desire to have a clean and well taken care of home. Fortunately, Dave is awesome at helping out around the house. He is quite patient with me and I feel so lucky to have him in my life. One of my favorite parts of each day is when Dave gets home from work and Emma asks how his day was at the same time that Nathan runs over with his arms outstretched and clearly says “up.” Dave is so fun to watch with Emma and Nathan. He reads to them, sings to them and teaches them all the ins and outs of his favorite activities. He takes the time to get to know our children and to develop relationships with them. Emma calls Dave her “cuddly daddy” and Nathan just calls him “dada”. Dave is truly precious to watch as a daddy.

A Little about Tanya (by Dave) Tanya always dreamed of marrying a tall, dark, and handsome man; but she ended up with one that is short, bald, ... and handsome. I dreamed of marrying a short, talented, and beautiful girl…and I got exactly what I wanted! How unfair is that!? In a word, Tanya is amazing. She is so dedicated in everything she does. She is extremely devoted as a wife and mother. She is equally committed in all other pursuits that she undertakes. A few years ago Tanya decided to run a 5k, so she ran almost every day in preparation. Since then she has ran two more races and plans on more. I admire her desire to stay physically fit. Tanya brings so much joy into my life. She makes me smile and she makes me laugh. I always look forward to coming home from work so I can be with my favorite people. They brighten my day! I love hearing about Tanya’s daily adventures with the kids. Tanya is creative and is always coming up with the next great activity for Emma, Nathan and her to do together.

Tanya is a fantastic cook and is careful to make sure our meals are “colorful” (she believes a colorful meal is a healthy meal). Tanya also loves to garden and makes great zucchini bread. One of her favorite hobbies is reading, particularly a good John Grisham or Jane Austen novel. And I can’t forget playing the piano! She loves to play the piano and bring music into our home. Tanya also enjoys learning new things. One thing she learned was how to refinish furniture, and now we have 2 great looking dressers and Emma has a beautiful bed that Tanya refinished. I am proud of my sweetheart for the choice she made to leave her career in the marketing industry and be a stay-at-home mom. She is incredible as a mother. Tanya is always teaching Emma and Nathan the things they need to know to be successful in life. Tanya also knows how to nurture and soothe as only a mother can. When Emma or Nathan has an “owie”, they run to their mommy for the first hugs and kisses. Tanya knows just what to do to fix any ailment. I love her!

Our Family We love being parents to Emma & Nathan. Emma is full of 6-year old spirit and keeps us entertained with her quick mind and playful personality. Emma loves to play with her friends, go to the park, and eat Lucky Charms. She really enjoys princess things and often wants to paint her fingernails, dance and dress up. I love to watch Emma dance with her “prince”, Dave. Emma is a little opinionated and strong willed, but she also has a sweet side that emerges often and can melt our hearts. Emma loves learning. She is currently working on her acting skills as a participant in a local theater production. We love being Emma’s parents.

Nathan gets in 2-year old trouble almost daily. From drawing on walls to getting into Tanya's makeup drawer to devouring snacks right before mealtime he is always going. He is mild tempered though. His smile is endearing. He is quite curious and loves to explore. He is adventurous and we have to watch him closely which usually leads to us holding back giggles. He likes to unroll toilet paper, empty cupboards, eat, throw balls and run fast (in the opposite direction from where we want him to go)! He also likes to be around people. He is such a lovable little guy. We can’t imagine life without him.

We both have great examples of loving, safe environments in the homes where we grew up. We want our own home to be like the ones that our parents created for us and our siblings – places where we could laugh and cry and always know that we were safe and loved. We are indebted to our families for the way they love us and for the way they continue to support us in the decisions we make. We are grateful that our families are both very supportive of adoption.

Dave is the third of seven children. His parents taught their children to be strong and stand up for what they believe. Get-togethers with Dave’s family are relaxed as we kick back and enjoy casual conversation as well as a good game of cards here and there. Dave and his brothers always have to show each other who is who with a competitive game of pool or ping-pong.

I grew up in a small country town in Idaho as the second of five children. I still love going home where the skies are wide open and I can walk for miles without seeing anyone. Growing up like that meant that my siblings and I had to be friends. I’m not sure my parents would use the word “friends” to describe us as children, but I definitely would use the word now. We make frequent trips to visit my family. Our favorite tradition with them is a yearly camping trip – where we get dirty and eat lots of good Dutch oven food.

As a family, we continue to grow and learn everyday. We look forward to adding another member to our family. We can’t wait to take him/her camping, read stories together, go on outings together and all the other things that have become family traditions. We are especially excited to watch Emma and Nathan embrace a little sibling.

We are glad we could share a little about ourselves and hope to get to know you someday too. We would thoroughly enjoy any chance we have to correspond with you through letters, phone calls, pictures, gifts and face-to-face meetings before and after placement if you so desire. We want our children to know that they are loved by their birth parents. Just as we have tried to do with Emma and Nathan, we plan to be open with all of our children about their adoptions and the miracle that brought them to our family.

We pray often for the birth parents who find themselves making this difficult decision. It is our hope that you will find peace and happiness in your life and in the choices that you are making. Thank you for considering adoption.

With Love,
Dave, Tanya, Emma & Nathan

We would love to talk and answer any questions you have. We are currently with LDS Family Services and if you would feel more comfortable contacting our caseworker her name is Kris Carpenter and her phone number is 801-566-2556.