Hey there from Virginia! We are Dan and Elisabeth. Elisabeth likes to make Dan laugh by being silly and doing the unexpected. Dan is the thinker in the family, enjoying crossword puzzles and books, but always makes sure there are plans for us on the calendar like Farmer’s Markets, weekends away, beach days, museums and zoos. We love to do everything together, but especially travel near and far and spend time with our friends and family at church. We're hoping to get to share with you now and in the future at your comfort level.

About Us

While dating 4 years ago, we discussed wanting to be adoptive parents and that desire has grown. We want to share our love for God and each other with a little one, and we recognize that adoption is a wonderful opportunity to do so. When we didn't conceive naturally, we embraced the chance to become adoptive parents, and we have a bubbling excitement for the process! We are blessed to have an incredibly supportive family behind our decision to adopt who are eager to meet the newest member of the family. We hope you enjoy getting to know a little about us and we hope to be able to meet you and learn about you too.

We are always looking forward to the evenings and weekends together spending time doing all sorts of things, like hiking in local parks, eating ice cream or frozen yogurt, catching up on our favorite shows, family dinners, and crossword puzzles. We can see a child with us in the future everywhere: on the trails, first tucked in a carrier and soon running ahead, pointing out the turtles, at the zoo feeding animals, and playing with cousins. We're excited to see how our lives expand with rocking chairs, lullabies, and tooth fairies.

About Elisabeth

As told by Dan: I fell in love with Elisabeth's kindness, charity, and dedication to friends and family instantly. She is a truly remarkable and amazing woman. She is caring and I know she will always put our children and family first. Her selflessness is most exemplified as a mom and in her charity and mission work. It is because of her that I became involved with a homeless shelter. She is fun-loving and enjoys going for walks, baking, volunteering at our church, and relaxing in the hammock on our back deck.

Elisabeth is a loving daughter who invites her parents over weekly, and a loving mom who checks in on her two grown children regularly. She is also a loving friend who will drop everything to help one in need (and who is the all-time best gift giver!). She helps keep me focused on different things that we need to get done and keeps us on a timeline for each. She is always thinking of us and our present and future. I am confident that her selflessness combined with her joy for life and experience raising her own children will make her a wonderful mother for our child.

"I love being a mother. It's my favorite role ever! I'm looking forward to singing lullabies, playing peek-a-boo, reading books, snuggling, teaching them to cook, learning more about the world through their questions and viewing the wonder of the world through their little eyes. I love the quiet moments seeing them sleep, and the energy they have to keep playing no matter what."

About Dan

According to Elisabeth: Dan loves to check in on his 5 sisters and 2 brothers, keep our yard neat, plant and water flowers (because he knows how much I love them), play video games, and go fishing with his brother and cousins. He also likes to attend family dinners on Sundays and plan date nights. He's a great uncle (with 18 nieces and nephews and probably more on the way) who enjoys playing games, sledding, catching snakes, and using his immense patience to entertain the littlest ones. Seeing Dan with his nieces and nephews was eye-opening to me; I could tell by seeing him look at them how much he loved them and wanted to be a father.

Dan's kindness is what attracted me to him and I fell in love with his desire to serve God, his ability to think through problems, and put my needs and that of our family first. Dan always thinks I'm beautiful and special, and knowing that gives me faith that he will be a father that draws the best out of our children every day.

"I cannot wait to be a dad. I want to rock them to sleep while singing to them, teach them how to ride a bike, see them take their first step, carry them on my shoulders, enjoy my favorite foods with them, teach them about God, and be there for them when they laugh, cry, love, and learn."

Our Family

From Elisabeth's previous marriage, we have two adult children. Emma is 22 and recently married. She's smart and sassy, loves fishing, cooking, and Wawa. Ryan is 26, a computer whiz who loves video games, hiking with his girlfriend, and his cats.

Dan's family is from upstate New York. His extended family lives in many states. Distance is just a word for them as weddings and/or family reunions happen multiple times per year and bring them all together from near and far. I love that they are always there for each other, sending cards on special occasions, calling with updates, offering support and prayers, and comical updates in the cherished family newsletter.

Elisabeth grew up in Massachusetts. Her parents live a mile away and attend the same church with us. Her 2 brothers and sister live in Massachusetts, Texas, and California, but always look forward to coming to our home base in Virginia for Thanksgiving and summer vacations.

We can't say enough about how important family is to us! We LOVE to see our family at church on Sundays, at family dinner on Sunday nights, over 4th of July in NY, at Thanksgiving in VA, and Christmas in NY. We look forward to our trips to see them and their trips to see us and we always have a guest room ready for them to stay with us when they come to visit.

Our Home in Southeastern Virginia

We live on a four-family cul-de-sac in a quiet neighborhood within walking distance to an elementary school and middle school. Our house includes a two-car garage which currently doubles as a home gym. We have 5 bedrooms which will allow for playing hide-and-go-seek, building pillow forts, and future sleepovers. We love to sip espresso made by Elisabeth while doing crosswords on the couch, hang out on the hammock on the back deck, and enjoy seeing the flowers and small animals on walks around our neighborhood. We like to have family over for cookouts. We have a trampoline and tire swing for guests, and look forward to watching our own little one jump and swing. Our home is 20 minutes to the beach, and we enjoy spending sunny summer days on the sand together.

Kitty Patrol: Hail the reigning King and Queen of the castle, Frost and Tavia. They'll love you and your sandwiches right out of your hands if you let them. Frost and Tavia were rescued together in 2017. Their favorite tasks are chasing imaginary friends, eating and sleeping.

Our Promise

We can't wait to share the love we have with a little one: to watch them grow, teach them about Jesus, read them books, encourage them to do their best, help them with their science experiments, and cheer at their graduation. We are committed to loving them unconditionally, walking through every stage with them, and being their parents, their confidants, and their friends. We promise to listen to their joys, their fears, and their dreams and will do our best to soar with them in their joy, conquer their fears, and attain their dreams. We are excited to learn more about you and your journey. We will make your devotion to them known through retelling of their adoption story. We are hopeful to be able to update you with pictures, letters, and occasional in-person visits at your leading.

We’d love to talk or answer any of your questions. Please call or text Lifetime at 1.800.923.6784.

In Closing

Thank you for taking the time to learn about us. Through this process, we pray you have peace and strength, and we are filled with hope and love for you and your baby. We're also full of joy and excitement at adding to our family. We know our future holds memories of laughing until our sides hurt, matching pajamas and reading books, campfires and s'mores. In line with your comfort level, we'd like to be able to share these memories with you through letters, emails, texts, and occasional visits.