The idea of adoption came easily for me. I have long felt that there were plenty of children in the world already, and I never felt the need to add more - not that I wouldn't love to have a child conceived with Carin. Now, more than ever, I understand the gift of life that so many take for granted.

You also understand the gift, which is why you have decided to
share it with others rather than throw it away. Whether you choose us or someone else, you will always know the gratitude of the adopting parents.

Carin and I met in junior college in 1991 and dated for four years before deciding to marry. In 1996, we married in a small church in the foothills with only our closest friends and family.

I had started work as a technical writer, and Carin worked while studying for her master's degree in Psychology.

In 1999, we bought our house based on my income only, so that Carin would be able to stay home with the children after she became pregnant. Unfortunately, getting pregnant wasn't as easy as we thought it would be.

In 2002, we went to a fertility specialist, who determined that we are unlikely to get pregnant naturally, so we tried in vitro fertilization, which didn't turn out as well as we had hoped.

Last year, we started attending a great adoption support group and began gathering facts, as well as getting used to the idea of adoption.

I have always felt that adopting a child would be no different than having one naturally, except that he or she wouldn't carry our genes.

While we are actively looking to adopt, we have not given up on conceiving naturally. Even if we had a child naturally, I still would like to adopt a child.