Adam & Liesl In Ohio

We started dating in college 10 years ago. We have been married for 5 years and have wanted children since we got married.

At the start of our relationship, we discovered we had applied to the same program to study abroad in Europe. We lept at the chance to travel together, and our first six months as a couple were spent in Luxembourg. Our time abroad began a love for travel and adventure together that continues today. Our goal is to visit one new place a year. To experience new cultures, new food and new traditions is one of our favorite things, and we can't wait to show our children the world.

Perhaps our taste for travel comes from our own family traditions. Our extended family has a lake house in Wisconsin where the beautiful Northwoods gives us the chance to swim, kayak, water ski, catch frogs and fish. We also love visiting warm beaches with our immediate families or Adam’s grandparents in New Orleans.

Liesl owns her own private practice as a life and career coach, helping people overcome burnout and achieve what they previously thought impossible. Adam works in marketing for Dun & Bradstreet, helping companies reach and engage their next customers. We both currently work from home and look forward to spending time with our little ones throughout the day too. We can’t wait to welcome a new soul into our family, and to help them find their own adventures.

When we bought our new home, we wanted to be within walking distance of a "local hub." Bexley, Ohio is a suburb of Columbus and offers an adorable Main Street where we can visit a local theater, get a bite on an outdoor patio or tune-in to the jazz lounge. We are surrounded by neighbors representing both racial and religious diversity.

Recently remodeled, the home of our future children has a fenced back yard, and our baby will have their own nursery. A farmhouse sink and full bathtub make for comfortable bathing. One feature we've grown to admire is the warmth and crackle of the natural, wood-burning fireplace (carefully maintained, and now baby-proofed!). We think it will be a spectacle and source of peace for the baby, just as it is for us, especially around Christmastime.

Our home has already hosted some epic water fights and hide-and-go-seek with the children of our neighbors nextdoor. We enjoy a park at the end of our block and love to explore our neighborhood on our vintage tandem bicycle. Many children in the neighborhood walk and ride bikes to school.

Our families are a big part of our lives. We both grew up in the central Midwest. Liesl is from a small town just outside of Indianapolis, Indiana and Adam mostly grew up in Columbus, Ohio. We both are the oldest of our siblings. Adam is one of four and Liesl is one of three. We grew up looking after the younger ones, nurturing our siblings directly and offering eldest-kid advice to our parents.

Liesl's family is very tight-knit. Her parents are high school sweethearts and are still going strong after 35 years together. She grew up just a few minutes from her grandparents, where the family loved to spend summer days swimming in the pool and tobogganing behind the tractor in the winter. Her hometown of Zionsville is special complete with a brick-paved Main Street, a favorite breakfast spot called Rosie's (they have the best quiche!) and chock-full of beautiful traditions, especially around the holidays!

Adam's extended family is very close too, even if they are not nearby. His mom is from New Orleans and dad from Wisconsin, so we have a very north-south blend of family traditions. We're able to spend quality time during trips to the lake or the beach, and have amazing relationships with his cousins, three of which are adopted. Whether it's music festivals, joining a parade, or playing bridge, family has opened our eyes to new horizons. Our future kiddo will be the first grandbaby in our family, loved not only by us and our siblings, but by four elated grandparents!

We believe everyone is empowered to create a life they love, and we fill our days with fun, loving relationships. We’re curious to try new things, and this openness has led Liesl to starting her own business, Adam’s car projects and our choice to adopt. We can’t wait to cheer on our children to create lives they love too.

One of our favorite activities is exploring town on our tandem bicycle, a vintage Schwinn Twinn that’s from Liesl’s dad. We ride it everywhere. One Thanksgiving we biked across Columbus for dinner and a sleepover. We’re also fixing-up Adam’s grandma’s 1983 Riviera convertible - a classy neighborhood cruiser!

We recently added a bunny named Gus to our family! Gus has been so fun - he loves to cuddle and has been very gentle with our friends' kiddos. He's the cutest, most curious bunny! We even got him a harness and he loves to be outside adventuring. We're excited that our kids will get to grow up with a caring pet.

We also love spending time with our friends both in Columbus and afar. Whether it’s skiing in the mountains or floating in the pool, we prioritize being with those we love. We consider our friends to be family, and know they are so thrilled to welcome our future kids!

We have always been open to adoption. Liesl’s been open about her health history with hormone challenges, and Adam has always felt it’s an extremely beautiful way to grow a family.

We are thrilled that adoption offers us the chance to grow our family. We believe we have such love to give, such experiences to offer, and such safety for a child to grow into their own. We also know we have much to learn from the experience of being parents.