Our Story

Hi! We are Matt and Erika and we are so excited to expand our family through adoption. Right now it's just us and our dog Lola, but we have been hoping and praying to become parents for more than five years. We're not exactly sure what our family is going to look like, or how we're going to get there, but we are confident and hopeful that God is at work in our lives and will bring us the children we've been longing for all of these years.

 We got married in 2007 and are thankful that our love has continued to grow since then. We are a couple that truly loves being together: we carpool to and from work every day, eat lunch together during our breaks, and go home to enjoy our home, garden, and dog together. We love traveling, particularly to Mexico, the beach, and beaches in Mexico! 

  
We own our home in a small town near Athens, Georgia. We love working in the yard, gardening, and working on projects in our house.

If it's warmer than 60 degrees, you will most likely find us outside in the yard, taking a walk in our small neighborhood, or hiking with Lola at our neighborhood park.

 We live in a small, racially diverse neighborhood and are thankful for the friendships we've cultivated with many of our neighbors. We love living a short walk from a small downtown area with shops, restaurants, and a library, and frequently find ourselves exploring our little town on foot.

We are very thankful to live near both of our extended families. Matt has many family members living in the Athens area that we see on a weekly basis. Erika's family lives in the Augusta area, about two hours away, and we are happy to have siblings in a variety of fun towns across Georgia and North Carolina. We currently have one nephew and one niece and can't WAIT to add our own kids into the mix!

We both graduated from the University of Georgia in 2005. Matt obtained a degree in Consumer Economics, and has made a career in banking, where he works reviewing loans. He has worked with his current company for almost six years. Erika earned degrees in Psychology and Criminal Justice. After working for a local school district as an early literacy interventionist for pre-k students for about five years, she recently began working as a program administrator at a large church in Athens. We are thankful to work in buildings directly across the street from one another, enabling us to spend our lunch breaks together eating, taking walks, and playing Foosball and ping pong!

We have been attending and serving in a close-knit church in Athens since 2007. Erika sings on the worship team, Matt serves as the head of the Finance team, and together we enjoy volunteering in the nursery once a month. We also attend small groups and have served on the church's leadership team. Our church family is very important to us, and we love knowing that we are part of a group of people deeply committed to raising their children to know the love of Jesus. Our church is small but racially and economically diverse and includes families grown through adoption. Our own children will be eagerly welcomed in by dozens of families who have been praying for them for years already.

We began trying to start a family in late 2008. By early 2010 we had been diagnosed with several severe fertility issues. We have tried a variety of infertility treatments and surgeries, but have not yet been blessed with a pregnancy. In late 2011 we felt God leading us to pursue adoption, and we have been excitedly looking for the right adoption opportunity since then. Our families are extremely supportive of our desire to adopt and are eager to welcome a child of any size, shape, or color into our family. We have no preference regarding race or gender and are open to considering a variety of medical issues as well. We would prefer an open adoption and plan to raise our child with the love of as many people --relatives via adoption or biology, friends, neighbors, and community members -- as we possibly can. 

Our hearts and our home are ready to bring home the newest addition to our family at any time. The nursery has been empty for far too long, and while Lola will not be happy to have to move her toys and bones to the guest bedroom, she will be excited to have a new brother or sister to share her home with. We hope and pray that if you know of anyone looking to place their child with a loving adoptive family you will keep us in mind. We can be reached at mattanderikaadopt AT gmail DOT com.