Phil & Brooke
Phil & Brooke
One of our family ‘rules’ is to be kind, always. We are constantly sharing with Duncan examples of this and ways that this rule can be an action. It is also really important to us that Duncan knows his story. So he has been told variations of his story for as long as he can remember. This past fall Duncan started playing soccer a couple times a week with other kids his age.
At one of the afternoon sessions, Brooke started talking with one of the other moms when that mom mentioned her child was adopted. We then shared our adoption stories while the kids played soccer. At this time Phil was also listening to the conversation.
At the end of the soccer session Phil went out on the field where the boys were playing and shared with Duncan that the child he had been playing with (and had also been good buddies with for the past several weeks) was also adopted. The smile that lit up his face was one of the most glorious smiles we have ever seen. He then proceeded to run over to the other child and give him a huge hug. It was the sweetest thing we have ever seen!
Our Story
We met at Calvin College. Phil was in his freshman year and Brooke was in her sophomore year. We developed a great friendship before we started dating and have honestly been best friends ever since. We were engaged in August of 2003 and then married July 17, 2004, after graduating from Calvin. We faced tough challenges in the beginning of our marriage.
Brooke was in a serious car accident in October 2004. Due to injuries sustained in the accident, the first year of marriage was quite a bit different than we had anticipated. Looking back, we both feel truly blessed to have gone through the trials we did. It made our marriage stronger, our faith in God deeper, and our love for each other grew in ways it otherwise wouldn’t have.
Presently, Phil and I are still each other’s best friend and truly enjoy spending time together. I thoroughly love finding ways to make Phil laugh. We love spending time together and with family and friends, enjoying being outside and adventuring to different places around the country.
We made the decision 5 years ago to expand our family and we were blessed with our son, Duncan, in August of 2017. Parenting together has been great, being able to watch each other build that relationship with our son has been a major blessing to us both.
Our Relaxation & Fun
We love to spend time together doing various activities. We love to play games and make up our own activities both inside and outside. A lot of the time you can find us playing with our two Great Danes, Izzy, and Kozmo. Between the dogs and Duncan, we are always busy playing something! We spend a lot of our time in the summer camping throughout the state of Michigan. Camping is definitely our happy place!
During the winter, Phil coaches basketball which involves spending quite a bit of time in the gym. Brooke and Duncan can’t wait for game nights to cheer on the team! We also host team dinners at our house every other week, so the whole family gets involved in the basketball program and Duncan gets a team of big brothers.
We are blessed with a fantastic extended family who we love to spend time with. We love traveling with our extended family, usually taking a couple of different trips every year to various places. Phil’s parents live on a lake, so we spend time out there in the summer with family, swimming and enjoying the boat!
our adoption hopes
Gender: A Boy or A Girl
Ethnicities: Any Race and Ethnicity
Age: Newborn to 3 Years Old
Total of: 1 to 2 Children
a snapshot
of us
We Live In: Caledonia
Our Faith: Christian
Pets: Dog(s)
Kids Already: One Child Now
Child Care Plan: Licensed Child Care Center
Our Family & Friends
Our family is a huge part of our life, and they are very invested and involved in our lives. We are blessed with a great extended family who helps us out whenever we need it. We have very strong, close relationships with our family and friends. They are very important to us and we do as much as we can to make sure they know that. We value the support system they are to us and ultimately they are some of our best friends! We have a small group of friends who we spend time with, many of which are also colleagues.
Our Home & Neighborhood
We live in a small development in the heart of Caledonia, with access to walking trails, and very close proximity to the schools where our child(ren) will attend school. We have a great community and can walk to the local ice cream shop and bakery, as well as being within 1 mile of where both Brooke and Phil teach. Our plan is to stay where we are at, with the previously mentioned proximity to a lot of things, as well as a new Caledonia YMCA being built within 0.5 mile of our house, it is a great place to be located at this time.
Education
As educators ourselves, we feel like education is a key component in a person’s life. Through education it is possible for a person to not only learn subject areas, but more importantly, they learn about themselves. Education is something that no one can take away from you, and we both feel passionate about providing opportunities for children’s futures.
Correction & Discipline
Having a child truly makes you solidify your beliefs about discipline. Duncan has been a gift to us in so many ways.
One of those ways it teaches us to be better humans and be curious about his behavior. That curiosity about his behavior has taught us to recognize the ‘whys’ behind some of the choices he makes. We believe that discipline is not the same as punishment.
Discipline helps children know what the limits are and therefore helps them to make good choices. It also helps set boundaries and get them to understand consequences of bad choices. Children learn to problem solve when they start working through the different choices and possible consequences. And ultimately discipline helps to keep children safe.
This journey of discipline is one that must be done thoughtfully and with grace (for both child and parent). We believe that discipline is best worked on through Love and Logic practices and gentle parenting beliefs.
Our Faith Views
Our faith plays a major role in our lives. We both have a strong faith and spend a lot of time teaching our son about God’s love for him. We attend church (mostly virtually over the past 1.5 years) at Cornerstone Church in Kentwood, and Duncan loves to go to “kid’s church” there and learn more about God. Brooke and Phil both led Young Life while at Calvin, which is a great organization that we have continued to support.
Faith is central to our lives. We have seen God working throughout our entire lives. We went through tougher times at the start of our marriage and God’s work was evident both during and continuing after. God’s grace is a gift that is so very evident in our lives.
Phil's Career
I love that I have a career where I love what I do and feel blessed to wake up every morning and get to go to a job that I find so fulfilling. I love to build relationships with students and make an impact on their lives, especially during a really challenging time of their lives in middle school. I have amazing co-workers who are great friends, so that makes heading into my job each day even that much better.
My plan is to continue working in my current job, and we are on the list already at a local daycare facility to help care for our child.
Brooke's Career
I feel incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to have a job that doesn’t feel like work (very often)! It is truly remarkable to watch my students grow and learn. I enjoy building relationships with the students and their families that go beyond the walls of the classroom.
My plan is to continue working in my current job, and we are on the list already at a local daycare facility to help care for our child.
Phil
My parents are from Wisconsin and New York, and then met at Calvin College and I have lived in the Grand Rapids area for my whole life. We all enjoy spending time with each other attending sporting events, traveling, and camping together. Although we are all busy with our own nuclear families, we take time to make sure we are spending time with our extended family on both sides.
Brooke
Both my parents were born and raised in Michigan. With a german and dutch heritage, good food and family celebrations are important customs that continue today. Before my grandparents passed, on my mom’s side of the family, it was always a tradition to gather as an entire family on Christmas Eve for dinner, church, and gifts (stockings are always the best!).
As my grandparents got older, the tradition evolved to accommodate them and keep them involved. Since they have both passed we continue our Christmas Eve tradition as an immediate family and still celebrate with my mom’s side of the family during December. No matter the tradition, family is always the focal point!
Thank you for taking the time to look over our profile. We truly admire you and your courage for looking into adoption as a plan for your child. Our hope is that you find peace and direction during this journey.
- Child Separation, Attachment, and Bonding
- Child Development, Including Safe Sleep Practices for Children
- Behavioral and Emotional Needs of Adoptive Children
- Impact of Adoption on the Family
Our ideal ongoing relationship with you would ultimately be based on what is best and most healthy for the child and for you. A healthy open relationship is ideal and can look a lot of different ways. Most importantly, we want to keep the focus of the relationship on what is good for the child and for you.
OUR COMFORT LEVEL WITH DIFFERENT ADOPTION OPTIONS
- Very Comfortable
- Mostly Comfortable
- Unsure
- A Bit Uneasy
- Not Comfortable
Our ideal ongoing relationship with you would ultimately be based on what is best and most healthy for the child and for you. A healthy open relationship is ideal and can look a lot of different ways. Most importantly, we want to keep the focus of the relationship on what is good for the child and for you.
Just one more thing...Our ideal ongoing relationship with you would ultimately be based on what is best and most healthy for the child and for you. A healthy open relationship is ideal and can look a lot of different ways. Most importantly, we want to keep the focus of the relationship on what is good for the child and for you.