We met through family connections during our preteen years and became close friends in high school. We began dating in 2010 and have been married since 2013. We were blessed with Hudson in 2020. Our adventures together over the years have evolved from marching band competitions and high school prom to the new journeys of adult professional life and parenthood. We have enjoyed growing together through major life changes.

Our vacations and weekend getaways are often spent relaxing at the lake, visiting cousins, or taking trips to the zoo with friends. We have fond memories of family hiking trips in California, camping in New Mexico, skiing and biking or Jeep rides in Colorado, and exploring Texas from the beautiful lakes and trails of the hill country to the beach and Space Center of Houston to the caves and rivers of San Antonio.

In a normal week., we can be found spending our down time simply playing with our two dogs at home, playing at one of the city parks, or working on a ranch project with family. We enjoy playing card games such as Spades or Nerts, or we are known to bring something from our collection of board games for an extra fun night.

Holly grew up with three brothers and a variety of pets and farm animals. She has enjoyed photography from a young age and likes how photography allows her to freeze a precious moment in time or to capture God's creation in larger-than-life scale. She is a "Jeep Girl" and hopes to continue travelling with our family to explore more national parks and making memories together. Most car rides turn into karaoke singalongs of Disney or musical numbers, and she and Casey like to see who can sing more lyrics of 90's country songs.

Holly enjoys attending sporting events as social gatherings or entertainment but has never been the competitive one in the family. She looks forward to cheering on our family as they participate in sports and activities no matter how coordinated they may (or may not) be. Holly enjoyed playing tennis on her high school team and being in drumline and percussion section of the high school band.

Holly works as a nurse practitioner as a rural primary care provider at a family business. While she works, Holly's mom "Mini" spends the day with Hudson and sends lots of updates. Holly enjoys a flexible work environment and looks forward to attending future school and sports events.

What I Love About Holly - Written by Casey

Holly is the most loving and caring person I know. She can make anyone feel comfortable around her and is incredibly selfless. She always puts others first, especially our family. She is my best friend and I wouldn't want to live life with anyone else. Holly is an amazing mother and is adored by our son. She gives the best hugs and is a miracle worker kissing "ouchies". Her snuggles can calm any fear and the happiest moment of our day is when mommy gets home from work.

Casey has a master's degree in mechanical engineering and enjoys solving problems and building projects. His childhood of model cars has turned into a love for air planes and woodworking. He remodeled our kitchen in a previous home and loves getting the details exactly correct. He enjoys fishing with in-laws and pulling cousins around behind the boat in a water tube. Casey grew up in a big city playing many sports including baseball, basketball, and football. He was very involved in his church youth group and enjoys leading worship in church or working with the kids. Casey battled for first chair in his high school band playing trumpet and enjoyed participating in marching and jazz bands. He was involved with the high school basketball team and enjoys sports statistics. Casey appreciates a good mustache and a fast sports car though he has neither. He likes driving his truck and likes to plan new building projects so he has excuses to buy more tools. He initially got to know Holly's family through working cattle, building fences, and doing other projects together. Casey looks forward to giving his children opportunities to explore music, sports, academics, and other subjects. He hopes to be involved by coaching many little league teams and teaching our children to love Harry Potter and Star Wars as much as we do so they will want to go with us to Universal Studios and Disney World one day.

What I Love About Casey - Written by Holly

Casey was born to be a dad! He is loving, caring, and SO MUCH FUN. He is an optimist who is very patient and caring. Being more introverted, he is so thoughtful and he is always giving of himself and his time. Casey is a hard worker who is passionate about completing tasks correctly. He has always been a fantastic partner to me and I have enjoyed seeing how great of a dad he has become.

Hudson was born mid-2020 and prefers to spend his time outdoors playing in the dirt or learning about new tractors or construction vehicles. He is very social but prefers more modest crowds. He loves helping daddy drive the boat or helping Pops feed hay to the cows. Hudson started Preschool last fall and enjoys day trips to visit his cousins.

Hudson is an inquisitive and logical kid. You can almost see his brain working as he carefully studies his toys and figures out how to assemble or disassemble everyday items. He likes to observe before jumping in to the playful crowd and really cherishes his familiar friends. Hudson pays very close attention to younger children and babies around us, often wanting to entertain them or make them smile. He tells us about the things he and his brother or sister will do together someday and practices sharing with his cousins and friends until that time comes.

A family is a group of people who choose to love and care for each other whether related by blood or law or through bonds of friendship and Christ. Family is the people you can call upon knowing they would drop everything if needed. They are the people you can be open and honest with- unafraid of judgment or betrayal. Family loves each other as Christ loves us. We are so thankful that we have a great amount of family by this definition. Through the last few years of uncertainty and having a young child at home, we have been extra thankful to have family nearby. We love living in a small town community where our family can grow and thrive while still having the resources of big cities a short trip away. We have both experienced living in different places and are happy to have planted roots here where we believe our children will be well equipped to grow and learn and prepare for their futures. Our town has diversity of cultures and activities in part due to our local university, our Native American resources, and many types of businesses which continue to attract growth in the city. Our home is tucked away in a small gated neighborhood near the city park and walking trails. We can step out on our back porch with the dogs and watch deer and other wildlife drink from the pond and listen to the marching bands as they practice early in the morning. During 4th of July celebrations, the city fireworks display can be watched from the comfort of our yard. We have many other kids on our street and Hudson loves riding his bike to visit them. Holly's parents and grandparents live within 15 minutes of our house and Hudson gets to visit them often. Our church has many young families and we are happy to have our closest friends attend there with us where our kids can learn and grow together.

We always considered adoption as a potential part of our family's growth and kept our eyes and ears open for the right time. We were married in 2013 and our first son was born in mid 2020. Due to a variety of factors during the pregnancy, we decided not to pursue having additional biological children. We feel that we are well- situated and prepared to be parents of another child and we know Hudson will make an excellent big brother. Holly's youngest brother is Haitian, three of her first cousins are Ugandan, and we have many others in our close community whose lives have been touched by adoption in different ways. We are intimately aware of the blessings and challenges that can come with adoption and we are confident that we want to pursue this as a family. We know we don't have the right words to say to you but we pray God gives you peace as you navigate these decisions. We hope to get to know you and we are eager to answer your questions about our family and our community. Thank you for getting to know us.

Casey, Holly, and Hudson