Waiting Family Profiles

Below is a listing of hopeful adoptive families who have an approved study and are excited to meet with you and discuss your wishes for your child. Please click on the family name to go to their individual page and learn more about them.

In addition to the families highlighted below, we have familes that are part of our Waiting Family Book who do not choose to have their profile online. If you are interested in viewing other families or discussing your adoption decision, please contact our Pregnancy Counseling and Birth Parent Services at 888.205.3769 or email at [email protected].

Carie and Joey

Matched

Home Location: Twin Cities Metro

Family Status: Couple without children

Children in Home: None

Child Ethnicity: African American, Asian, Caucasian, East Indian, Hispanic/Latino, Native American

Hello! We are Joey and Carie, a fun-loving couple from Otsego, Minnesota and we are so grateful that you are opening your hearts to consider us as adoptive parents to your child. Before we met, we both dreamed of finding the “one” and starting a family. Seven years ago, we found each other, meeting online and immediately hitting it off, talking for endless hours by phone. What attracted us to each other was our strong love of family and our mutual desire to someday be parents ourselves. We knew early on in our relationship that having a child by birth was not an option, but we feel strongly that we have the love and commitment to provide a child with the security, support, and encouragement they deserve for a lifetime. We are both blessed to have a large circle of family and friends close by who are also excited about our adoption journey. We are also both proud to have prized roles as favorite aunt and uncle to our many nieces and nephews, children who we often spend time with.

About Us

We are both employed full-time and work from our cozy home, northwest of the Twin Cities. Joey is a Provider Relations Advisor with a health insurance company where he has been for 18+ years. Carie is a Process Analyst for a legal-based company and has been in the business for 15+ years. When we’re not working, we enjoy spending time together checking out local restaurants, exploring new biking and hiking trails, or taking walks around the neighborhood with Case, our beloved dog. We always make time for our extended family too, with weekly card games or video-chats to stay connected with out-of-state family. We are big on large holiday celebrations or just hanging out and enjoying a beautiful day with the people we love the most.

Meet Carie

In Joey’s words: Carie is an incredibly loving and caring person. Carie is truly in her element when she is around kids. That is when I see her creativity, patience, and compassion shine through. There have been countless times when others have mentioned just how great she is with kids. Whether it be our neighbors, friends, family or even strangers she’s just met, it only takes a few minutes of interaction with their little ones to see how natural she is in the role of a mother. In addition, Carie is a talented artist and crafter, creating gifts for others and decorating our home for every season and holiday to perfection. I am so eager and excited to be on this journey with her as I know she will be a terrific mom.

A few words to describe Carie

Generous
Forgiving
Maternal
Caring
Creative
Trustworthy
Nurturing

Meet Joey

In Carie’s words: My husband Joey does everything from his heart. He is one of the most responsible and patient people I know and so very easy-going and sweet. He is always ready for fun and usually has a quick joke or story. He is young at heart, and I know he would love being a dad. As I see him interact with our nephews and niece. Joey also enjoys playing and watching sports and staying active and healthy. He’s always willing to support me when it comes to be the healthiest version of myself–whether it is with eating healthier, working out, or encouraging us to take family walks around the neighborhood. He’s the perfect partner for me and I know he will be a great dad.

A few words to describe Joey

Responsible
Youthful
Health-Conscience
Kind
Trustworthy
Positive
Easy Going

Family and Friends

Carie has three siblings Bill (and wife Lisa), Mike, and Cherie (who is Carie’s twin) as well as a huge extended family on both maternal and parental sides that give us plenty of reasons to get together. Birthdays and holiday dinners are an important tradition for Carie’s family. Carie’s parents, Mike and Judy, live 12 miles away with family dinners at least once a week and pool parties in the summer with a fenced-in backyard. They both love to spend time spoiling their grandsons Eli (19), Rheid (11) and Mose (8) and are giddy at the prospect of a new addition to the family. Mike and Judy’s words describe Carie’s maternal spirit perfectly, “Carie was born to win the Mother of The Year contest but fate has interrupted her from getting her prize. God works in mysterious ways.”

Joey has two siblings, Brenda (and husband John) and Jon, and a huge extended family on his maternal side that give us plenty of reasons to go visit the family farm. Joey’s parents Jerry and Lenora live about an hour and half away on a farm where everyone is always welcome to enjoy the natural elements from flower gardens to collecting eggs in the chicken coop to John Deere Gator rides with Jerry. They both love to spend time with granddaughter Meredith (2) and are beyond excited to welcome another grandchild. In their words, “There’s nothing that will warm our hearts like seeing our youngest become a father. We don’t know of anything that should prevent him from being a loving, successful adoptive parent.”

We’re “Auntie Carie and Uncle Joey” to 4 amazing kiddos who we have so much love for. Carie is the Godmother to her twin sister’s son, Rheid. Carie and Joey are the Godparents to a cousin on Joey’s side. Our love for the kiddos in our lives certainly doesn’t end there. We have countless other family and friends and loved ones who are so supportive. We’re so blessed to have an incredible support system in our lives.

Meet our Dog

Case is our beautiful, 4-year-old Fox Red Labrador Retriever and we consider him a member of the family. Although he may be a dog, he thinks otherwise! From the way he sits on the couch, to the way he looks at you with his big brown eyes, he will have you convinced he’s part-human! Case loves everyone – especially children. He is a big fan of playing fetch with his ball launcher, riding in the car, walking around the neighborhood, chasing a laser like a cat, and finding the best spot in the house to soak up the brightest sun rays. He also enjoys snuggling and giving kisses. He’ll be the best, big fur brother ever!

Thank You and our promise

We Promise:

To provide a range of experiences to create the best life
To be honest, a role model, and friend
To provide a home full of learning, laughs, and unconditional love
To teach responsibility and respect
To always put our child’s needs before our own

We promise to cherish and love your child as our own and with everything we have. We will provide a safe and happy home filled with a lifetime of abundant opportunities to learn and grow. We also hope that we can foster a friendship with you that will continue to grow through the years ahead.

Thank you for taking the time to learn about us. We look forward to sharing more with you and learning about you as well! We hope this gives you an idea of who we are and the kind of parents we would be. Our dream is for an open adoption that provides for the best interests of everyone involved and the most love for the child. Wishing you all the best.

Our Message to you

We are extremely excited at the prospect of expanding our family through adoption. We have dreamed of being parents long before we met each other, only to be faced with the heartbreaking knowledge that we are unable to conceive on our own. Which leads our path to cross with yours. We can only imagine how difficult it must be for you to make this incredibly loving and selfless decision for you and your child. Please remember through all of this, that you are brave and loved. If you decide to move forward with adoption plans with our family, we assure you that we will respect and work with whatever level of openness is most comfortable for you. We want to create the best environment for the precious blessing you are bringing into this world and are allowing us to raise.

Thank you!

Joey and Carie Zitzman