Welcome! Meet:

Ben + Katie

Scientist / Stay-at-Home-Mom

Indiana

Caucasian

Christian

All About Ben & Katie
Why Adoption?
Gallery
Family and Home
How We Met
Advice to Future Child
Perspectives on Open Adoption
Favorites

All About Ben & Katie

We are Ben and Katie. We live in Bloomington, Indiana with our 3 year old daughter Ilse. Ben is a scientist and Katie is a stay-at-home mom with Ilse. We love spending time together as a family, around our house and outside, playing games, and having friends and family into our home. Ilse especially loves her two cats, Maddie and Otis. We all enjoy music, and Katie plays the piano and Ukulele. We are very involved with our church and this is where Ilse has also made many friends!

Why Adoption?

We have not been able to have children biologically, but we are so grateful for the path God had for us through adoption. Our first adopted daughter, Ilse, loves babies and playing with other kids and is very excited to have a sibling join her in our family! We want to continue to grow our family and would love for Ilse to have a sibling as well.

Family & Home

We live on a private gravel lane. Our yard is fairly large and surrounded by woods which gives it that country feel, but we're close enough to neighbors that we've gotten to know each other and keep an eye out for one another.

A nice thing about our home is that we're close to town. There are stores and restaurants just a few minutes away, a walking trail across the street from our house, a playground close by, and a library only a two minute drive away!

We have a lot of friends through our church and we help as youth group leaders every Wednesday night.

Ben grew up in Germany and comes from a big family with nine siblings. He has lots of nieces and nephews. Several of his siblings and their kids live in the States and a few are in Germany. He’s very close with his family and loves to travel and visit when he can.

Katie grew up in Indiana and has four siblings. She also has several nieces and nephews and is close with them. We see each other often!

How others describe me

Ben about Katie: I always joke I married Katie for her common sense. Her ability to see things clearly, her strong work ethic, and her enjoyment of beautifying our home and working around the house makes her a great mother. Her general cheerfulness brightens our home. Her gentle and personable spirit is very endearing. Katie loves people. She is invested in those who come into her life and is able to genuinely cry or laugh with them. I know she will love our future children and be a good mother to them, as she is to our daughter.

Katie about Ben: One of the things that drew me to Ben was his thoughtful care of others. He strengthens me with his gentle and steady spirit. He works hard at his job and does well, but time and again I see him put family first when he is needed at home. Being with family was top priority when both my dad and his mom were dying. He also has a fun and playful side. One of the things I love most is watching he and our daughter Ilse interact. They love to tease each other and he can make her laugh like no one else!

How We Met

Ben's brother and Katie's good friend, who were dating at the time, introduced us. The four of us would get together to play cards. Soon, Katie was invited to join them in Michigan for Thanksgiving. It was there on a cold hike that Ben asked Katie out. On our first date we went for a seven mile hike! We got married about a year later.

Advice to Future Child

Love God first, and love people. Remember Jesus Christ who forgives you of your sins and be quick to forgive others.

Perspectives on Open Adoption

We are committed to raising our children to know their adoption stories. Open adoption is important to us. We hope to have contact with the birth parents so that they and the child can know each other in a way that’s comfortable to both.

Favorites

Ben

Favorite Movie: Fiddler on the Roof
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Christmas
Hobbies/Interests: hiking, spending time with family and friends
Dream Vacation: visiting national parks
If I Could Choose a Superpower: Teleportation

Katie

Favorite Movie: Singin’ in the Rain
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Christmas
Hobbies/Interests: playing piano and ukelele
Dream Vacation: Italy
If I Could Choose a Superpower: Flying