Welcome! Meet:

Wes + Brandon

RN / Business Insurance Product Manager

Minnesota

Caucasian

Christian

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

All About Wes & Brandon

We're Wes and Brandon, a midwestern duo looking to expand our family through open adoption. We have been together for over seven years and married for almost four – and have built a life together full of love, laughter, and adventures with our four-year-old rescue pup, Chili.

Wes, originally from Minnesota, is passionate about helping others and has spent his career so far as a pediatric nurse (and soon-to-be nurse anesthetist). Brandon, originally from Missouri, works from home and specializes in business insurance. When we're not working, you can find us exploring the trails near our home with Chili, discovering new food spots in the Twin Cities, or whipping up delicious meals and hosting friends and family at our home.

We are incredibly excited to welcome a child into the Milla Crew and continuing to build a loving, supportive home filled with endless adventures. Thank you for taking the time to learn more about us!

Why Adoption?

One of the things that drew us to each other was our outlooks on life and desires to be fathers. Early on in our relationship, we discussed the various different options for how we would start a family. After considering our options as a queer couple who is not able to have children of our own, we decided that open adoption would be the best way for us to become fathers and grow our family. We know that choosing to make an adoption plan can be a complex decision, and we decided we wanted to be an option for a birth family to consider.

Family & Home

Our charming Victorian home, built in 1889, in the West Side neighborhood of Saint Paul, Minnesota, offering stunning river bluffs and easy access to downtown. Our neighborhood has a lot of things we love: the parks along the river with trails for hiking with Chili, the diversity of life that surrounds us, and all of the great food, entertainment and cultural experiences that the city has to offer.

Beyond our neighborhood, our community is made up of a large network of friends and family located locally, out of state, and abroad. We are fortunate to spend time more frequently with Wes’ family, as his parents and two younger brothers live nearby in Minnesota. Brandon’s family is spread out across the globe, with his dad and middle sister in his hometown of St. Louis, his mom in Alabama, and his youngest sister in Delhi, India. While visits are less frequent, we are very close with Brandon’s family and make sure to see each other several times a year.

Here at home, our favorite thing to foster relationships within our community is to host dinner and game nights, weekend visits, and gatherings. This spirit of connection extends to the child we hope to welcome – a loving and supportive community awaits them.

How others describe me

Wes by Brandon

I might be biased, but Wes is one of the most kind, compassionate and awesome people. He has an adventurous spirit like no one else I have ever met. Wes’s compass is calibrated to what is just and right, and is passionate about equity and equality. While he takes these things seriously, he is also an incredibly goofy and funny person, and he loves humorous things. One of his favorite things to do is watch bloopers or clips of actors on SNL breaking character – and one of my favorite things to do is watch him crack up. His laugh is infectious, although you get concerned he is not able to breathe. One of the things I appreciate about him most is that he lives his life understanding that each person’s lived experience is different than others, and this lends to his compassion and empathy for others. I think this is probably informed from his time living in China and traveling abroad. And I think his chosen career in pediatric nursing is evidence of his care for others' wellbeing. While we are different in many ways, the balance that we bring to each other is one of the most beautiful things in my life. I am so looking forward to becoming a father alongside him.

Brandon by Wes

Brandon is one of the most kind, loving and generous people I know. There is nothing that he wouldn’t do for the people in his life who he loves. Despite the distance that separates him from his family, he is very close with his immediate and extended family and loves spending time traveling to visit them or having them spend the weekend with us. Brandon has a big sense of adventure and loves to travel and explore the world around him – he can’t wait to see where life takes him next. When he isn’t traveling the world Brandon loves to be home hosting our closest family and friends for dinner or game nights. Brandon is quite the cook, which works out great for me, he loves to take his time exploring new recipes or revisiting some of our favorites. His passion for life and his priority for loved ones make him such an incredible person and I can’t wait to see how he grows into fatherhood.

How We Met

We connected on a dating app, and despite Wes's chaotic schedule as a night shift pediatric nurse, we found a way to make it work. Our initial online conversations were a whirlwind, covering everything from our shared faith and hopes for the future, aligned goals of marriage and a family, Wes’ recent purchase of his first home and Brandon’s summer travels to Europe. We quickly discovered that not only did we share similar values, but our personalities complemented each other wonderfully. Our first date, a walk around Lowertown St. Paul followed by dinner, solidified this. Over the next year – through shared adventures, meeting each other's families and friends, and countless date nights trying new restaurants and going to concerts – our relationship grew stronger.

Advice to Future Child

Even before we meet you, know this: you are loved unconditionally. No matter your path, your personality, or your dreams, you are perfectly you in our eyes. The world can be a whirlwind, and life throws its curveballs. But within you lies a beautiful story waiting to be written. Embrace the chaos, because it's part of your journey. You have the strength to navigate even the toughest roads – a strength that comes from within and from the love that surrounds you. When things are rough and it becomes hard to remember this, we will be there to remind you of it.

Perspectives on Open Adoption

We believe that every human’s story is unique, and that their story is shaped and influenced by their birth, adoptive, and chosen families. Open adoption embraces the child’s birth family story, and by doing so, strengthens and contributes to the child’s sense of identity that will be carried throughout their life. This allows the child’s birth story to be framed in a positive light from early on in the child’s life. We believe that open adoption is a beautiful thing, and look forward to embracing and weaving in someone else’s story into our family. We believe that birth parent’s choices should be respected and valued in the decision to make an adoption plan, and that open adoption is the best way to achieve this. We are committed to continued openness and contact, if the birth family wishes to do so, and look forward to working with them to define what that looks like.

Favorites

Wes

Favorite Movie: Star Wars: Return of the Jedi
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Christmas time with the family having dinner, watching movies and playing board/card games
Hobbies/Interests: soccer, rock climbing, hockey, hiking, camping, traveling, snowboarding
Dream Vacation: Maldives overwater bungalow
If I Could Choose a Superpower: teleportation

Brandon

Favorite Movie: Christmas Vacation
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Family meals and card / board game tournaments over Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Hobbies/Interests: hiking, camping, traveling, music, drag, cars, airplanes
Dream Vacation: Wine Tour through Italy & France
If I Could Choose a Superpower: mind reader