The Hallenbecks from Elkins Park were asked to parent a child, and they were ready, reports Anndee Hochman for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Lauren Hallenbeck, 35, can finally focus. Parenthood has changed her to focus on what’s important. Her husband Chris, 35, is more intentional about family dinner, he says.

The reason for these changes? New baby Alfie, whom the couple adopted Nov. 2021.

The birth family chose Chris and Lauren, and they all awaiting that moment.

“I’ve always, always intrinsically known that when I became a mother, it would be through adoption,” Lauren said. “I never felt like I would need to bear a child to relate to a maternal instinct. One of the most overwhelming aspects of our adoption process was figuring out how to get started.”

The couple spoke to everyone they could who had ties to adoption and liked the idea of open adoption. They wanted to do their best for their future child, and the “best way to do that was to be as open to helping them understand their biological identity as we possibly could,” Lauren said.

They worked with Open Arms before the pandemic and continued the process online. And then one day, they went to a Delaware hospital and met their future son.

They feel honored that Alfie’s birth parents chose them and entrusted them with raising their child. “We’re excited that Alfie has people like them in his life.”

Read more about Lauren, Chris, and baby Alfie in The Philadelphia Inquirer.