Kathleen & Steven
Hello and Welcome! WE ARE KATHLEEN & STEVEN THANK YOU for taking the time to read our letter and learn about us. We hope you’ll see in these pages that we are a LOVING, FUN, ADVENTUROUS, and UNIQUE COUPLE.
art ur favorite TOP: In o ans New Orle in y r e ll a g : California BOTTOM ay “winter” d
OUR LIFE TOGETHER WE ARE SOUL MATES. We managed to find each other when we were young. Our love story, now 17 years in the making, started with a dance. Kathleen is a friend of Steven’s little sister and when Kathleen needed a date for prom, Steven was more than happy to escort her. From that very first dance we knew that we had found each other. In the six years that we dated, we each took our own journey to adulthood and spent time living in different parts of the country. Kathleen and her friends moved to New York City for a year and Steven lived in New Orleans. We stayed together and managed to visit every chance we got. We have been married more than 10 years and it has been a fun filled time. Our marriage started just the way we wanted – in the church we grew up in, a reception under the oak trees of a friend’s backyard, and surrounded by our large loving families.
We can’t imagine what you’re going through. Your choice to trust another with your child humbles us. We have tried for many years to build our family and we are so excited to pursue adoption. Your decision will give us one of the greatest and most selfless gifts imaginable – the gift of a family. Please know that we will give your child a home and life filled with LOVE and HAPPINESS. Our little family will be surrounded by a bigger family, waiting with open arms.
“
We LOVE...
TRAVEL and look forward to showing our child the world. THE OUTDOORS we love spending time outside, camping and hiking in our National Parks. COOKING and BAKING together, and treating our friends to the latest creations from our kitchen. TRADITIONS we started a new tradition where every Saturday morning we go out for breakfast. This has become a special time for us to unwind from the long workweek and reconnect as a couple.
FUN FACTS
& FAVORITES
» FAVORITE RECIPE Kathleen: Steven’s tomato sauce Steven: Kathleen’s meatballs » CHILDHOOD ACTIVITY Kathleen: Camping Steven: Backpacking » HOLIDAY TRADITION Kathleen: Leaving cookies out for Santa. I still do this today. It’s important to believe! Steven: Cooking for Thanksgiving » CHILDREN’S MOVIE Kathleen: The Little Mermaid Steven: The Muppets » FAV INGREDIENTS TO COOK TOGETHER Both: Italian. We love to spend time in the kitchen together, and have a great garden that provides lots of great food. » FAV VACATION SPOT Kathleen: Hawaii Steven: National Parks » WAY TO RELAX AT HOME Kathleen: Lying in the backyard in our hammock with a book Steven: Listening to jazz and reading a book, or playing the guitar or piano » DREAM JOB
WATCHING THE GAME ! We root for New Orlean the s Saints, L.A. Dodgers, and L.A. Lakers, th e but when it c omes to colle football we a ge re a house d ivided – Kath roots for UC leen LA and Steve n for USC.
Kathleen: Owning a flower stand Steven: Owning a restaurant » FAV PLACE TO TAKE A CHILD Both: The beach
5
wa y s
we show
OUR LOVE
1. Really big hugs 2. Celebrating both big and little things 3. Bringing each other coffee and breakfast in bed
4. Making time for each other’s families 5. Communicating with each other
A FEW OF THE
Things That
MAKE US HAPPY
» One of our favorite traditions is our ANNUAL APPLE PICKING ADVENTURE. Each year we bring all of our nieces and nephews for a day filled with apples, cider, hay rides, and pumpkin patches. We come back to bake pies together and make apple butter. » THANKSGIVING has become one of our favorite holidays as a couple. One Thanksgiving, when Steven was living in New Orleans, Kathleen came to visit and together we cooked an entire gourmet feast for a big group of friends. Since then cooking together has been one of our favorite hobbies (especially on Thanksgiving!). We love to cook together and have an always growing collection of cookbooks. » When we were first married we started GARDENING and GROWING VEGETABLES in our backyard. Now gardening is a fun hobby and we love to pick fresh fruits and veggies. This has translated into many experiments in the kitchen – jarring pickled green beans, making apricot jam and lots of pies. LEFT » Steven planting tomatoes with our niece Zani. BELOW » Kathleen with “the cousins” on our annual apple picking day.
Riding an elephant!
On top of a volcano in Maui
In Venice
Our Adventures Together WE’VE TRAVELED TOGETHER TO... » SOUTH AFRICA » THAILAND » HAWAII
» ITALY » FRANCE
A summer evening concert
SEEING THE WORLD, both near and far is important to us. Whether it is camping along side a river, listening to jazz in New Orleans, exploring a new country, taking a road trip through our National Parks, or relaxing on our family vacations in Hawaii, we approach every vacation with anticipation and joy.
6
t h i n gs y o u m i g h t
be surprised to LEARN ABOUT US
1. KATHLEEN was captain of her high school tennis team 2. STEVEN has driven to every state in the country, even to Alaska (and he drove around Hawaii) 3. KATHLEEN spent a summer living in Italy with her best friend 4. STEVEN was recruited by colleges all over the country as a volleyball player 5. STEVEN makes the best sourdough flapjacks from scratch 6. Steven was KATHLEEN’S second kiss, but her first one happened in Singapore
Matthew Kathleen with her Godson,
A day at the races supporting St. Jude
New York, New York!
“Kathleen is the most amazing and loving person I know. She is truly the light of my life, and the greatest thing that ever happened to me. I am so excited to watch her become a mom. We have always said that as good as we are as individuals we are so much better as a team.”
Meet Kathleen THROUGH STEVEN’S EYES KATHLEEN is adventurous. She loves to have fun when she travels, even riding an elephant up a mountain in Thailand!
Making Be (a French Dignets onut)
Kathleen has incredible drive and passion for what she does. She is caring – not just for those close to her, but for everyone around her. She is at the center of our large families. She makes sure that family and friends are a part of everything we do.
Kathleen is a romantic. She believes in the importance of love in everyday life and the power of a big hug. She likes both lazy days and days filled with fun and excitement. She is an inspiration to me, the reason I am able to do all of the fun things I do, and the source of courage for me to try new things. She supports me and our family during tough Celebrating Kath leen’s birthday in Rome times. You should see how her smile can light up a room and how her happiness spreads to everyone.
Silly beach cousins, Tovi, Priya and Caruso
Kathleen will be an amazing mom. We’ve always talked about starting a family. Her love for children is endless, I can see it in the way she loves and cares for our nieces and nephews. She will share that love with our child, and teach him or her the importance of family. She will be caring and supportive, she will help our child to dream the most wonderful dreams, and she will help make those dreams come true.
Steven and Austin, it’s high up here!
Sometimes A day at the they races never grow St. up!Judes supporting
Hiking
Chef Steven cutting the Christmas turkey
Meet Steven THROUGH KATHLEEN’S EYES
STEVEN was active in a backpacking troop for Boy Scouts as a kid. He was a college athlete playing indoor volleyball for a top NCAA team. Both these activities taught Steven discipline and teamwork. You won’t be surprised to hear that Steven is tall! He’s 6’5”, but inside he is truly a kid at heart. Steven shared his love of music with me. When we started dating he was into country music…cowboy boots and all. He took me to my first country concert, Garth Brooks, and I was hooked. We have gone to the New Orleans Jazz Fest four times and love the eclectic sounds of the festival and New Orleans. Steven plays the piano, saxophone, harmonica and he even recently taught himself the guitar. We have a music corner in our family room for him to play. Often Steven plays with our nieces and nephews to their great delight! Steven is ever the romantic. He treasures the art of hand writing letters. Steven always finds a way to celebrate the unusual anniversaries and surprise me when I least expect it, like the day he surprised me on our 4,444th day together. As a father, Steven will share all of his passions with our child. He will open our child’s eyes to everything the world has to offer. He will share his knowledge, adventurous spirit, athletic competitiveness, joy for music and big heart.
“Steven is my renaissance man. He has always wowed me with his wide range of interests and talents. He is a chef, scholar, athlete, musician, artist and adventurer. He is a true student of the world. Every day is an opportunity to learn and explore for Steven.”
Meet Our
FAMILIES!
Knott’s Berry Farm!
OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO US, we consider them our best friends. We spend a lot of time with them. When you add our friends to the mix, we’ve been blessed with 4 nieces and 9 nephews whom we get much joy from. We take our roles as Aunt and Uncle very seriously – Steven even makes sure that “Uncle” is one of the first words they all learn! We love to babysit and take them on special trips. Kathleen with nephew Caruso and niece Priya Shopping in Thailand with Kathleen’s sister Jen & sister-in-law Jamie
Steven’s entire family!
Visiting our Denver family! OUR FAMILY HAS A CABIN in the nearby mountains and we go up there at least 5 times a year. We have enjoyed watching as our nieces and nephews learned to ski in Big Bear. Steven loves to take them off-roading in his truck and the evenings are spent cuddled up by the fire with good company.
Kathleen on a special outing, painting presents for their parents!
The Grandparents! Kathleen’s parents Elizabeth and Tom, and Steven’s mom Debbie and husband George
Kathleen’s siblings Tom, Michael and Jenifer
KATHLEEN is the youngest and has two older brothers and an older sister. They’re all married and have kids of their own. They all live in our hometown, or very close by. Our child will have a lot of cousins right from the start! Kathleen’s parents are also in town so grandma and grandpa will be around a lot. Many of Kathleen’s aunts, uncles, and cousins live in Chicago, and we visit regularly. Kathleen holds her family traditions from childhood very dearly and looks forward to continuing them with our child, especially at Christmas - making homemade pasta for Christmas dinner, baking peanut butter kiss cookies, and decorating the Christmas tree.
Christmas fun with the family!
STEVEN is the oldest with a younger sister in San Francisco and younger brother in Denver. His brother has a daughter and a son, adding to the growing list of our nieces and nephews. We travel to visit them often. His parents live nearby and are eager to have a grandchild so close to them. Steven’s mom is a teacher and anxious to resurrect her days when she had “summer school sessions” with her own kids. Steven’s curiosity and love of knowledge comes from his family, in particular his parents and uncles, and is something he looks forward to passing on to our child.
the place we call
HOME
We LOVE our home and the town we live in. After years living in a lot of different places we ended up back in the place we grew up. We have a large backyard that is perfect for kids to run around in and build forts. There is plenty of room to kick a soccer ball around or play a game of catch. We grow vegetables and fruits that we use in our kitchen and share our results (cakes, cookies, jams and pies) with our family and friends. We like to fill our home with friends and family for holiday parties or weeknight dinners. Everyone seems to end up in our kitchen while we cook, or sitting around the fire pit in the yard while Steven works the smoker. We take walks down tree-lined streets, and our home is right next to hiking trails and parks. We have great schools nearby, including the elementary schools and high school that we went to. It is a diverse and multicultural place full of great experiences and amazing people. We are a quick drive to the beach and love to spend time with our toes in the sand. Our child will definitely grow up building thered sand castles! We are also a Family & friendsfirga pit e r ou nd ou ar quick drive to the mountains and often spend fun filled weekends at the family cabin.
Summer evenin g BBQ
ing the Kathleen keepen green! rd vegetable ga
“We have always dreamed of building a family together. We know that our little family will not be complete without a child to care for.�
OUR WORK
Is Our Passion We both work in the non-profit world. We believe that it is very important to give back and support people and our communities. KATHLEEN works as a fundraiser for a large research hospital near our hometown. She spent over 10 years working for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. STEVEN is a fundraising consultant and helps museums, hospitals, symphonies, universities, and all kinds of non-profit organizations to raise money for incredible projects. Fun in Italy!
Celebrating ten years of marriage!
Our Hopes & Dreams We have had a lot of time to think about our lives as parents. We know that we will love our child unconditionally, and will be by his or her side through everything in life. » We will dedicate our lives to creating a loving home. » We will do our best to nurture our child’s dreams and aspirations. » We will be accepting and understanding. » We will help our child learn about the world by getting out and really experiencing life in different places. » We will be silly, laugh a lot and have a lot of fun! » We’ll put on puppet shows and plays at home.
» We’ll build forts in the living room. » We will teach the importance of helping others and being part of our community. » We will focus on the importance of education and building a strong character. » We’ll have amazing holiday celebrations together. » We’ll spend nights camping, telling stories around the campfire, making smores, and staring up at the stars with the endless wonder of a child.
THANK YOU for learning
ABOUT US
We would love to hear from you! If you would like to speak with us about adopting your child, please contact one of the Adoption Advisors at AdoptHelp by calling toll free 1-800-637-7999.
We hope that learning about our lives, together and as individuals, will help you on your own journey. The sacrifice you make will be the greatest gift we’ve ever received, and we promise that we will love your child unconditionally. We will always strive to be the best parents that we can possibly be. We promise that your child will come into a home filled with love and laughter, and we promise that your child will grow up surrounded by a large and loving family.