Kate & Kevin

We live in a brownstone apartment in New York City. We are a short walk from parks, playgrounds, gardens, libraries, museums, a zoo, sports/entertainment arenas, galleries, and shops. We take advantage of the options often...and there are still many on our list to try out. We're in a city where backyards are rare, so the parks and playgrounds are where kids of all ages and backgrounds can run around and play safely. Throughout the year, our neighborhood hosts street fairs and events that further the sense of community, allowing kids to do fun things like face painting, pony rides and bounce houses. The parks and street fairs are packed on the weekends with kids having the time of their lives with their little buddies. We will absolutely be joining in! We can find fun nearby or even a subway ride away, taking advantage of everything New York City has to offer. Sometimes, we just stay in and cook a family meal, salting away a lazy Sunday afternoon. We have friends nearby in our neighborhood, many of whom also have children, so there are play dates just a text away. We are a short walk from parks, playgrounds, gardens, libraries, museums, a zoo, sports/entertainment arenas, galleries, & shops. In our community, we are active in the community garden right here on our block. There are plots of plants, live chickens and everything a child could want to explore. For most days in the spring and summer, the kids have the run of the place, giving them a chance to experience nature right here in the big city. Additionally, Kevin has spent time volunteering at a soup kitchen and women's shelter in our area, helping to prepare hot meals for those in need. The soup kitchen has operated for nearly 50 years, and while it saddens us to know there are people in need, we are proud to be able to help.

Our travel tends to focus around seeing family and friends, who are primarily in the New York City area, Virginia and California. We also aim to take one big trip per year - for a few years they involved friends' weddings (Sweden and Spain), but recently we were left to our own devices and took a trip to Argentina. Outside of traveling, we have similar and different interests and sometimes enjoy them together. For instance, Kevin is a huge Washington Nationals and Capitals sports fan and loves playing baseball. He tries to see a few Washington games live per season and of course catches them on TV too when he can. Kate goes to the games and enjoys them, she just isn't quite to the level of fandom as Kevin is Kevin also likes cooking and experimenting with the grill/smoker when the weather is nice. Kate reaps the benefits - many delicious meals. Kate enjoys the arts and goes to the theater and movies. In particular, she enjoys taking classes, like glass blowing and pottery, and going to see nontraditional shows on Broadway with her girlfriends that are a bit nostalgic like Mean Girls and Beettlejuice -they were a lot of fun. Together, we recently saw To Kill A Mockingbird on Broadway and took a wood working class to make wooden spoons - it was so difficult to do! It really is quite a skill.

We have groups of friends that live near and far - some as close as down the street and some as far away as Colorado and Vermont. We have friends from every stop in our lives - from growing up, from college, from jobs, and more friends through those friends. Our friends are incredibly supportive of our relationship and family journey. Many of them have children, and have been eagerly waiting for us to join them in the title of "parents." While our friends are spread near and far, it never feels distant. We usually see the friends who live close to us every couple of weeks. There's always something to do- a new restaurant, a leisurely walk in the park, or a night in together over board games (yes, we really do that).

Our families are spread out around the country. Kevin's family is primarily in Virginia - his parents and extended family are there - and his brother and sister-in-law are north of NYC. Kate's family is both a bit closer and farther away - she has a brother and cousin nearby in New Jersey (cousin has a one-year old little girl); a close cousin in Philadelphia; father and step-mother in Connecticut; mother and step-father in upstate New York; and brother, sister-in law, 5-year-old nephew and 2-year-old niece in Los Angeles. We split Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays between our families and take trips to see family members a few times per year for birthdays, holidays, reunions, or just to visit. With FaceTime, we're able to 'see' them even more often. Both of our families are over the moon happy for our adoption plan - they know how badly we want to have a child and are excited for us and our future family.