Thank you for taking the time to learn a little about us and for considering our family as you think about the future for your child.
We recognize that this is an incredibly personal decision, and we hope these pages give you a genuine glimpse into who we are, the life we have built together, and the kind of parents we hope to become.
Relationship/Journey
Our story began more than 25 years ago at a midnight bowling party, where mutual friends introduced us. Neither of us knew that a simple introduction would change the course of our lives. There was an instant connection between us, and after two years of dating, we knew we wanted to spend our lives together. One of the things we treasure most about our relationship is the way we balance one another. We often say that we are each other’s yin and yang. We don’t always think exactly alike, but we approach one another with open minds and open hearts. Even when we disagree, love and respect remain at the center of our relationship. Over the years, we have learned how to recognize and support each other’s needs and dreams. We celebrate the good times together and lean on one another through the difficult ones. After all these years, we are still best friends, and we look forward to bringing that same love, patience, teamwork, and commitment into parenthood.
Why Adoption?
Thank you for taking the time to learn a little about us and for considering our family as you think about the future for your child. We recognize that this is an incredibly personal decision, and we hope these pages give you a genuine glimpse into who we are, the life we have built together, and the kind of parents we hope to become. For more than 25 years, we have built a marriage centered on love, friendship, patience, laughter, and being there for one another through every season of life. Becoming parents has been a dream we have carried in our hearts for many years. We look forward to sharing our home, our families, our traditions, and all of life’s little moments with a child. We hope to raise our child in a home where they always feel safe, supported, encouraged, and deeply loved. Most importantly, we want them to grow up knowing that their story is special and that they are surrounded by people who love them.
Home
We live in a beautiful three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in a quiet suburban neighborhood in Chalmette, Louisiana. Our community has the small-town feeling we love, and we are fortunate to have both an elementary school and a playground within walking distance of our home. When we imagine becoming parents, some of the moments we look forward to most are actually the simplest ones. We picture walking our child to school in the morning and walking home together in the afternoon while hearing all about their day. Maybe we’ll make a stop at the playground before heading home. Our home also has a nice-sized yard with plenty of room for a child to run, explore and play. We can already imagine afternoons outside teaching our child how to throw and catch a ball, playing with our dogs, and making memories together. More than anything, we want our home to be the place our child always feels happiest returning to—a place filled with love, laughter, comfort and security.
Travel
One of our favorite places to visit is Disney World, especially during October when the weather begins to cool and everything is decorated for Halloween. There is something about that time of year that makes Disney feel even more magical to us. EPCOT is our favorite park because we love exploring the different countries and experiencing their cultures. We especially enjoy the Food & Wine Festival and getting to sample foods from around the world. We’re both adventurous eaters, so trying something new is always part of the fun! One day, we hope to experience Disney through our child’s eyes. We can imagine the excitement of their first glimpse of the castle, meeting a favorite character, trying new foods with us and experiencing all the little things that make Disney special. More than the destination itself, we look forward to family vacations becoming opportunities to experience new things, laugh together and create memories our child will carry with them.
Hobbies
Food is definitely one of our shared interests! We consider ourselves foodies and love discovering new restaurants and trying dishes we haven’t had before. We’re adventurous when it comes to food and enjoy experiencing different flavors and cultures. We also love spending time together in the kitchen, particularly baking. During Mardi Gras, Christopher enjoys making homemade king cakes, a family tradition passed down from his mother. At Christmastime, Valerie loves baking gingerbread cookies. Valerie also enjoys reading, painting, creative makeup artistry, and collecting The Nightmare Before Christmas memorabilia. Creativity is a big part of her personality, and she looks forward to sharing that with a child through art projects, imaginative play, baking and plenty of messy little adventures.
Pets
Our family wouldn’t be complete without our two dogs, Odin and Kala. Odin is our seven-year-old male Staffy. He has a laid-back personality and one of his favorite activities is sitting on the deck soaking up the sunshine. Kala is our eleven-year-old female Lab and our backyard adventurer. She loves wandering around outside to see what she can discover. When they’re not outside, they’re happy snuggling with us on the couch. Both enjoy affection and playful attention from our family and friends. We can picture our child growing up with Odin and Kala nearby—playing in the backyard together, giving them lots of pets and eventually learning the special kind of companionship that comes from having a beloved family pet.
Family plays an incredibly important role in our lives.
Christopher’s family includes his loving parents, his older sister, his niece—who is also his godchild—and his nephew. Valerie’s parents have both passed away, and she has a younger brother. Valerie is also fortunate to have a very special mother figure in her life whom she lovingly calls Mom, and they share a close relationship. Although everyone has their own lives and responsibilities, our family stays connected through phone calls, text messages and regular get-togethers. We are fortunate that everyone lives within driving distance, which makes spending time together much easier. Christopher’s sister runs the daycare where Valerie works, making family a part of everyday life as well. Christopher’s parents love planning family vacations and finding ways to bring everyone together. Our future child will be welcomed into a family that is already excited to love them. We know there will be grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and other loved ones eager to celebrate birthdays and milestones, attend activities, share holidays and simply be present throughout their life.
Family Traditions & Holidays
Halloween is one of our favorite times of the year. We decorate our home and settle in to watch Hocus Pocus and The Nightmare Before Christmas. We can already imagine adding pumpkin carving, costumes and trick-or-treating with our child. At Thanksgiving, we enjoy staying home and preparing dinner together. Christmas brings even more traditions. We deck the halls, decorate our tree together, bake gingerbread cookies and watch our favorite Christmas movies. On Christmas Day, we gather with family for our traditional dinner and gift exchange. Every year, Christopher’s parents give everyone pajamas and socks—a simple tradition that has become something we all look forward to. Living in Louisiana means Mardi Gras has its own special place in our family. Christopher makes king cakes using a tradition passed down to him and his sister by their mother. We love the idea that someday our child can stand beside him in the kitchen, learning how to make one and becoming another generation to carry on the tradition. Another special tradition happens on the Friday before Easter, when Valerie’s daycare holds its annual family day at the zoo. We make a point of attending together and spending the day with Christopher’s sister and her children. We look forward to the day when our own child is there beside us. These traditions may seem like little things, but to us, the little things are what make a family. We dream about seeing our child in their Halloween costume, baking together at Christmas, sharing Mardi Gras traditions, taking family vacations, celebrating birthdays and creating brand-new traditions that are uniquely ours. Above all, we hope to give our child a childhood filled with experiences they can look back on and say, “I always knew how much I was loved.”
