Tracy with Her Extended Family

Tracy's family is small and cozy and a very special part of her life. Her dad is an architect who taught Tracy and her sisters to take pride in themselves, their family and their possessions. Tracy and her Dad chat weekly about their lives and keep each other laughing. Tracy's older sister, a corporate director, is married and a godmother to several of her friend's children. Her younger sister, a stock broker, is also married with a seven year old daughter and is her daughter's Girl Scout Leader. Tracy and her sisters are very close and speak with each other almost daily. Frequently, all three of them are on the same call. Tracy considers her sisters her best friends.

Tracy & Dolan with His Extended Family

The whole family likes to travel and we all meet in different places for get-togethers whenever possible. We always get together for Father's Day and Thanksgiving at our family house in Arizona. Tracy's Dad brings his second wife whom we all love and consider part of the family. Tracy's mother died in 2002 but her Dad's second wife is a great step-grandmother to Tracy's younger sister's daughter. We decorate the house with fragrant flowers, do a lot of cooking and take daily hikes. Our favorite part is waking up with everyone in the same house and sharing the start of the day.

Dolan's family is made up of his father and six brothers and sisters consisting of four sisters and two brothers. Now with spouses and children of their own, it is a large party where ever we go. Most of the family still lives in the same town we grew up in and are very close and all visit Dad almost daily. Our family remains close and spends a lot of time visiting or going on outings together. Taking hikes, weekend events, or BBQ's by the lake; we are always looking or creating our own fun. With Dolan's family one spends most of the time trying to keep up with the swarm. Never a dull moment, they will keep you moving until you are ready to drop. There is no end to the types of activities you will be dragged into. Holidays are, needless to say, loud and crazy.

Most of the kids are college educated and in technical or medical related fields. My brothers and sisters have many children among them including two adopted children. With so many siblings experienced with children and medical qualifications we have a great support group for any child we adopt.

Our Home

We chose our home for it's beautiful yard and because our closest neighbor is a National Forest. Our yard is just over five acres with a mixture of soft green grass among tall pine trees, gentle slopes for tobogganing or hiking, and an open field for running and sports. We also have a small pond with a creek that runs through it that is just perfect for swimming on hot summer days. The National Forest is loaded with trails for summer hiking, berry picking and winter snowshoeing.

Our home is a two story, three bedroom house with a lot of open family space as well as cozy nooks for reading or playing. The walls are lined with books, artwork and historic family photos. Windows and skylights bring in the sun for the many plants and flowers.

Exterior of Our House

Most of our neighbors are families with lots of children of all ages. The kids go to our community's one hundred year old school with small class sizes and loads of teacher attention. Many of our neighbors have horses that the kids spend their afternoons riding. Our neighborhood has a huge bonfire every New Year's Eve out in a snow covered field where everyone burns their dry Christmas trees and eats tons of potluck food.

Even though we live more of a country life style, we are only twenty minutes from a city bursting with things to do and see. There is a river walk with an old wooden horse carousel, a children's theatre, and local sports teams with a lot of die-hard fans. The city is also home to a state university which expands the choices of music, art and culture available for everyone to enjoy.