Joe’s Extended Family at His Cousin’s Wedding

Joe is the eldest of three children. He has two siblings, a brother and a sister. His brother Mark and wife Karen live out of town with their three dogs and two horses. The youngest, his sister Cindy and husband Jason live within a few miles and have two daughters, Alexa and Emma. His parents are retired and live approximately an hour away. They have been happily married for 41 years.

Joe's fondest memories are of the holidays. In particular he remembers family gatherings on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in which relatives assembled for holiday cheer, traditional Slovak home cooked meals and gift exchanges.

Joe's family is very close-knit. If they are not able to see one another they stay in contact either by phone or email. His family is extremely excited about our decision to adopt and his parents are thrilled at the prospect of being able to spoil another grandchild.

Christmas Day with Jackie’s Extended Family

Jackie is the third of four children. She has three siblings, a brother and two sisters. Her brother Joe is the eldest and he lives a couple hours away where he has an established practice as a dentist. Her older sister Julie and husband Rob have two children; a son RJ and a daughter Cassandra. The youngest is her sister Janette and she has a son Stephen. Her parents have been happily married for 44 years and are retired.

A couple of Jackie's fondest memories growing up were pool parties in the summer and decorating the house and Christmas tree for the holidays. She remembers Christmas parties where her uncle would dress up as Santa Claus and all the uncles, aunts and cousins getting together to celebrate.

A yearly tradition that Jackie and her family look forward to each summer is the Greek Festival. Her mother is Greek and comes from a very large family. They love the delicious gyros, Greek pastries, the Greek music and spending time with family and friends. Jackie's whole family is excited and supportive of our decision to adopt.

Home Sweet Home

We reside in a spacious two-story colonial located in the outskirts of a large city. Our home has four bedrooms, one of which was converted into an office. Our comfortable family room will be perfect for playing games, reading stories or watching Disney movies. We have made significant updates throughout the entire home giving it a warm and cozy modern feel (making it our own). We have a deck attached to the back of the house which is great for inviting family and friends over for weekend cookouts and to play volleyball or badminton in the backyard.

Our Community Pool

Our neighborhood is culturally diverse and our neighbors are genuine and friendly. It's an exceptional community in which to work, raise a family and invest. During the summer months there are movies shown in the park at sunset. There is an annual "Home Days” festival complete with games, rides and a parade for the little ones followed by a fantastic firework display on the final evening. Within our park and recreational areas there are baseball fields, tennis and basketball courts, trails for walking or bike riding and a recently constructed community center with an amazing indoor/outdoor swimming pool facility. Also under construction are two new state-of-the-art playgrounds to go along with three that already exist. We also have an amusement and water park within a few miles of our house.

Our schools offer excellence in education, a high level of academic achievement and outstanding extra-curricular and sports programs. Our school system is continually rated one of the best in the state.