Julius' Extended Family on a Visit to His Grandmother's

It was very important to us when we picked our home that we could stay close to both our parents and families. Both sets of our parents have been married for a long time and as you can imagine are eager to have grandchildren to love and spoil (in a good way of course).

Tammy's Extended Family at Her Cousin's 25th Anniversary Party

Julius’ parents live in a small town about thirty minutes from us. His parents are retired and stay very active with their interests and hobbies. Julius comes from a family of seven children; he has 3 older brothers, 1 younger brother, and 2 younger sisters, all of whom live within one hour of their parents. Every year we enjoy attending family reunions together in a local park. Between all the siblings there are ten nieces and nephews, who love to spend time with Uncle Julius. When they are together it's hard to tell who is having a better time Julius or the kids. In addition, we feel very blessed to have more extended family nearby. They only live two hours away, and we make it a priority to see them on a monthly basis. Having them as part of our life is very important and special to us.

Tammy’s parents live about fifteen minutes away from where we live. Her dad is retired and mom will soon retire next year after working with the local schools for several years. Tammy comes from a slightly smaller family than Julius; she is the eldest of three daughters. One of Tammy's sisters has three boys, all of which we are very close too. Tammy's sister, brother-in-law and nephews live in Pennsylvania. We visit our nephews often, even if it's only for one of the boys many weekend sporting events and of course to attend their birthday parties. Her younger sister lives about fifteen minutes from our house and is on hand for all family activities. Tammy enjoys spending quality time with her family for picnics and holiday gatherings together, with her immediate and extended family members.

We both feel very fortunate to have such supportive and wonderful families. Our family is a top priority with us, and we know, without a doubt, that they will welcome the presence of another family member with open arms and loving hearts.

Our Home

About 4 years ago we purchased our dream home in Virginia, which also is in close proximity to our parents. We carefully picked out every feature and upgrade with dreams of one day turning our 2 person family into a bigger family. The house is a two-story 3 level brick home, sitting on about 1/3 of an acre in a fairly large residential community. While the exterior of our house is very traditional, the inside has a very modern and warm feel. In addition to the four bedrooms we have three bathrooms, a large family room, separate dining room, eat-in kitchen, two car garage and screened in deck / patio. One of the features we love the most is the very spacious, open rooms and high ceilings. We think this house will be perfect for raising children and can't wait to see all the toys thrown about, the pitter patter of little feet, and the contagious sound of a child's laughter.

Back of Our Home

The neighborhood itself is filled with a mix of great people that we are happy and proud to call our neighbors. There also are a lot of young children that range from newborn to ten years of age that fill our neighborhood and the easy accessibility of the tot lots in our cul-de-sac give them a great place to safely play. In addition, we also have walking trails and a neighborhood adult and kiddy swimming pool. Because everyone tends to be so close on our street, we have started traditions of summer cookouts, birthday celebrations, not to mention our July community block party. In the past the neighbors have rented moon bounces and other attractions for the kids, and for those of us that like to pretend to be kids every once in a while, and everyone has a blast.

Being active and outside is a big part of our life, especially during the warmer months. We can often be found hanging outside, from spring through summer chatting with all the neighbors while the kids all play together. Other times we enjoy taking care of our landscaping and plants.

When we picked this area and community we knew it would be a great place to raise children, the crime rate is non-existent and it has been voted the best rated school district year after year. Furthermore, the area also contains several historical landmarks and area parks.

We can only hope and pray that through adoption we will be able to make our house a real home.