« Prev Family    Next Family »

Main Profile   Letter to Birth Parent(s)   Other Aspects of Our Life   Photographs   Favorites   Contact Us  

Our Extended Families

We both come from extraordinary families that shower us with loving support. Our siblings are our closest friends. We talk and or email family regularly and make time to see each other often. We look forward to holidays and family gatherings.

Kathleen was raised in a very traditional Irish Catholic family. She is the oldest of six children with three sisters and two brothers. One sister is married with three children, two girls and a boy. One brother is married with one boy. Kathleen's parents always stressed the importance of education and built a strong loving family environment. Kathleen's family lives about an hour from us and we visit with each other often.

Growing up was fun for Kathleen. Summers were spent by the pool or playing golf. She took gymnastics classes and played soccer. She and her sisters were champion Irish Dancers. Her mom was a stay at home mom and the family ate dinner together every night. Sundays were family days. There was lots of love, laughter and music in their house. Family parties and get together always consisted of volleyball games, sing-songs and the occasional fire.

Jim was also raised in a traditional Catholic family. He is the third of four children. He has two brothers one is married with a girl, and one sister is married with two children (a girl and a boy).

He grew up in a neighborhood with lots of kids. We spent most of our free time playing just about every sport, and most people had pools which was great in the summer. There was always something going on. We also would spend all holidays with the extended families (lots of cousins).

Our families are very excited and supportive of our decision to adopt. Kathleen has a first cousin who is adopted and we both have friends and family who are either adopted themselves or who have recently adopted children of their own. Everyone is looking forward to welcoming a new family member into the family fold.

Our House and Neighborhood

We live in a beautiful split level ranch style home located on 1+ acres of land that is just waiting to welcome more children. It is a five bedroom, two and a half bath home located in a cul-de-sac on a quiet residential street in New Jersey. The house also has a game room and an unfinished basement that we hope to finish in the future. We have a large backyard where we enjoy barbeques, hanging out with the neighbors, swimming, and bird watching. The backyard is completely fenced in with an in ground swimming pool, a large deck, patio and swing set and plenty of lawn space to spread out and play catch, tag, hide and seek or volleyball. The fun doesn't end there - there are sand boxes, water tables, little playhouses and child size tables and chairs. This yard is designed with children in mind.

The location is very private. The neighborhood has lots of young families with children of all ages. On any given day you will see the kids in our neighborhood riding their bikes or scooters up and down the street or bouncing back and forth between each other's houses. Our neighbors are wonderful, family-oriented people who enjoy casual get-togethers and pool parties with the children.

Our community is very family oriented with lots of activities for children and families to participate in such as soccer, t-ball, swimming, music classes, parks, walking trails. We attend a Catholic Church in our community that is within a five minute drive. The schools, which are ranked among the top in the state, are in walking distance from our home. We are centrally located to amusement parks, beaches, sports arenas, museums and a zoo. We regularly attend concerts, craft shows, county fairs and church bazaars and other community events. In the winter we have fun sledding and playing in the snow.