We have a strong love for the outdoors, an active and healthy lifestyle, cooking (especially making our own pizzas and pastas) and setting aside time for being creative. We enjoy writing and are passionate about music and art. We feel we've learned a lot about the world through traveling, and try to take one international trip per year. We have chosen careers that give us a strong sense of purpose and meaning, and hope that our work can make the world a better place. While our work is important to us, our family and friends matter the most to us, and so we put a lot of intentionality into finding a good work/life balance. Finally, we adore and care for our five-year-old dog Louie, who is a rambunctious, loving, gentle, and sweet dog.

We both put an extremely high premium on empathy and kindness and surround ourselves with people who are comfortable demonstrating warmth and affection. We like to spend time with people who are authentically themselves, and practice gratitude for what they have in their life, and we both take care to be that way with one another. It is not uncommon for us to describe to one another what we're thankful for, and to be open to new experiences and perspectives. Finally, we appreciate and admire each other's sense of adventure, and willingness to try new things, meet new people, and go to new places.

Our approach to cultural diversity is to approach every situation by listening twice as much as we speak, with an enthusiasm to learn and to experience other people's traditions and cultures. We believe that diversity and multiculturalism make our communities stronger. We believe that the child's identity will be formed through a highly personal journey, one that we will support as they explore in their own way. We live in a diverse neighborhood and have a diverse group of friends and colleagues of all races, religions, and from many different backgrounds. We will make it a priority to ensure that our child has role models in their community who look like them. We will seek out opportunities for our child to learn more about their cultural roots and traditions, and would welcome you as a regular presence in their lives, if that is something you are interested in. We hope to nurture our child and allow them to choose their own path in life, but with lots of support. We will be very intentional about carving out time and resources for them to explore, travel, and share their experiences with us. We recognize that our child may adopt their own cultural traditions, religious views, and a multi-faceted identity very different from our own, but we believe that any differences we may have should be celebrated.

We've lived in Oakland, California for about four years, and in the San Francisco Bay Area for about seven. We live in a three-bedroom, three-bathroom house on a quiet residential street, where we know our neighbors well. Our next door neighbor is originally from Canada, as is Conrad, and our neighbors across the street have a young son, and we share vegetables and fruit from our garden in exchange for eggs from their chickens.

We love living in Oakland because of the diverse and vibrant community, which is full of small business owners, artists, and organizers. We try to surround ourselves with people who share our values and have a wide range of lived experiences, and it is important to us that our child grow up in a diverse neighborhood where they will get to know people from many different backgrounds and cultures.

We have many friends in the Bay Area, and many have children of their own, mostly under five years old. We get together with them frequently, and the kids play together. We can't wait to have a child join in on the fun!

We were both attracted to the Bay Area because of how easy it is for us to access nature. We spend our evenings and weekends outside hiking, running, cycling, and exploring. We like to drive into the city and walk through Golden Gate Park until we reach the Pacific Ocean, or drive across the bridge to Marin County and hike to the top of Mount Tamalpais or to see the waterfalls. We love to spend time in the redwoods where it is peaceful and beautiful.

We have one sibling each - Kate has a younger brother and Conrad has a younger sister - with whom we are very close. We see them multiple times a year, despite not living in the same state.

Kate's parents and brother are originally from Chicago but now live in the mountain town of Sun Valley, Idaho. Her parents are retired psychologists and her brother is a fly fishing guide and snowboarding instructor. Kate's brother lives with his wife, who is a designer, and their daughter Tegan who was born in June of 2022. Kate has extended family in both Wisconsin and South Carolina, and is very close with her cousins, who she grew up with. Two of Kate's closest family friends (who are more like extended family) were adopted and are now young women in their 20s; one lives nearby in San Francisco and we see her often. We have looked to them for advice based on their experience.

Conrad's parents, sister, and grandmother live outside of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His parents are retired and live in the countryside, and his sister works at a design firm. Conrad and Kate visit Canada every year.

Our families have met several times and have become close, traveling to spend time with one another (even without us there!). We share a love of the outdoors, traveling, and cooking, and enjoy making big holiday meals together. We also share a curiosity about how the world works, of science and art. We trade books with one another extensively, sharing our favorites and making recommendations to one another.

We deeply appreciate that you took the time to read our profile and consider us as parents for your child. We understand that this is a very big decision. Please know that if you choose us, you will be choosing a family for your child that is loving, committed, and ready to support them through whatever life brings their way.

A little about us - we have been married for six years, and adopted our dog Louie four years ago. We have an enormous amount of love to give and are ready to raise a child in a safe, nourishing, and stable home. We will raise them to be kind, empathetic, curious, and open-minded.

We know that it takes a village to raise a child, and we are grateful to have a large and diverse community of friends, many with children of their own. Your child will be supported and loved by this community, and will be raised around other children whose families share our values. Our families are an important presence in our lives, so your child will not only be raised and loved by us, but by their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

We have both worked hard to build stable careers that allow us to work on things we care about and have healthy lives outside of work. We have stability in our relationship, our finances, and our daily life. We will ensure your child has everything they need to thrive in life, to get a good education, to stay healthy and safe, and to explore the things that make them feel most fulfilled.

We think it's important for our child to know where they came from, and to understand that they are loved by both their birth mom and their adoptive parents. We will send letters and photos to you as your child grows up, and make sure you know as much as you want to about their life. We are open to exchanging emails, phone calls, and arranging future visits, if that is something you are interested in.

We believe that the important things in life are to be in community with others, to never stop learning, and to find peace in the everyday, small experiences - cooking dinner while listening to music, being outside in the sun and the fresh air, eating popcorn while watching a movie in a theater, and, most importantly, spending time in the company of the people we love.

The environment we strive to create in our home is warm, affectionate, stable, and calm. We believe it's important to spend quality time together, and will make it a priority to be present, engaged parents. We will be the kind of parents who read bedtime stories, help with homework, show up to school plays and swimming lessons, take the family camping, play board games, make Friday pizza nights, build forts in the living room, tell cheesy jokes, and take frequent trips to parks, beaches, forests, libraries, and museums.

If you choose us to be the parents of your child, we can promise that they will never doubt they are loved, safe, and supported. We will nurture them to become their own person and surround them with a community of people who love them unconditionally. Thank you so much for considering us.

Conrad & Kate