We've been thinking about adoption for a long time. We have family friends and colleagues who are adopted and have shared their stories with us. As a same-sex couple, adoption was always going to be the way for us to grow our family so we've approached it with hope and open hearts: the hope that it will happen for us, and hearts open to your experience as birth mother and to the needs of a child as they grow.

In 2022, after an adoption journey of two years, we welcomed our daughter Sofia into our lives. It's been a total whirlwind becoming parents, and the love and excitement has carried us through the sleepless nights. Watching Sofia discover the world and being her Dads has been the most magical experience. And we're ready and eager to do it again and to grow our family of love and adventure with another little one.

We both share a passion for music and singing. This love of music has given us amazing experiences, Aris got to sing the National Anthem for the NBA Golden State Warriors and Kevin got to perform in Carnegie Hall. We used to be in a choir together which would perform concerts to support various charities. We even got to sing a duet together which felt really special. In the past year we've both taken up new instruments. Kevin is learning the tin whistle, an Irish traditional instrument, and Aris the piano. We're both only starting out, but we hope to share this love of music and how it can be a means of connecting with other people and the world with a child.

We're both people who love people. If we're not hosting a family celebration, or cooking for friends, we're organizing some fun or cultural outing in the city. We really want Sofia and our future child to have warm memories of friends and family so we always host a big Thanksgiving dinner for family and friends. We often invite more people than there are spaces at the table, but we always figure it out. It's important for us to give our family and friends opportunities to spend good quality time together.

We're a multicultural international couple, having grown up and lived on four different continents. Because of this we've been lucky enough to experience many different countries and cultures both as individuals and as a family. We've made and maintained deep friendships and connections in each of the places we've lived. Those connections and experiences have really influenced our lives and our openness to new ideas and people from all backgrounds. We're really interested in learning more about other cultures and their languages, music, and dance. For years Aris was in a Polynesian dance troupe, performing at and planning cultural festivals along the west coast. Kevin is a terrible dancer, but is a self-confessed language nerd and speaks Irish, French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, and a little Spanish.

We want to honor the cultures of our adopted family and will seek to enrich our children's lives with the cultures and traditions of their heritage. It's an important part of who they are and will become an important part of our lives. We look forward to sharing the joy and wonder of the world with another little one.

We live in a three-story home in a big city in Illinois with a private garden and lots of space to explore and play. We share the house with our daughter Sofia and our two cats: Goose and Earl. For most of our time together it was the two of us and Goose. During the pandemic we fostered a pregnant rescue cat and raised her and her 6 kittens. It was a busy time! We found the mama cat and all the kittens loving homes. However one little guy, Earl, became Goose's best friend and so found his home with us. Sofia arrived in 2022. She has filled our hearts and made our four into five. She has such a loving, playful and adventurous spirit. We have no doubt she'll make the best big sister.

We live just by a park and the zoo, near the lake in a family-friendly neighborhood. The park is known for its wonderful playground, and there's families picnicking in summer and building snowmen in the winter. The neighborhood is pretty fun around the holidays, everyone goes all out decorating their house for Halloween and we get families and kids trick-or-treating from all over. We both absolutely LOVE Christmas so our house is always decked out with lights, Disney characters, and Filipino Christmas lanterns. We're lucky to be in the best school district in the city. It is a safe place to raise a child to have adventures, make friends, and explore their world.

Our family is a multicultural, international bunch. Aris was born in the Philippines with four siblings and grew up in Australia before moving to America as a teenager. Kevin grew up in Ireland with two siblings and studied and worked in England, France, and Japan before moving to America. Filipino and Irish families have a surprising amount in common: they're big, close-knit, and full of constant chatter and laughter, and we both love every minute being with them. Aris' family is in California and Kevin's family is in Ireland, but we visit them a couple times a year, and we love hosting our sisters and brothers, parents and cousins here too. Back during the pandemic we started weekly family Zooms - often in silly costumes just to make each other laugh, and we continue that tradition today.

Family is definitely the most important part of our lives. Meeting each other's family just felt like coming home. Our families both know we're hoping to grow our family further and there is great excitement. Welcoming Sofia into our lives and seeing the love and support from our families has been so heartening. Watching her grow up, and become her own little person has been such a joy. Having grown up ourselves surrounded by so many different cultures and so much love and guidance from extended family, we look forward to giving another baby that same big loving family.

Hello, we're Aris and Kevin, thank you for looking reading our profile. We live in a large city in Illinois with our daughter Sofia and two cats Goose and Earl. We are hoping to grow our family further and welcome a baby into our lives.

We understand how difficult the decision you are making must be. We really admire your strength as you choose the best family for your child. Should we be the couple you choose to welcome your child into our family, please know that we are here to support you on this journey, and that your love will always be a cherished and valued part of your child's life. We hope our profile gives you a sense of who we are and the life of love and laughter we can offer.

As a same-sex couple, we always knew the gift of adoption would be the way for us to grow our family. Since we welcomed our daughter Sofia into our lives we've relished being Dads and can't wait to grow our loving family further. We are committed to open adoption. We have a good relationship with Sofia's birth-mom. You will always be the child's birth family and part of their and our lives. We are open to and ready to grow this relationship however you choose - through emails, letters, phone calls, or visits. We want you to see them grow and thrive, and for them to have the opportunity to know you or your story. We will follow your lead on how open you want this relationship to be, respecting that your choice can change over time.

Our families are a big part of our lives and they are both extremely excited about our adoption plan. A new baby in our family will have doting grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins delighted to show them love and excited to guide them as they grow.

We are also a multicultural family. Aris is Filipino American and Kevin is from Ireland. Aris was born in the Philippines and grew up in Australia before moving to America as a teenager. Kevin grew up in Ireland and studied and worked in England, France, and Japan before moving to America. Having experienced many other cultures, we celebrate diversity and difference. We're really looking forward to teaching our child about their culture and our home cultures, to learning and growing with them.

We have stable jobs that we really enjoy. Aris is a producer at a big technology firm. Kevin is a diplomat and manages a team in Chicago. We are lucky that our employers really value family. Kevin will get almost a year of paternity leave and Aris has six months. We both have a good work-life balance. Aris works from home full-time and Kevin works from home a number of days a week.

What we can offer this child is a home full of love and laughter. We can provide them a solid education so that they can follow their dreams whatever they may be. We can also teach them how to celebrate the opportunities as well as deal with the challenges they encounter on life's journey. Our hope for them is that they will feel loved and supported to embrace the world, and find their place within it.

We really appreciate you taking the time to read our profile.

Thank You,

Aris & Kevin