We will always remember the day we received the call that our son, Julian, was born. We hurriedly packed our bags and made arrangements to fly and meet our son the following day. We felt so blessed and humbled to be chosen by his birth mother to be his parents. When we arrived at the hospital his birth mother wanted us to be the first to hold Julian. The moment we held him we knew he was meant to be our son and that moment forever changed our lives in the best way possible.

We honor our commitment to his birth mother by sending pictures and letters throughout the year. We also created a life book for Julian so he will always know who his birth family is, the love his birthmother has for him, and the difficult decision she made to place him for adoption. Prior to us flying back home, we were able to spend some time with his birth mother. We were thankful for this opportunity since she shared many stories about her and her family that we plan to share with Julian as he grows up. She is an incredibly strong woman who wanted to give her son opportunities she was not able to provide.

We are truly excited to be embarking on this new adoption journey! The love we have for Julian is immeasurable and we want to extend that love to another child.

Avelaine About JJ: JJ is a true caregiver, our friends even refer to him as "Papa JJ" because he always makes sure we're all safe (and well fed!). JJ is very dedicated and focused, putting 100% effort into all he does, whether it's work at the medical clinic or putting a bookcase together. He's very thoughtful, always mindful of not hurting people's feelings and making people feel special. He has a generous heart, not thinking twice to help someone in need. He's been an incredible dad to Julian. Even after coming home from working a long day he makes sure he spends time with our son before going to bed, even if it means waiting a little longer to eat dinner! He is very attentive to his parents, always ensuring that they are well-cared for.

JJ About Avelaine: Avelaine's deep love and caring for others is demonstrated by her thoughtfulness and her persistent willingness to offer a helping hand. She's also a great cook, always ensuring our family eats well-balanced, healthy meals. She also loves to bake, making cookies and cakes for us to snack on. I look forward to eating the food she makes every day! Avelaine is a great mother in the way she cares for Julian. She is dedicated in his care and development and always makes sure she is there to meet his needs and show him how loved he is. She was an executive who traveled much for her job. She decided to pursue another job that would enable to her to spend more time with our son. It was important for her to make sure she is home when Julian wakes up in the mornings and is home to help put him down to sleep in the evenings. It's those everyday moments that Avelaine looks forward to.

Parenting to us means giving children the opportunity to grow and reach their fullest potential through unwavering love, patience, and guidance. We want to teach them that even if they make a mistake it is a learning opportunity and it's how we grow as human beings. We also want to share values that our parents taught us such as hard work, respect, honesty, and integrity.

With our son Julian, we think the best part of being parents is being able to experience the everyday moments with him - eating meals together, reading books, playing with him and his toys, and hearing about how his day went at school. Everyday Julian surprises us with all that he's learning and it makes us so happy that we are part of his life.

We look forward to family vacations where we can experience other cultures and what makes them unique. As a family, we love being outdoors and always look for opportunities to be outside doing various activities whether it's walking, gardening, biking, playing with our neighbors' children or just sitting on our deck having a nice meal. We are excited to have another child be a part of our family. We envision him/her playing with Julian and our cousin's children like we did when we were younger. Our faith plays an important part in our lives, and we also want to teach the importance of spirituality and having faith.

We moved to our home 5 years ago. It's a light-filled, spacious, five bedroom, 3½ bath home in the Maryland suburbs. Our favorite room is our finished basement that has a separate playroom; this is where we like to play board games, watch movies, play Just Dance on our xBox, or put puzzles together. Our neighborhood is very walkable and on nice days we take strolls to the local parks or ride our bikes through the surrounding neighborhoods. There are several children of all ages in our neighborhood so it's been really nice meeting and getting to know the local families. Avelaine enjoys gardening and looks forward to tending to our flower garden everyday with Julian.

We are near great public and private schools, playgrounds, libraries, and restaurants. On some weekends we walk through the local farmers markets to see what the vendors are selling. In the summer we also put out a water slide and splash pad for Julian to play in! We live near an estuary and like to hike on the various paths that lead to a river. We also have a membership to the nearby aquarium, which is located along a harbor. We like to bring Julian so he can learn about the different fun sea animals. Julian loves to watch the dolphin show as well. We live close to Philadelphia and Washington, DC, and always enjoy walking around the cities.

Avelaine is very close to her mom, who is an avid reader and is always brining books for Julian. Avelaine's dad is a retired electrical engineer and is very handy. He is always showing Avelaine how to fix things around the house. Avelaine grew up surrounded by several aunts, uncles, and cousins, whom she remains close with to this day since they live within a day's drive. Two of her cousins are like sisters to her. It's been such a great experience seeing Julian playing with their kids and sharing similar experiences. Avelaine's parents, who are both from the Philippines, live about an hour away and are always ready to come over and help watch Julian, or simply to spend quality time with him.

JJ's family loves to spend time together, especially around food! JJ's mother is from the Philippines, and his father from Puerto Rico. JJ loves to watch any type of sporting event with his dad. JJ's dad is very thoughtful, saving interesting articles he reads in the paper for us. His father loves teaching Julian how to speak Spanish and taught him his first Spanish word "abuelo" (grandfather). JJ's mom is a retired beautician and loves giving Julian haircuts! She loves to cook and always ensures we have plenty of food. He is also very close to his younger cousin whom he served as best man at his wedding. When JJ and his cousin are together, it's nothing but laughs and joking about who's the better singer!

Hi! We are JJ and Avelaine, and we want to thank you for reading our profile. There's so much we want to say and share with you, starting off with our admiration for the tremendous love you have for your child in considering adoption and our immense gratitude that you are taking this moment to read about our life and the life we can provide your child.

We can't begin to know or understand the decisions you are faced with, but we do know that the unconditional love you have for your child is evident in the fact that you are considering adoption. If you decide that adoption is the best choice for your child and we are blessed enough to be chosen, we promise to tell your child's adoption story at an early age. We will explain that you gave him/her the gift of life and had so much love that you entrusted us to be his or her parents. We plan to start a "lifebook" with pages devoted to you and your family, sharing the adoption story and how we became a family. We will be happy to share letters and pictures with you so that you are comforted in knowing that your child is being cared for in a safe and loving home.

We have been together for 12 years and married for 8 years. When we decided to start a family, adoption was always an option for us. We had undergone one round of IVF, which was not successful. What solidified our decision to pursue adoption was attending an adoption picnic for adoptive families and meeting extraordinary families who have adopted or were in the process of adopting. Being able to connect with those families and see all those happy children playing, who were touched by adoption, was amazing. We knew then adoption was the right path to parenthood for us. We knew that becoming a family didn't mean having our own biological children, but it is the bonds that are made and the love that is shared. We currently have a son whom we've adopted and he brings so much joy in not only our lives, but also our extended family and friends lives as well. We want to expand that love to another child!

What makes our marriage strong is that we truly see each other as partners and enjoy spending time together as a family, while also making sure we have our "date nights." We feel life isn't about the latest gadget to buy but rather creating special memories. Imagine us as a family who likes spending time with each other playing board games, taking walks in the park, and traveling. We have friends who have children Julian's age and they are so happy when we do various activities together, like having play dates at each other's homes or going on hikes together.

JJ is a physician, and Avelaine is a pharmacist. We currently live in a friendly neighborhood in the suburbs of Maryland, near two major cities. Since education has been and is an important part of our lives, we made sure that the neighborhood we chose had a great school system, offering a safe environment and several extracurricular activities. Our town has top rated public and private schools.

We appreciate the time you're taking to read about us. As parents, we are grounded in faith in God and promise to always put your child's well-being at the forefront. We also have the support of several family members, including two sets of very excited and always ready to help grandparents and our son, who can't wait to be a big brother! We will share the love we have for each other with a child and give him/her all that we can to ensure a happy, successful life.

Warmest wishes,

JJ & Avelaine