We love spending our free time being active, but we also really enjoy just hanging at home after a long day of work. We love skiing in the winter, hiking in the state parks all spring, summer, and fall, and running and biking all year. We live close to lakes and rivers so we also kayak, swim, and enjoy boat rides. We have a niece and nephew that keep us moving by trampolining and running around. Our weekends are usually busy with fun activities and family events.

During the week we try to lay low. We tend to cook a quick, casual dinner and watch TV, or a movie. Since we have a lot of friends in the neighborhood, we also go to the dog park or a nice dinner at one of the local restaurants within walking distance. Our dogs also keep us entertained every single day we are with them. They are an endless source of excitement.

Vince's Passions: Family and friends, creating new experiences, and being crafty/baking. I love introducing my family and friends to new things and experiences, whether it's a new festival, culture, or restaurant. Being with those I love and learning together has to be when I am at my happiest in life. Making new decorations for the holidays, gifts for special occasions, and baking are my creative outlet. My favorites are making ornament wreaths for Christmas and baking desserts from different countries.

Jason's Passions: Buying a time warp of a retro-styled Victorian home which needed repairs was a choice of ours. I personally enjoy merging its character through renovation with my quirky sense of style. This provides me with a great sense of ownership. I enjoy entertaining our friends and family, especially al fresco in our backyard and park. I also enjoy being creative in the kitchen and creating new recipes and traditional family meals alike.

Our Passions: Our dogs are an important part of our lives. Not only are they always bringing a smile to our faces, they are small enough that we can travel and experience new things together. We both enjoy working together in the kitchen, Jason cooking and Vince baking. We have a lot of common interests and because we are a male same-sex couple, we often experience life together; biking, running, exploring, and gardening.

Though we may not be a traditional household, we live a life that holds traditions in high regard. We make sure we take the time to celebrate every holiday from New Year's Day to Christmas. Vince was born close to Valentine's Day and Jason was born close to Halloween, so we feel we were born to be festive.

Every Memorial Day, we go to Vince's parents for their annual picnic, which they have had since 1976. Thanksgiving and Christmas with our parents/family are important to us as we alternate each holiday between our families. We love going to parades and really enjoying what each holiday celebrates. Halloween is one of our favorites. We have also made our own traditions with Sunday pasta nights every week, Easter dinners and egg hunts at our house, seasonal trips to our city's conservatory, annual hiking trips, and decorating/crafting all year long. We spend time keeping the traditions of our families alive as much as possible as we both believe traditions are what make each family special, while introducing new traditions we plan to continue as our family grows.

Our neighborhood is a national historic district within a mile of our city's urban core. We are in walking distance to several parks, theaters, playgrounds, swimming pools, restaurants, stores, stadiums, and other sites. Our neighborhood is densely populated and friendly. Each year there is a neighborhood wide yard sale, a house tour, and a national night out. There is also a weekly farmer's market in the park every Friday from May to October.

We live in a three-story rowhome which was built in 1883. Our first floor has a lot of character, with a formal living room and a large kitchen that opens to our dining room. Our backyard is small, but very secure and private, and just enough space to host cookouts and grow tomatoes, kale, zucchini, broccoli, and lettuce. We don't mind our backyard being small as we live just a block away from a large historic park that is home to a lake, a dog park, a children's museum, and an aviary. Our favorite room is the TV room on the second floor, which is very cozy and a great place for cuddling our dogs. We bought our house in 2011 and have spent the past seven years renovating it from top to bottom. It has been a labor of love, which makes us proud. It is a great home for our family.

Vince's brother lives a few minutes away and can't wait to be an uncle again. Vince's parents and sister's family live under an hour away and already visit weekly. Jason's parents live several states away but visit twice a year for several days. Our favorite thing to do each year is decorate our historic home for Christmas and have all of our friends and family over to enjoy the holiday season. When our family and friends visit us, we love playing card/board games, having a long dinner, walking through the park with our dogs, or watching family videos and going through old pictures.

Our families cannot wait for us to adopt! Jason is an only child so this will be his parent's first grandchild. Vince's family is so excited to add to their growing family. Our families have been supportive of us and our relationship from day one. There is so much love in our family.

While we do not know your personal journey and what led you to decide on adoption, we want to thank you for considering us to raise the child you are bringing into the world. You are providing a selfless gift that we will always treasure and value. We hope you find us as we are; fun-loving, easy-going, and strong minded individuals.

We have been together for over ten years, and were finally able to marry three years ago. After starting off with very separate lives in the Washington, D.C. area (Vince was an investigator for the federal government and Jason was an office manager at a dental office), we fell in love, and it was so easy to weave our lives together. It wasn't long before we knew this relationship was the real deal. Even through starting new jobs, moving to a new city, and buying a home together, it only became easier.

Throughout the course of our relationship, we have always had the shared goal of becoming parents. We are proud of the life that we have created together and are more than ready to share that life with a child. We are, and always have been, a strong team and can't wait to embark on this journey together as we expand our family. Becoming fathers is something we discussed very early in our relationship and we are thrilled that we are finally able to do so.

As parents, we plan to encourage our child to be exactly who they were meant to be by creating a loving and nurturing environment for them to discover their own passions and dreams. Learning from new experiences is an important part of our lives and we plan to continue that tradition with our child. While we have shared values to instill, such as a commitment to education, family, community, and compassion, we want to introduce our child to different cultures, new foods, far off places, and exciting activities.

Our child will not just become part of our little family, but he or she will instantly have loving grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and extremely good friends that will be just as committed to them as we will be. We consider our close friends part of our family, which has created an amazing environment to raise a child. Several of our close friends have recently started or are starting a family. Our child will have many instant and life-long friends. We plan to have at least two children which means our children will always have a sibling there to support them through life. Vince is very close to his siblings and really wants the same kind of relationship to grow between our children.

If you choose us as adoptive parents to your child, please understand that you will always be an important part of our lives. We will send regular letters, emails, and pictures so you can see the loving family you helped to create. Your child will know you are their mother and always will be.

With Love, Respect, and Thanks,

Jason & Vince