We are on our annual trip to Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky for Christmas. It is such a sweet time with family as we celebrate. This year, Ash, my nephew got out his guitar to play some songs. Hugo played piano at the nursing home. He had practiced a few songs to bring some holiday spirit to the place. We love to sing, and it is so fun to see the kids growing their skills.

We have been open about our hopes for adoption with our family and closest friends because we wanted them to share our dream. We also know that they are going to be the family of this little person. We asked them to send a pic showing how they feel about it. I don't have all the pics yet, but here is our first draft:

Hi! This is Hugo. I just wanted to say I'm excited to be an older brother. 
Thanks for reading this. 

(Short and sweet, but Hugo wanted to post his own message on here.)

I asked my family to take some pics to share on our profile, and I just have to share some first ones from my parents (Dad and Step-mom). They are so cute. They are the sweetest grandparents, and they are SO ready for a new grand baby to love. 

Summer trips mean lots of grandparent time. One of the highlights of our weeks in Indiana is always going fishing with PopPop. He loves taking the little ones out to the lake to fish. They caught SO many fish last week, and put them all back in the lake. 
we also celebrated my grandma's birthday, saw all the cousins, painted rocks, and rode in PopPop's cool vintage cars. It is one our favorite parts of Summertime!

We are renting the most adorable cottage in Maine this week. Hugo is at camp, and we wanted to be a bit closer to where he is staying. The dogs are excitedly running and jumping through the woods. We took a long walk earlier and found acres of scrumptious wild blueberries. It is so fun to go on these adventures together!

My teaching year ended last week, so Jonathon took the day off and planned a date day!  We took a long walk, had coffee at our local coffeeshop, bought goodies at our favorite shop, and ended the day with dinner at our favorite Thai restaurant with Hugo. 

Jonathon and I feel lucky to be such great friends as well as being married. Making sure to set aside time together ensures that we maintain a close connection. Next week's date day: canoeing!

We had lots of family celebrations this weekend-graduations of Our nephew and our cousin + Father's Day! We were excited to spend some time with family. Hugo got to check out his PopPop's new vintage car. That required a cruise around town playing oldies with the windows down. It was so fun!

We recently moved across Cambridge to a bigger place! We are so happy to have more sunshine streaming in the windows. We are also closer to some lovely trails for walking. We are having so much fun exploring our new neighborhood. So far, we have found an amazing pizza place, a delicious Mexican restaurant, and the best Ramen. One of the things we realized after getting settled is that we can make any place a home by drilling it with games, singing, laughter, and movie nights.

*in this photo, it is clear to see that Tulip, our pup is 100% happy after a walk around the new walking paths!

Spring is such a flurry of activity! 
We love taking weekend trips up north to the woods, watching Hugo play baseball at the park, and celebrating all of the end of the school year events. 
We went camping with another family and had so much fun roasting marshmallows around the fire. The next weekend was for celebrating Jonathon's birthday, and the past two days were filled with a piano recital and more baseball!

When Jonathon and I first met, our first conversation was an excited realization that we shared many of the same interests. We liked similar music, we both loved to exercise, and we even had several friends in common. But the most exciting thing was our shared interest in Spanish. Jonathon had received a minor in Spanish at college while Katie received a Masters degree in teaching Spanish. 

So it made perfect sense for Jonathon to propose while visiting Guatemala (and practicing more Spanish!). Since then, Soeaking Spanish has always been a part of our normal life. But recently, we were able to take a dream trip to Spain. We spent the week walking around Valencia and Barcelona. It was just beautiful. We made friends while drinking coffee, enjoyed art museums, and soaked up the Spanish sunshine. We can't wait for our next adventure!

*in this photo we were visiting a park in Barcelona!

We were in the car today on vacation and a song came on with these words:

"I can be
I can be your brother
I can be
I can be your friend
I can be
I can be another
Hand to hold until the end"

and we all smiled at each other because we had the same thought at the same time. 

We know adoption is right for our family, and even with so many unknowns, (we don't know who or when) we still know it's right for us. We are ready to be another friend and a hand to hold for you. We hope while you are going through so much that you find many other helping hands as well.

pictured below: Hugo and two friends watching the sun rise.

These flowers are sitting on the table looking so pretty. 

We went to the store last night before it began to snow. As we were walking down an aisle, I asked Hugo if he wanted to pick out a book. I thought he would pick a new chapter book from one of the series he likes. Instead, he picked up this book, called the ABCs of Love and said, "I'd like to get this book to read if I get to have a little brother or sister." here are the first few pages:

A is for always--that's how long I'll love you for.
B is for bear hug, to show I love you more.
C is for cherish--looking after one another. 
D is for devoted--as we are to each other.

We aren't sure when it will happen, but we think of you often. We know that it takes an incredible amount of wisdom to consider a family for adoption. Let us know if you want to find out more about our family. 

With love,

Jonathon, Katie, and Hugo

It is as so nice to celebrate Thanksgiving with some of our family and friends. We traveled to Vermont, chatted around the campfire, put puzzles together, are yummy food, and played in the snow. It was such a happy weekend. 
We are so thankful for good health. We are also thankful for our family and friends. We feel so lucky to be surrounded by this much love. We are  also thankful that we have this opportunity to grow our family. 

*Walter hurt his paw while we were walking, and everyone pitched in to help him feel better. He was enjoying the attention :-)

I cannot decide whether I like Thanksgiving or Christmas more. I love the time to reflect and count my blessings during Thanksgiving. But I am always so excited to start decorating and planning for Christmas. We think of gifts for friends and teachers, plant a trip home to see family, bake for our neighbors, and have lots of traditions to count down the days until Christmas. 
This year, Hugo and I thought of a way to help some of the people who live in the shelter in our town, so we are making care packages to help them as the weather gets colder. 
We also picked a really full Christmas tree this year because we feel extra thankful to see family and friends this year! 

We just returned home to a new school year after a last minute adventure. Living in New England, Iceland is just a short and inexpensive flight away. So we took a few days to hike and saw some amazing scenes. You can see a picture of one place that reminded us to hold on to hope. On that beach with black sand, Jonathon is walking underneath a full rainbow. I was so so surprised and delighted with how beautiful it was. 

We hope you find small reminders of hope in your day. 

all the best,

jonathon and katie

We live a short drive from the beach, and we love to go up for sunset. This evening, families were having bonfires in the beach, playing in the waves, and chatting together. 

It was a beautiful night, and we enjoyed talking and jumping over the waves. Hugo was wondering how he would play with a baby at the beach. We told him that when he was a baby he liked to taste the sand and put it in his hair! Hugo asks a lot of good questions about what adoption will be like. He is excited, and has a lot of ideas about how he can be a good big brother. Jonathon and I are so happy to know that he is thinking about what life will be like when we adopt. 

In this picture, you will see how we were feeling at the end of the evening-calm, happy and Hugo was feeling a little bit silly! I'm so glad we have these moments to talk together. We continue to think of you and hope that you are feeling cared for. Know that our family is wishing all the best for you as you navigate this journey. 

Love,

Jonathon and Katie

Hugo is learning how to cook! He made his lunch (with supervision) before we head out for some fun. We love how Summer vacation gives us time together to do new things like this. Today we are headed to the pool, and tomorrow we will go to the beach! 

We have such a nice family! They are so excited to know about our adoption journey are 100% supportive and encouraging about our hopes for an open adoption with great communication and visits. 

My twin sister Kellie says she can't wait to be an aunt (again!). Our parents and grandparents ask about it every time we talk-they are so excited to invite a new baby to the family. We feel so thankful to be part of a family that is so loving. During our last visit, Kellie and I were making cookies and talking about our hopes for adopting a baby. She is so encouraging and I can't wait for her to be an aunt again! 

We had such a fun day playing in the water park and checking out some of the smaller rides at Kings Island. I was so fearless when I was a teenager, but it was nice to ride the smaller rides with the younger kids this time, followed by a nice time cooling off at the swim park. 

We spent a busy day in New York City with friends from graduate school, and it was so fun.

We visited The Color Factory and The Harry Potter Store and played in the park. The day started out rainy and ended with sunshine. Our friends bring so much light into our lives as well. 

For the past couple of months, we have been having friends over for homemade pizza. And of course, nothing pairs better with pizza than cookies. 
Maximum effort!

Jonathon 

(in this picture, Jonathon is making a batch of cookies for neighbors)

We have been so excited and happy this week to have the chance to see some of our friends and family! We stopped in Pittsburgh for a fabulous pizza party and Cincinnati to visit my twin, and now we are staying on the farm of my husband's family for two weeks. Jonathon's mamaw had Covid a few weeks ago, so we are celebrating her returned health and energy. Hugo is playing in the barn and chasing after kittens, washing the car (for FUN!), and soaking up lots of time with cousins. Next up, Indiana grandparents and New York for best friend time! We are so thankful for family members that feel like friends and for friends who feel like family. This past year of quarantine and social distancing made us realize how important it is to spend as much time as possible with the ones we love. 
As always, we think of you even though we haven't met yet and hope for your days to be filled with peace as you navigate this road. As we were driving here, we realized that someday we might be adding a new city to our Summer trip so that we can see the birth family of the child we hope to adopt. We know every person has a different idea of what they might want when it comes to communicating with a family, but our hearts lead us to want an open adoption with visits and updates. 
More letters to come, but for now, we are getting ready to make chocolate chip cookies for a dinner with family.

All the best,

Katie and Jonathon

It is the last week of school in Massachusetts, and that means field trips! My students were so flexible and hard-working through distance-learning and retiring to school with so many safety guidelines to keep. I learned so much this year as well, and we have all more than earned our Summer break. So today, my team and I are taking students kayaking on the Mystic River. It is a beautiful outside, the sun is shining, the students are excited and laughing, and my heart is happy to be celebrating these wonderful people. It has been a challenging school year, and it is so nice to end the semester with an adventure on the water!

We have a favorite camping spot that we have started visiting in Western Massachusetts. We have zero phone signal, but acres and acres of trees. The most beautiful creek zig zags through the forest creating the most restful and cheerful music as it trickles over the rocks in the creek bed. The dogs chase each other and wait for squirrel sightings to go dashing through the bushes. It is a perfect place to have time to chat, dream, tell stories around the campfire, and hike. 

When we were dating, we often asked friends and mentors what made a good marriage. We heard a lot of people say that good communication was key. Others said affection was the most important thing. A few people mentioned agreeing on the big issues of life. The advice that stood out to us though was from one of our favorite couples. The husband said that they weren’t a 50/50 kind of family. My first reaction was, “Oh no! Which person isn’t working as hard?” But then he continued by saying that both partners were in 100%. Jonathon and I (Katie) loved this advice because it fit so well with how we see marriage. We want to love each other 100%, help each other 100%, parent 100%, give 100%, listen 100%, and forgive 100%. This is a strategy that allows a family to thrive when everyone is committed to the same ideal.

When Hugo was a baby, Jonathon told one of his friends that he was so lucky because Katie was the “LeBron James” of Moms. If you aren’t familiar with basketball, LeBron James is one of the greatest players to ever play in the NBA. In the early days, I (Katie) might have known more and taught more about babies because I am a teacher and a former nanny, lactation and sleep consultant, but Jonathon has always been committed to being a 100% Dad. Katie plans epic playdates. Jonathon plans exciting “Buddy Days”. Katie bakes yummy treats. Jonathon makes a perfect pizza. We are committed to a consistent effort on both sides, and now our son actively commits to doing the same because it is fun to be part of a family where everyone is dedicated to making life great.

We are so looking forward to meeting our partner Mom. This is such a challenging time for you, with immense decisions in front of you, and we can reassure you that we don’t believe in doing things halfway. As we wait to be matched, we are committed to being 100%. We will be honest, authentic, respectful, and loving. We will share about you with your baby in a loving way and will communicate often with you, and even visit you on your terms. We are 100% with you.

(The picture below is of a Zoom Wedding with friends...I bet you can guess what kind of advice we would give the newlyweds!)

Connection-Affection-Respect-Trust-Honesty

When I think about adopting, one of the things I consider is what a mom might MOST want to know about us. And the thing that I keep coming back to is how we parent, essentially what kind of parents are we? I wanted to take a moment to share our perspective on that. We are big supporters of "attachment parenting" which means that we believe that connection and affection are the most important parts of parents bonding with a child. When our son was a newborn, this meant that we picked him up when he cried, fed him when he was hungry, and snuggled him when he struggled to fall asleep. As simple as that might sound, it was so important in helping our son learn to trust us and depend on us. And to be 100% honest, we often raced to see who could get to him first because those cuddles were so sweet.

As our son grows, we have also committed to showing how much we respect each other. If he is upset because his feelings got hurt at school, we don't tell him to stop crying. We ask him what made him feel that way and how he responded. We listen and show compassion. When he makes a mistake, we NEVER use physical punishment. That would not fit our values as a family. We sit down and talk about it. We say how we feel when we are hurt or disrespected. We allow him to make it right by apologizing and helping to solve the problem. And we model the same thing when we make a mistake as parents! We say sorry and admit it when we are wrong, and we are quick to forgive so that our days end with smiles.

We have also earned our son’s respect by committing to being honest with him. When he asks a question, we are careful to be honest so that he can trust us. This means that when he was 7 and starting to have questions about Santa, we sat down and talked about Christmas and how giving gifts is one of the best parts. Hugo now loves the idea of playing Santa-one of his favorite parts of this past Christmas was buying presents for families in need this year. We were honest with him when he asked, and now he knows that he can ask questions and trust us when we answer. 

Telling stories: We often relate ideas and lessons to Hugo through telling stories. Adventures and misadventures from our childhoods, mistakes and successes from growing up, times we messed up and others when we made the right choice. These stories help him to realize that growing up is a process, it doesn’t require him to be perfect or even to TRY to be perfect. He just has to keep learning and working on being a nice human.

These values are really important because when we adopt, it will be SO essential that we answer questions with honesty and respect. We want to know and celebrate the Mother that we work with so that we can make sure a child never has to wonder. We want to celebrate our child’s story and how your story is and continues to be part of that. We want to focus on connection and affection, being good communicators and showing lots of love. Let us know if you have any questions.

As always, with much love,

Katie and Jonathon

In this picture, you can see us on our latest canoe trip! We saw baby swans <3

After Christmas, we packed up our bags and our dogs and headed north to Maine...all the way to the most northeastern point of the state. We stayed at a farm house, walked in the fields, and fed the sweet calves. Our favorite part was early morning. We woke up and raced outside to catch the first glow of the sunrise. The dogs ran in circles and chased each others' tails. Jonathon and Hugo took turns jumping over an old mill stone. I climbed over the rocks and peered into the frozen tide pools. It was so cold that we could see our breath and the water froze on the sand as the tide moved out. Finally, the sun would slide up over the horizon and send golden light across the water, shining on a brand new day. The glow warmed our faces. We watched its reflection on the bay and let the beauty seep into our hearts. On the way home from Maine, we shared our hopes for the next year. We want to continue to share fun adventures with each other. We thought of new ways to be healthy too. We also talked about how our family might change this year. We ended 2020 feeling thankful to be together.

Today, as friends and family sent messages for the new year, I thought about how much hope we often feel as a new year begins. We make new goals, talk about our hopes for the year, and feel the optimism of fresh starts. The sun is setting now, closing out this first day of a new year. I am sitting next to the Christmas tree enjoying its light just a bit longer. I picked up a book, but set it back down because I am thinking of you. As you are reading this message and feeling your own mix of emotions about the coming year, you may be worried or wondering what the year will bring for you. New beginnings can be so challenging. There is so much that is unknown. I was thinking that I want our family to feel like those glowing sunrises to the Mother that we will partner with in the future, bringing warmth, love, and hope into her life. In the midst of uncertainty, may she feel certain that our family is seeking out the beauty in each day and in each other. May she know how our hearts are warmed thinking of how our family might grow.

Warmest wishes for you in the new year.

Katie and Jonathon 

After seven months at home, Hugo was able to go back to school for in-person learning. His school is fairly small, with pre-school to Fifth grade students in one building. Only a small group of students are back at school, as a test to see how things will go. Students' desks are spaced apart with a box of supplies next to each one. There are only 9 students in Hugo's class, and I love hearing about his growing friendships. He has a fun mix of friends, some daring, some shy, some book-worms, and some sports fans. Some times we head home for Hugo's online karate class, and other days we stop for a hot chocolate and a chat in the park. We talk about how our family might change with adoption and how excited we are to grow our family. On the day we took this picture, Hugo was saying how excited he is to meet the Mom we will partner with and the baby who will join our family. He is excited to play in this park with a little sibling.    

It has been such a strange year, but we have been sure to find ways to celebrate in the midst of social distancing. We celebrated Thanksgiving  at home, calling family and friends through the day to share some time together safely. Then, we piled into the car with the dogs for another weekend adventure! This weekend, we drove to the Catskills, in New York to an old one-room schoolhouse that was turned into a cottage. There is no phone signal, no WI-FI, just lots of beautiful scenery and time to talk and be together. We were prepared with a LEGO set and a new JK Rowling book to pass the time. As we reflected this Thanksgiving Day, we are so thankful to have each other, to have good health, a beautiful home, and jobs (or school) that we love.