Dear Expectant Mother,
Thank you for taking the time to get to know us. We admire your courage in exploring adoption for your child. We promise a home filled with love and laughter, growth and discovery, friends and family, care and support, where a child will understand the love and sacrifice that you have made.
We are strong believers in adoption, and chose to adopt our first child rather than trying fertility treatments. We recognize and appreciate the trust you are considering placing in us. We would like to share a little about us and look forward to learning more about you and your hopes for your child.
(From Zoya)
Pooja & Caesar (a.k.a Mummy & Daddy) adopted me when I was five months old. I am now two and a half and really eager for a sibling who I can love and grow up with.
About Us
We're a young couple, in our early thirties. (That's how we keep up with Zoya!) We were fortunate to meet in our last year of postgraduate study in California, while volunteering for a children's charity. We hit it off like we'd known each other for years. We got engaged 6 months later, married in 2002, and have never looked back. Caesar is lively, confident, outgoing, affectionate and loyal, while Pooja is quiet, happy, loving and genuine. We are each other's best friends and anchors, and have built our marriage on love, trust, respect, teamwork, shared interests and great communication.
My Mummy, Pooja by Zoya
Mummy grew up in Singapore and went to college in upstate New York before moving to California for her Masters degree. Before becoming a mother, she was a diplomat, but was happy to give it up so that she could give her best to me and my future sibling (but obviously, what could be more important than us?) Mummy loves cooking, reading, dancing, and the outdoors. She has a soft spot for children's charities and the environment. She is kind and caring and takes excellent care of me, from making me yummy meals, to singing and playing games, to teaching me how to be a kind and considerate "big girl". I got my love for books, music and dance from her, and I would love to share these with a baby brother or sister.
My Daddy, Caesar by Zoya
Daddy grew up in India in a very large and loving extended family (he has 32 first cousins!) and came to the US to earn his Masters degree in Computer Science. He is now a Director at a major software company, where he loves the challenge of developing cool new products. Daddy is a cheerful, warm and affectionate person, always ready to help and support friends and family. Besides his passion for gadgets, he loves soccer, swimming, music, books, writing and photographing Mummy and me. Daddy and I enjoy doing creative things together, such as making up new games, telling stories and inventing imaginary characters.
Pooja & Caesar on Zoya
Zoya is a very social, active and affectionate two and a half year old with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. She loves singing, playing in the park, craft projects (the messier the better!), borrowing books from the library, cooking 'pretend' meals, and playing with other children and adults. We are fortunate to be financially secure so Pooja can be a stay at home mother who can devote herself completely to our children. Zoya has definitely benefited from this loving attention and interaction. Our second child will receive the same love and nurturing from all three of us, and will hopefully benefit from all that we have learned while raising Zoya.
On Adoption
We discussed adoption early in our marriage, and it was the obvious choice for us when we could not conceive naturally. We were so excited when our adoption agency first contacted us about Zoya when she was just an infant. Zoya took one look at us, grabbed hold of Caesar's watch and didn't let go. Neither did we.
Our families have shown us the importance of love and nurturing and how it brings out the best in children. This may be why we so easily gravitated towards adoption. Caesar's family had humble origins in India, but his parents were always hosting children from their village and helping them further their education in the city. As a child, Pooja saw her grandfather set-up and run an orphanage in his hometown in India for 20 years and this left a lasting impression on her. We feel that we have learned so much from our families and truly believe that creating a family comes from the heart.
On What We Love Doing
We have lived and worked in many different countries, including the US, Singapore, England, India, and are now settled in the US. We love traveling to see new places and experience other cultures, but also to visit our friends and family who are spread around the world.
We enjoy good food and music, and spending time with those we love. We have frequent get-togethers with friends and family where enormous amounts of tasty food is produced and consumed.
Our Family & Home
We are fortunate to own our home in Sunnyvale, CA, a very diverse suburb half an hour south of San Francisco. We have a big backyard, a fenced pool and plenty of child-friendly play space. The park and elementary school are within walking distance, and there are plenty of playgroups, families with young children and adoptive families in the area.
We have a loving and supportive extended family of parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles who are all eagerly awaiting our new baby. Pooja's parents, grandparents and younger sister live in Singapore, and her uncle's family lives in Seattle, while Caesar's parents and younger brother live in India. Although we live far away, we visit each other often, at least twice a year, and are in regular contact. Our parents are so excited about plan to adopt a child that they plan to take turns visiting us to help with the new baby.
In Closing
We have always wanted two children so that they have each other to love and grow together. We take our responsibilities as parents very seriously and want to nurture our children's curiosity, confidence and passion so that they can develop their own unique qualities and reach their highest potential. We would like them to become loving and nurturing adults, and of course have lots of fun along the way. In the early years, we strongly believe in the importance of physical and emotional bonding and loving and stimulating play. With older children, we believe in firm but understanding guidance, teaching by example and unconditional love.
We appreciate your taking the time to consider our family. If you would like to learn more about us, please visit our website at www.caesarandpooja.com. We look forward to hearing from you and will be happy to answer any questions you have. We can be reached at 1-877-380-6841 or caesarandpooja@gmail.com. You can also call our friendly and supportive adoption attorney Susan Romer at 1-800-U-ADOPT-US (1.800.823.6788) or email her at adamsromer@aol.com
With best wishes,
Pooja, Caesar & Zoya
