Dear Expectant Mother,
Hi there! We are Eric and Jason from San Francisco, California. We are excited about starting our family through open adoption. We admire your strength and courage in considering adoption. Thank you for taking the time to learn about us.
About Us
Our relationship began 10 years ago while living in New York City. A mutual friend set us up. From the very beginning, we were opposites who attracted. Jason is smart, decisive and practical, as he's an engineer by training. A writer by trade, Eric is curious, creative and a bit of a dreamer. Together, we make a great pair, balancing each other out and complementing each other's strengths.
We're also lucky to be each other's best friends, something that comes from the fact that we share the same values. Above all else, we prize family, friendship, honesty and hard work. As our love for each other has grown deeper over the years, we have wanted to share all the happiness and fun we experience together as a couple with a child. Our shared values will, we believe, help us provide a great home and life for a kid.
When we're not at work, we like to spend us much time as we can together. If it's a nice day, we're likely to be riding our bicycles around San Francisco or hiking in one of the many parks in the area.
Eric
The oldest of two boys, Eric was raised in Mill Valley, California where it's pretty much sunny all the time. As a result, he was in the pool nearly year round, competing on swim teams and playing water polo. From his dad, a Swedish-American engineer, Eric got his easygoing manner. His mom, a midwife originally from France, gave him his sense of adventure--and his love of cooking. She also taught him to speak French. As a kid, he loved being able to turn his French cousins on to American music while also teaching his American cousins about French pop stars (that didn't always go over so well).
Because of his bicultural background, Eric decided to study international relations in college, where he also learned Spanish. When it came to careers, Eric decided that being a journalist would satisfy his curiosity about the world and give him an excuse to interview interesting people. He went to graduate school for journalism, which helped him get jobs at newspapers and magazines.
Eric is now a writer in marketing for a social media company in Silicon Valley. On the weekends, Eric loves being outdoors. He likes to go hiking, biking and swimming. When he really wants to relax, he rolls up his sleeves and cooks a big meal for family and friends.
Jason
The younger of two boys, Jason grew up near Chapel Hill, North Carolina on 30 acres of land. This upbringing gave Jason a big appreciation for the outdoors and a passion for growing his own vegetables. Each summer, Jason looked forward to picking out the vegetables from the Burpee Seed Catalog for which he would be responsible. Jason has particularly fond memories of growing six-foot tall sunflowers.
Jason's family owned a small manufacturing company. At one point, all four family members worked together, until Jason broke out on his own to get his first "real" job as a dishwasher at a restaurant. Jason's father is a master conversationalist and a funny guy, two traits that he passed on to his son. From him mom, Jason inherited his quiet confidence and take-charge attitude.
Jason graduated from college with an engineering degree and worked as an engineer for many years. Then, Jason ended up going to business school to get his MBA. Today, Jason is a general manager of a hotel in San Francisco. Turns out, the job is the perfect fit for him as it allows him to do the things he most enjoys. He gets to manage a business while getting to talk to interesting travelers from all over the United States and the world.
Our Home
We live in a condominium in San Francisco's Mission District, one of the city's most colorful and culturally diverse neighborhoods. We like to be involved in our community, where we started a neighborhood group that organizes clean-ups and get-togethers for residents. We're a short walk to several excellent parks and schools. And we're a close drive to some of the best kid's museums in the country. Many of our friends who have children live within a few minutes walk or drive from us.
Our Values
We look forward to providing a loving, secure and happy home for a child. As part of that goal, we are committed to open adoption as we believe it is beneficial to the child, and to everyone involved. We also believe in creating an environment in which a child can reach his or her full potential--whatever that may be--rather than having expectations about what a kid should be like.
That said, we want to raise and guide a child to be able to know how to make good decisions, to value education and to understand and respect different cultures and people.
Jason has studied and worked in England and India, while Eric has studied and worked in Mexico and France. As much as possible, we would like our kid to have an appreciation for the world beyond the neighborhood in which we live.
Our Families and Friends
Our big thing is family and friends. Eric's brother lives just a few blocks away on our same street. And we often visit Eric's mom who lives about an hour away in Napa, California where she's lived since Eric's dad died a few years ago. Both Eric's mom and brother are vying to be at the top of the list for future baby-sitting duty.
We make the effort to visit Jason's family on the East Coast at least two times a year. The reason? Two years ago, we became godparents to Jason's nephew and niece. They continuously amaze us by how smart and funny they are. They're five and two. Jason's mom and dad are eager to be grandparents again and plan to hop a plane as soon as that happens.
Thank You
Thank you for reading our letter. We hope you have a better sense of who we are and feel comfortable contacting us so we can learn about your hopes for your baby.
You can reach us directly by calling our toll-free number, 1.877.403.7361 or you can email us directly at ericandjason1@gmail.com. You can also reach us through our friendly adoption attorney Susan Romer, at 1.800.823.6788 or email to adamsromer@aol.com.
Warm Regards,
Eric and Jason
