You decide whether you would like to let them adopt your baby.

We are here for you to help make the decision that best suits your needs.

Dear Expectant Mom,

We are Sophie and John. We appreciate this opportunity to share with you a little bit about us.  Our hope is that this introduction will be a window into our lives.  We know you are faced with a very important decision that will affect not only you, but also your child, and hope to be as supportive as possible to you.  We understand that whatever choice you make will be based on the love you have for your child. 

A Little About Us:
Although our parents, who live in France, were best friends for decades, we never met until fate and a mix up led Sophie to John’s family Christmas dinner in 1999. Sophie was living in France and John was visiting his parents from his home in the U.S. We both shared the same professional interests, and began a casual e-mail relationship. After we met, we worked hard to keep our long distance relationship growing. Finally, in 2001, after saving enough money and waiting for her student visa, Sophie was able to realize her long-awaited dream to study in the United States. She happily arrived in San Francisco with all of her belongings in one suitcase. John was thrilled that she finally arrived.

Our love and friendship has developed into a wonderful relationship and marriage and we approach life as partners. We respect and rely on each other, and we seem to have the same approach to problem solving. We feel that we are easy-going, peaceful people, and we try to take life’s bumps in stride.

A Little About Sophie:
Sophie was born and raised in a small town called Metz, in Alsace-Lorraine, France. Her mother is a retired nurse and has always been a very nurturing person. While growing up, her mother frequently opened up their home to cousins and friends, so there were always a lot of kids around. Her father is a semi-retired university lecturer. He was always the scientist of the house, ready to answer the “hows” and “whys”. Sophie’s parents love San Francisco and visit regularly.

Sophie is also very close to her older sister and her sister’s family. Sophie attended college in France, Scotland and the United States. Studying in three different countries was exciting, yet challenging. She has a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and a post-graduate degree in Information Technology (IT). Sophie worked as a Software Integration Specialist, but when her first son arrived, she did not hesitate to become a stay-at-home mom. She loves it.

Sophie is fascinated by math and art, and has tutored teens to help them overcome their apprehension of math by making it fun. She expresses her creativity by painting, playing the violin and piano, and making costumes for the kids. Sophie believes that art should be a pleasure and continues to take classes. Her latest course was in stained glass.

A Little About John:
John was also born in France, just a few miles from Sophie's hometown, before moving and growing up in a suburb outside Paris. John has two younger siblings; both are now married and have children. His mother is a caring lady who adores her six grandchildren. She missed Sophie and John's children so much that she came to visit this past spring. John’s father is a semi-retired physics engineer who stops by San Francisco whenever work opportunities arise. John studied engineering in college and then performed his military duties as a navy officer. His passion for computer programming led him to move to the Silicon Valley in California. John now works from home so he can spend time with the children.

John enjoys reading; books on science, politics, history or religion are a sure bet for Christmas gifts. Lately, his greatest discovery has been gardening in the backyard. Local California plants and trees fascinate him, and since the weather is great, the constant blooming is an everyday treat. He also enjoys hiking and skiing.

A Little About Our Sons:
We are parents to two wonderful sons, Luc (4) and Martin (2). When our doctors advised us that it would be very dangerous for Sophie to have another child, we knew it would be unfair to our family to take any unnecessary risks. Our immediate agreement was to expand our family through adoption. We love being parents and are very excited to welcome another child into our family. We also believe that the sibling relationship can be stronger when children are relatively close in age. We have watched our sons become buddies and learn to be brothers, sometimes aligning against us adults. They are excited to have a baby brother or sister to join them.

Parenting has been a learning experience, as it has been different with each child. We have discovered the importance of flexibility and openness, and have learned that as parents we need to adjust day to day, and child to child. Thanks to our children, we have matured as parents, but also have a second chance at childhood.
Our two sons, Luc and Martin, are both curious and energetic, yet they are very different from one another. Luc is an independent child in the midst of learning about sharing. He tries to learn everything and anything by himself. Martin is more mellow, and likes to laugh and cuddle. They both love to sit and look at books, but once outside they run everywhere and climb on everything. Their greatest pleasures are very predictable: picking John’s flowers and taking any public transportation – the airport shuttle is the most exciting one.

A Little About Our Family:
We have six nieces and nephews, ranging in age from two to eight, who all live in France. Sophie also has a very large extended family, which makes an extra effort to maintain regular phone/email/video contact. We visit France yearly, and are fortunate that our family travels to San Francisco to visit us regularly, as well. We have several close friends in California, with children from babyhood to the teen years, who are loved as "extended" family.

Our Everyday Life:
We live in a four-bedroom home in a family-oriented neighborhood in San Francisco. Our house has everything we were hoping for: a great garden, lots of trees, and is within walking distance of many stores. We are proud that our home is very “play-friendly,” and we have furnished and organized it so it is geared towards children. Sophie has been able to apply her artistic talents to remodel and decorate the house. John is in charge of gardening, yet we all love to spend time planting flowers and pruning trees.

Our children are our priority and we look forward to expanding our family. Life is very precious and we are committed to giving the best of ourselves to our children. Because we are both at home, we are available to our children 24/7. We try to teach our children our values by providing consistency in our daily life. We prepare good, healthy food, most of which is organic and is cooked from scratch. Luc loves to help make pizza and cookies. We provide many activities for the children including library visits for story time, attending children’s museums, playing at the beach, and touring the city while pretending to be tourists. Between cooking and keeping the house running, Sophie sets aside time to work with Luc to help prepare him for Kindergarten, which he will attend in our neighborhood. We are a bilingual family, and our children are learning to speak, read and write in both French and English.

We feel that we provide strong morals and values, such as respect for differences, honesty, taking care of our health, being citizens of the world, and being caretakers of the earth. We attend a local church that has provided an excellent network of friends for our sons through Sunday school. We will inform them of our beliefs, but hope they will make their own decisions as they become adults.

We have much more to share about ourselves, and welcome any contact with you to learn more about each other. Please feel free to contact us directly at 1-866-512-3201, or e-mail us at sophieandjohn@jsto.org. You may also call our adoption attorney, Susan Romer, at 1.800.U.ADOPT.US (800-823-6788) or e-mail her at adamsromer@aol.com.

With our best wishes,

Sophie and John

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