Leah & Bernie In Pennsylvania

RACE OF CHILD INTERESTED IN ADOPTING:
No Preference
GENDER OF CHILD INTERESTED IN ADOPTING:
No Preference

Dear Birthmother,

We greatly appreciate your consideration of us as potential adoptive parents of your child and for taking the time to read through our profile and learn more about us and our motivations. Our names are Bernard (BJ) and Leah, and we are hoping to start a family.

We've both always envisioned ourselves as having a family some day with one of us coming from a large family with 3 siblings and the other being an only child who always wished for a brother or sister. Unfortunately, once we got married and set out to build that family, we ran into fertility issues that will make having our own child difficult without assistance. We don't want something like this to prevent us from growing our family and providing a child with love and care. We've prepared as much as we can to create a happy family by purchasing a house with the intent to fill it and would be honored to add your child to our home and our hearts.

About Us

Like many marriages these days, we met on a dating app called Coffee Meets Bagel. As a testament to the way things can sometimes work out, both of us were ready to leave the dating scene after a string of bad relationships before taking one last shot. After a lengthy period of text messaging to make sure we were ready to try again, we met up in person and couldn't get enough of each other from that point forward.

We overcame the challenge of living 50 miles apart and quickly came up with a regular schedule for visits. The rest, as they say, is history and two years later we would move into our house with a surprise engagement on move in day and a rollercoaster of a wedding planning process before making it all official.

As a Licensed Professional Counselor and an IT professional, one would think we wouldn't have much in terms of common interests, but that couldn't be further from the truth. From the day we met, we've been able to experience more of the things we enjoy than ever before. Having someone to play board games and build large Lego sets with is just the tip of the iceberg. We also enjoy trying new restaurants, keeping up on new movies of different genres and testing our wits at various escape rooms in the area. We've even introduced each other to new hobbies we never thought we'd get into like miniature building and painting, reading new book series and computer games.

Our Home

In preparation for having a large family, we purchased a 5-bedroom house in the suburbs of Bucks County, PA in one of the best school districts in the area. We have a large back yard with a playset from the previous owners that we may end up building onto or replacing when the time comes. There are multiple options for nursery rooms that can be altered or swapped as children grow and need more space. Our house is within walking distance of both the local fire and police stations, as well as multiple parks and restaurants for family outings. We are within easy driving distance to multiple entertainment venues, like movie theaters, amusement attractions or recreational centers where children can learn or just have fun. We look forward to establishing deeper roots in this area as we grow our family.

Our Extended Family

As a couple, we come from very different backgrounds. One of us was born in the very top of Upstate New York where there are almost as many cows as people and no sign of a big city for one hundred miles. The other grew up in the suburbs of New Jersey, with the city of Philadelphia, PA only thirty minutes away. Regardless of location, however, we were both raised understanding the importance of family.

Even though most of our immediate families are at opposite ends of the country now (New York and Florida), we do have pockets of family still in the area, and many members of our out of state families are more than willing to travel for random visits or to check in on other grandchildren in the area. Both our sets of parents have been preparing for the arrival of a grandchild since the day we got married, so we know that as soon as there is a bundle of joy in our home there will be a lot more frequent visits or video calls. Many of the friends we have made in the area are becoming new parents as well, so we expect to have many play dates available between them and the many cousins they will have in the area.

Beyond just the immediate family, any child we bring into our household will also have multiple aunts, uncles and cousins of various ages for play dates and other social interactions nearby. Our youngest nieces are only a few miles away and they have boundless energy to keep anyone, child or adult, busy.

Our Family Traditions

Both of our immediate families have celebrated all the major holidays together, even going as far as to travel to visit family members who couldn’t make a trip on their own for health reasons. If someone couldn’t physically be present for holidays, there were always planned phone calls where the phone would be passed around to everyone available to make the remote family member feel like they were there. Major holiday gatherings bring all of the cousins together. The house of the person hosting is always filled with the laughter and running footsteps of children of all ages!

What Led Us To Adoption

We have always spoken about having a big family since we started dating. We have set up our lives to accommodate that big family. We have always spoken about having and adopting children of our own and providing a safe and loving space for them. We set up our lives to accommodate the dream of having a big family. We fully accept and embrace adoption as a way to grow our loving family.

Facts About Leah

Occupation:
Licensed Professional Counselor
Religion:
Christian
Education:
Master in Professional Counseling
Favorite Food:
French Fries
Favorite Hobby:
Board Games & Swimming
Favorite Movie:
Disney Hercules
Favorite Sport:
Mixed Martial Arts
Favorite Holiday:
Christmas
Favorite Music Group:
Boyce Avenue
Favorite TV Show:
Modern Family & House
Favorite Book:
Handmaid's Tale
Favorite Subject in School:
Psychology
Favorite Vacation Spot:
Disney World & The Beach

Facts About Bernie

Occupation:
Director of Compliance
Religion:
Christian
Education:
Bachelor's in Software Engineering
Favorite Food:
Pizza
Favorite Hobby:
Legos
Favorite Movie:
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Favorite Sport:
Mixed Martial Arts
Favorite Holiday:
Christmas
Favorite Music Group:
Quiet Drive
Favorite TV Show:
House
Favorite Book:
The Dresden Files
Favorite Subject in School:
Computer Programming
Favorite Vacation Spot:
The Beach
Contact
Leah & Bernie