Stephanie & Mike in Massachusetts Waiting Families

We have been together for 6 years. We are alike in the important ways, and different in ways that compliment each other. Our differences push each other to grow in all the best ways. We are a true team!

Steph is from Miami, Florida and has lived all over the USA. Her childhood was spent on the beach with her little sister and playing softball. Steph earned her PhD from Illinois. She made one last move to Massachusetts to be close to family. It's here in New England that she met Mike. She also found an incredible job teaching high school.
She loves being a Tia (Auntie) to her nephews, Parker who is 6 and Ben who is 2. She's been teaching for 16 years-middle school, high school, and college. Her students are her 'work children'.

Mike was born and raised in Connecticut. He has a great relationship with his mom, dad, and younger brother. Growing up he got to learn how to ski, work on cars, boat, camp, and hike just to name a few. Later on, Mike and his brother got into music, formed a band, and met some great friends. After graduating with a Bachelor's in Business, he and his best friend moved to Colorado to work in the mountains and ski the slopes every day. He moved back to Connecticut to be near family and luckily he did or he wouldn't have met the love of his life, Steph.

Family is our number one priority. Every weekend we see nephews and parents. Another thing we share is a sense of adventure. We think it's important to always have an adventure planned that gets us out and seeing the world. Whether it's hiking and camping in Vermont and New Hampshire, traveling to a new country each year, or just jumping in the car to find fresh ice cream from a New England dairy farm, we love exploring. That said, we also love being home and together. During the week, we make sure to have dinner together every night, watch Nightly News, and maybe a little Family Feud and Jeopardy. On the weekend, we make a fabulous breakfast and go slow drinking coffee and planning the day.

We bought our house over 2 years ago. We live in Longmeadow, Massachusetts, and, honestly, we bought it to start a family. Longmeadow's school district is top 5 in the nation and many, many families move here for that reason. Also, the town is small and looks like an old time New England village. Our house was built in 1930 and it is one of the youngest homes in the town! Beautiful historical homes line the town green dating back to the early 1700s. There are pumpkin festivals, apple festivals, summer music festivals, etc. in which neighbors come together to celebrate New England traditions. Sidewalks line the town and make it walking and biking friendly.

Our families are amazing! Mike's parents are full of love and support. They are so excited that we are adopting. Mike and his dad can't wait to work on projects for the baby, and later, with our child. Mike's mom is excited to help Steph and be a doting grandmother. Mike's brother lives with his wife and 2 children in Vermont. When they come down to visit, and our nephews are all together (4 boys), the bounce house is definitely up and running in our back yard!

Steph and her sister are so blessed to have their mother. Grandma is amazing and becomes 30 years younger around her grandchildren! Their mom moved to Connecticut when Sarah, Steph's sister, gave birth. She became full-time nanny to her grandchildren. Sarah is so grateful to have her mother watching her children, instead of strangers, while she works full time as an engineer. Steph's family is very close and a child joining this family will really have 2 brothers rather than 2 cousins.

There are many things we enjoy to do individually and as a couple. Mike is Mr. Fix-it and he is always teaching Steph how to do different things. He is also an incredible skier and has been skiing all his life. Mike's most recent project is an electric car he built! Steph is the reader and loves introducing Mike to new books. She loves to cook at home and when we go camping. She especially likes to use vegetables from our garden. She also enjoys putting together the various projects and events in our lives.

Mike has a beautiful boat, a small 1976, 14-foot fiberglass, red, run about that was his grandfather’s. We love taking it out on the river. We especially love boating with our nephews. We love to go camping in New England. There is so much to explore and Fall camping is breathtakingly beautiful. We also love to cook, even when camping. No hot dogs and hamburgers here—we try to get fancy! We both love music. Mike plays guitar and drums in a band he has with friends, and Steph plays piano. We can't wait to share these traditions and adventures with our child!

More than anything, we want to be a mom and dad. We have so much love to give a child; we're so excited to start a family!