Dear Birth Parent,
Thank you for taking a few minutes to learn a bit about our family. We are Michael, Christine and Charlie, a family of three from the northeast United States hoping to grow our family through adoption.
Mike & Christine from Act of Love Adoptions on YouTube.
We met thirteen years ago when Mike was a customer of Christine's at the salon where she's employed. Just over ten years ago we were married. Our plan was to spend a bit of time living the newlywed life, and then turn our attention to raising a family.
But as is often the case, life decided not to cooperate with our plans. We found ourselves expecting early on, and delivered a baby girl named Faith. But Faith arrived too soon, and passed almost immediately due to complications from her premature birth.
Six years later, after a long struggle with infertility issues had us down but not out, our son Charlie was born by way of gestational surrogate.
It is our hope now to grow our small family through adoption and watch our children grow their relationships over the course of their lives. As parents we believe in giving our child the tools needed to succeed in life, but allowing him the space to learn on his own, sometimes fall, and then pick himself up. We believe in the value of education, not just through formal schooling, but also through life experience.
Christine was born in Saigon, Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Christine’s mom was native to Saigon and her dad an American contractor working for the U.S. Military. At 15, Christine achieved her life’s ambition and came to the U.S. in pursuit of the American Dream. Today she is a stylist with nearly twenty years experience at a high end Salon and Spa, having trained in her craft around the country and around the world.
Christine has two younger brothers, Tony and David, who both have a significant presence in our lives, especially in their roles as uncles to our son Charlie. She also has an older sister Chi-Hi, who still lives in Vietnam, but with whom Christine speaks over video chat several times a week, and whom we visit about every two years. When not working, she loves exercising, working in our garden or on home improvement projects and traveling.
Michael was raised, along with his older sister Dawn, in a small suburban town just outside of New York City, only a few minutes away from where we live today. Mike spent his childhood like many kids do, school during the day, playing in Little League on the weekends, participating in scouting, and summers at our town pool. Our family life was warm and nurturing. Both my parents were actively involved in setting us on the right path in life.
As a family we often spent time together doing simple things like playing board games, or having a catch outside. And once or twice a year the entire family would head off on vacation to somewhere new and exciting.
After graduating college in 1995, I went on to law school and today am a partner in law firm specializing in tax law. When not working, I love spending time playing some golf, or in the kitchen experimenting with a new recipe.
Charlie is our five and a half year old son, born to us by way of gestational surrogacy. He is a new soul who loves without limits. At just five years old he shows empathy for others that seems wise beyond his years. Charlie is bright, with a mechanical mind, who wants to know why things are the way they are. And he loves being the little boy that he is. He looks forward to each day and what that day may bring. He looks forward to seeing us each morning, to his friends at school, and to his extended family that are very much a part of his life. And perhaps most of all, he looks forward to being a big brother and he prays for that each night. If there is one thing we can say with certainty, it's that given the opportunity, Charlie will be as good a big brother as ever there has been. Charlie’s favorite hobbies include model railroading, Legos, baseball, and cooking class.
We live in a modest 4 bedroom, 2 bath Cape Cod style home. It is a warm and welcoming home, with a great fireplace utilized throughout the winter and a sprawling yard for playing and barbecuing during the summer.
Our town is charming and tree-lined, with a history dating back to Colonial America. We're only about a five minute walk from our town center where you'll find restaurants and shopping. Our town features a huge public lake for swimming and cook-outs throughout the summer, and our public school system consistently ranks in the top 10 in the state.
As a family, what we value most is our time together. Be it dinner and a movie at home, or a trip half way around the world, our priority is enjoying life’s experiences, both simple and grand, with one another. We know our hearts and home are ready to welcome a new member into our family, and we hope that person, whoever he or she may be, finds their way to us soon.
Wishing you the very best, Mike, Christine & Charlie
