ParentProfiles.com

Donald Duck, the fearless Snake Charmer, protected both of us while at Disney World, in Florida.

This weekend our talented cousin danced and sang throughout a fantastic performance of "Seussical", a musical derived from Dr. Seuss's 'Horton Hears a Who'. One of her many roles in the performance was that of the little 'Bird Egg' that popped out at the end of the story. She was great throughout - we are so proud of her !

Veronica's niece loves the book with the colorful clocks and animals.

We had a fun soccer birthday party for our friend's son's team. Jim offers some coaching tips.

Arsenal's most devoted supporter (our friend's son) poses for a photo next to Jim, after this weekend's soccer birthday party.

In September last year (2012), we were contacted by a Birth Father who had 2 little girls that he said he wasn't able to take care of. He told us the girls' mother was in jail and that he wanted to place them for adoption. We were in touch throughout the Christmas holiday season. He said he really liked us and wanted to place the children with us. In fact, we went to visit the Father and his 2 daughters at their home in the middle of the country. We visited twice. The Birth Father had even brought his Mother and Father (the Grandparents to the girls) who lived quite far away, to his home to meet us when we arrived. We spent time together during the holidays so the girls would feel more and more comfortable with us. They did. We grew very attached to these girls. Then, a few days before the Birth Father was due to sign the adoption papers, he changed his mind, and decided to parent them himself. It was extremely hard for us. It was quite painful. We needed to take a break from searching after this one. We did. We know that if we focus on a successful outcome, it will happen for us one day. We are optimistic.

This big blue bouncy ball kept Veronica and her niece and nephew busy for hours...

Jim and our little cousin rub noses during her birthday lunch!

Veronica leading an "arts and crafts" morning with our friends' daughters...

We are so fortunate to be part of a wonderfully generous Church community. Here is our Church's Christmas tree and many of the donated gifts from parishioners that will be distributed to families in need this year.

We received a very touching email last week, from a young, pregnant woman who was very afraid. Her note was so moving, we didn't know what to say. Instead, we decided to cut-and-paste a portion of "Annie's" note for you to read for yourself...

Annie: "Around when I was 10 weeks pregnant, I had started searching for couples to adopt my baby, when I came across your profile. I knew that if I were to place my baby, it couldn't be with anyone other than you. I even traveled back to Maryland when I was 15 weeks pregnant so that I could maybe contact you and get a chance to meet you.. but I never had the courage. Life has been very hard for me, but I've managed. In the end, I decided to parent my child, and I gave birth on November 3rd to a beautiful baby girl."

We are so happy for Annie and her decision. However, we also know that not every birth mom/dad is able to manage raising a child on his/her own. If you feel you don't have the courage to contact us, we understand that you're scared, and may feel like you're at a very confusing point in your life. When we realized we couldn't have our own kids, we were at a real low point. For all these reasons, know that we'd love to hear from you. We won't judge you. We'll be supportive and listen to you and all you have to share. It would make our day to hear from you. It starts with a text or a call or an email.... Later on, if you feel comfortable, we could even skype with you and/or meet you in person if you desire. No pressure. We aspire to provide a warm, loving home to a child (or children) in 2013... Contact us anytime. We're waiting to hear from you! Lots of love, courage, peace and happiness to you, Veronica and Jim

A very talented winger eyes the goal.

Veronica is helping our nephew brush his teeth before bedtime.

An email for us from parentprofiles showed up two months ago from a woman in Arkansas. As we exchanged emails, then phone calls, then skype video calls, we were so excited to get to know her. She was very smart, very thoughtful, yet very scared. She had one child already and was having a tough time managing financially and emotionally. She wanted to place her unborn child with us. We really felt for her and got attached to her. As her due date got closer, the father of the birth father found out and was angry that he hadn't been notified sooner. He wanted to adopt the child. In the end, the very loving birth mom decided to return to Indiana to raise the child herself. Sad for us, but we're glad that the new baby girl is with her loving mom. This process isn't easy, but with prayers and with our loving family and friends around us, we'll continue until we find a wonderful child with whom to share our loving, warm, safe home.

Last weekend, Veronica wades gently into the bay with niece and nephew at dusk.

A birth mother with two daughters - aged 7 and 9 - contacted us in late April, saying she wanted to place her unborn daughter for adoption. After we got to know each other, we really liked each other. She said she would love to place her child with us. Then something sad happened to her: in her second trimester, she lost the baby. We were very sad for her. Even though she wanted to place her child, it hurt her deeply. We consoled each other. We've been in touch with her since then. We're both doing better. We wish her happiness and peace with her two adorable daughters. She prays for us to find a wonderful child. We know we will. It might take longer than we planned, but we know we will.

Veronica is seen here competing in a slide race against our friend's son. He's a fierce competitor (and he actually won)...

Veronica picking up her nephew from school last week.

We have lots of rabbits in our neighborhood. This one was just sitting quietly in the grass last night. She's no bigger than a grapefruit.

Veronica loves dolphins ! ...and dolphins love Veronica...

Veronica and her smiley niece enjoy our weekend BBQ birthday party...

A family of sparrows made a lovely home on the side of our home. There were 5 eggs, and now 5 little birds...

We have recently been in touch regularly with a very sweet, young birth mother in the southwest US. She said she was ready to place her unborn daughter with us. We were quite excited. After she gave birth, she changed her mind. Of course, it was quite difficult for us to take. We wish her and her daughter every happiness. In the meantime, we'll take a brief respite and then begin our search again.

The mild winter fooled our azaleas into blossoming early this year...we love springtime in our neighborhood...

Our azaleas think it's May already...

Riding the metro with our nephews.

We had lots of laughs last Saturday !