Welcome! Meet:
Alex
Speech-Language Pathologist
Minnesota
Caucasian
Catholic
All About Alex
Hello! We are two girls (myself and my Cavalier King Charles, Honey) living our best lives in St. Paul, Minnesota, ready to add ‘mother’ and ‘fur sister’ to our list of titles. I am a speech-language pathologist, and for over five years I have co-owned a pediatric speech and occupational therapy clinic within two miles from my home. In my work I am passionate about supporting my community in raising our kids with acceptance of others, wonder, and the skills to self-advocate.
I am a highly sensitive person, musical, creative, and sometimes wacky. I enjoy reading, exploring my community, learning new things, seeing live music, and spending quality time in deep conversation about life and the world with my people. I am a natural caretaker, who (newly) loves to grow fresh plants and flowers, cook a nice meal, gift homemade crochet creations, take care of someone’s kids, or write long birthday greetings with rich words of affirmation.
I have dedicated my life to pouring into children, and there is not much that brings me more joy than hearing a little giggle, watching littles learn, leading a kids’ dance party, or encouraging and teaching young people through life’s ups and downs.
Why Adoption?
It is difficult to put into words, but the path of adoption feels spiritual for me. Simple put, I just always imagined growing a family through adoption, and it has never felt important for me to have biological children. The more I have dug into learning about the experiences of adoptees and birth parents, the trauma involved, and how to best support openness and wholeness for adoptees… the more committed I have become to becoming just one more well-informed and sensitive adoptive parent.
I choose to live my life unpartnered. I love being independent, working hard, supporting myself, and leading my own destiny in what I want out of life. Much like I always imagined adoption, I never imagined a partner for myself. I am proud of the life I have built for myself and am fulfilled in so many ways.
Family & Home
I live in a historic condo building in the vibrant and diverse Cathedral Hill neighborhood of St. Paul. My neighborhood is close to downtown, as well as many restaurants, museums, libraries, schools options, and parks. But amazingly, my home is in a very quiet, residential pocket. I am fortunate with five wonderful neighbors in my building, a small outdoor space for our urban garden, and many nearby spaces for outdoor play and appreciation.
I have acquired an incredible community of local chosen family. My two best friends and my business partner all live within a ten minute drive. We see each other often for dinners, football or basketball games, a variety of spontaneous adventures, and even holidays. We would do anything for each other, and we support each other with acts of service, babysitting, a listening ear, and so much more.
My parents recently retired to the Blue Ridge mountains of Northern Georgia, and my brother, sister-in-law and my baby niece (and goddaughter!) live in Grand Forks, North Dakota. My brother and I grew up with our family living all over the country, and we were given an incredible example of maintaining family relationships, making an effort to visit often, and ensuring our time together is intentional. We see each other three to four times per year, when we laugh constantly, stay up way too late, and lend a helping hand. My extended family on my dad’s side still live far and wide, and we still see each other in the summers for a big “family vacation.” It is such a gift to see family relationships forming across the generations, young and old.
How others describe me
My best friend (who also happens to be my employee) describes me as being sensitive, artistic, generous, and kind. She also says that, while sometimes a little too soft, I am a great boss too! In a recent birthday card to me, Laura wrote, “You are an amazing leader, friend, boss lady, and puppy mama.”
Laura says I take good care of my home and community, and I have a special relationship with her son too. In her recommendation letter for my home study, she wrote, “She has learned to be an advocate for herself and others around her. Alex has shown the true empowerment in being vulnerable. Alex is a huge part of our family and outside of my parents and his daily caregiver, she is the first person I would call to take care of Jay if something were to happen. I would have full faith that she would love our son as her own. That she would lead with her heart and be faithfully loyal to his development and upbringing. I know Alex would teach him by example and show him that he is loved and valued and important to this world. If only every child in the position of foster care or adoption had a caregiver or parent like Alex to receive them into their homes, the world would view adoption in a different way.”
Advice to Future Child
It is difficult to summarize all the things I plan to teach my future child and all the values I plan to impart on them. The values that I have received from my family and plan to pass down include hard work, discipline, trying your best, patience, generosity, lending a helping hand, commitment, pride, and kindness. My future child will know how to make an effort in their relationships, know others deeply, and be in control of their own destiny.
Additional values I plan to impart include vulnerability, acceptance, self-advocacy, compassion, and artistry. They will learn the importance of community engagement and exercising their right to vote. They will know how to stand up for themselves, respect themselves and others, and set boundaries. They will learn to love their neighbor, no exceptions, and to love others well. They will learn what it means to take care of our planet, appreciate nature, fall into joy, and tap into their creativity.
Perspectives on Open Adoption
I am a strong proponent of openness in adoption. I believe that adoptees have the right to know where they come from and have a connection to their biological family. I have done the work in therapy to put my own pride aside and honor all parts of my future child and their story that don’t include me. I am prepared to financially budget annual visits if my future child’s biological family is not local. And I am emotionally prepared to walk alongside my future child’s first mother in this life, two mothers learning and growing together.
Ideally, I would hope to start with annual visits, quarterly to monthly updates/photos, and regular communication. I am also prepared to follow any birth parent’s lead in what they need at any given time. I hope to develop a relationship of mutual trust and respect, and to become a family, united in our love and commitment for a precious child.
Favorites
- Favorite Movie: Rent, The Sound of Music, Grease… Harry Potter
- Favorite Holiday/Tradition: My new favorite Christmas tradition is the Christmas Eve party at my business partner’s house: tree lighting with real candles, Santa coming to pass out presents to the kids and tell jokes, and lots of laughs and fun. I also adore my tradition to host a “Galentine’s” brunch each year celebrating my incredible community of strong women.
- Hobbies/Interests: reading, crocheting, cooking, gardening, live music, teaching/playing piano, learning new things, exploring my community
- Dream Vacation: Disneyland!, Hawaii, Vermont in the fall, Montana… the list goes on. Travel and new experiences are very important to me.
- If I Could Choose a Superpower: time travel or the ability to disappear and reappear somewhere new
We’re here to help.
AdoptMatch connects expectant mothers to a community of licensed, ethical, and compassionate adoption providers and their waiting adoptive families.
AdoptMatch is a project of Ethical Family Building, a nonprofit organization working to safeguard domestic adoptions through education, transparency, and accountability.
- AdoptMatch
- 140 S Lake Avenue, Suite 348
- Pasadena, CA 91101
- (626) 219-6266