Medical Researcher / Physician
Colorado
Caucasian / Hispanic
Catholic
Dear Expectant Parent,
We are Carlo, Maria and Zoe. Our family story began back in 2013 when Maria and Carlo met. We were both in graduate school in Virginia and met through mutual friends. Since then, we have been inseparable. We moved to the Denver Metro Area in 2015 and shortly after got married. We fell in love with this state and since then, we have expanded our family here. We now have two rescue dogs, Mia (6 years old) and Eve (2 years old), and in 2021, we welcomed our daughter, Zoe. Our family is very diverse. Carlo was born and raised in Rome, Italy. Maria was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela. We speak English, Spanish and Italian in our household. Most of Carlo's extended family (mother, siblings, nieces, and nephews) live in Rome, where we frequently visit. Most of Maria's extended family lives in Miami, Florida, where we also often visit. We are very close to our extended families and speak to them on a regular basis. As a family, we enjoy weekends at the park with the dogs, going to the zoo, hiking, and traveling to see our families frequently. Zoe is now 1 year old, and she loves to laugh and play with other children. She is very excited to have a sibling.
Adopting a child has always been our plan. We started the process before having Zoe, and we are very excited to be close to having another child. We would love to do an open adoption if that is something the expectant parent is considering.
We live in the Denver Metro area in a single-family home of 2,960 sq. ft. The house has 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a large living room where we spend most of the time. During a nice day, we love to spend time in the fenced yard where Zoe loves to play with the dogs. Our neighborhood is very diverse, and it is represented by a variety of races and ethnicities including Caucasians, African Americans, and Latinos. We have a park with a playground that is within walking distance from our home, where many of our neighbors and we spend time. Carlo’s family lives mostly in Rome, but we are very close to them. We speak to them almost daily and we visit them once or twice per year. Maria’s family lives in Miami, and we also speak to them almost daily and we visit them every 2-3 months.
Carlo told by Maria
Carlo grew up in Rome, Italy and is the youngest of four siblings. As a child, he spent most of his summers in the mountains and he also enjoyed going to the beach. Most of his family still lives in Rome and he visits at least once per year. He was very close to his dad, Bernardo, who passed away in 2019, and he is very close to his mother, Maria Luisa. Although most of his family still lives in Italy he talks to his mom regularly, as well as with his siblings, nieces, and nephews. He really enjoys family time. He moved to the United States in 2011 to pursue a career in medical research. He lived in Richmond, Virginia for several years, where he met me. In our journey together, Carlo has shown he is an extremely genuine and generous person. He loves unconditionally and he is an amazing husband. He is also very charismatic and always makes those around him smile. Since the day Zoe was born, Carlo has worked hard to be the absolute best dad he can be. He is attentive, he plays, he soothes her, and most importantly, he is present for every single moment (meals, diaper changes, after school, bedtime, weekend activities, etc). Zoe absolutely adores her
dad. Carlo is simply the type of person that gives his all to family and makes those around him better people. He is also a great dad to two rescue dogs, Mia and Eve. Aside from being an amazing husband and dad, Carlo is extremely accomplished. He has an advanced degree in Immunology, and he conducts cancer research. He is a well-regarded scientist and works endlessly to improve the treatment of cancer patients. In his free time, Carlo enjoys walks in the park with the family, traveling to the beach, doing yard work, and watching animated movies.
Maria told by Carlo
Maria grew up in Caracas, Venezuela and is the youngest of 2 siblings. She moved to the United States at the age of 14 and lived in Florida for many years, before moving to Virginia. Her parents and brother still reside in Florida, where we often visit. Maria and I met in 2013 in Virginia, and one of the first things that stood out about Maria was her smile. When she smiles, you can see her face light up and she smiles a lot because she is a very solar person. In our years together, Maria has always been a very candid and genuinely caring person. She is sweet, very patient, and a good listener. We both believe an important virtue in a family is communication. She is always there to listen to me when I have something to say, and she never dismisses me. She loves her family, and she is wonderful with our little Zoe. She loves being a mom, and it is a joy seeing her with our little Zoe. Since Zoe was born, I have been impressed by how natural Maria is with her. Maria learned how to read Zoe's needs right away when she is hungry and when she is bothered by a tooth coming out just to mention a few. It is amazing to see the bond that Zoe has created with Maria and vice versa. Maria cares for and loves our little one deeply. She loves to play with her and spends a lot of time reading her books, teaching her words (English and Spanish), playing hide and seek, singing songs and dances (Zoe now loves to dance)!! Although we are at the beginning of our parenting journey, Maria has already shown me, our family, and our friends that she is an amazing mom and I know she can't wait to welcome another little one in her life to love. Lastly, I also believe Maria is an example to follow, and a person our children will look up to. She is a very hard worker, and above everything, she has a brilliant mind. Aside from being an amazing mother and wife, she has already accomplished much in her career as a physician-scientist treating cancer patients.
We met in 2013 in Virginia through mutual friends and soon after started dating. At the time, we were both in graduate school at the same University. On our first date, Carlo cooked for Maria and she realized he is an amazing cook! Aside from having similar career paths, we quickly found out we had a lot of common interests including watching movies, going to the beach, and traveling. We not only had a lot of fun spending time together, but we also supported each other in school. Over the course of two years of dating in Virginia, we embarked on many adventures, we visited each other's families, and we embarked in a cross-country drive when we moved together to Colorado in 2015. We got married the same year and since then, we expanded the family with two dogs and our daughter, Zoe. Over the last 9 years together, our love for each other has continued to grow, and we feel very lucky to have each other.
The biggest piece of advice we have for our future child is always to be true to yourself and strive for happiness. Happiness doesn’t always mean a smile on your face, but it is being content with who you are and finding meaning in the things you do, whether they are easy or hard. Our goal is to always support our children’s dreams and aspirations.
We have been in the adoption process for a few years and in doing so we have learned so much about adoption. We have spoken to adoptees and to biological parents and we believe open adoption is oftentimes very beneficial for both. We would love to be able to tell our child his/her story, where they came from, what things they share in common with their biological parents, and to maintain a connection with the two. If the expectant parent is considering open adoption, we would love to do an open adoption.