Welcome! Meet:

Joey + Michael

Registered Nurse / Sr. Data Scientist

Ohio

Caucasian

Catholic

All About Joey & Michael
Why Adoption?
Gallery
Family and Home
How We Met
Advice to Future Child
Perspectives on Open Adoption
Favorites

All About Joey & Michael

Both Michael and Joey reside in northeast Ohio, surrounded by our family and loved ones. Joey is a Registered Nurse who started his career in Labor and Delivery and soon after continued his career as a Neonatal ICU nurse. He always knew that one day he would like to become a father and his career has only solidified that decision. He was involved in numerous adoption stories throughout his career and spent many moments supporting both the birth and adoptive parents on their beautiful but difficult journeys. Joey currently works as an Operating Room Clinical Coordinator as this has given him the work/life balance he has desired to be able to give his future child the life they desire. Though Joey has continued his career in a new direction, he will always be a labor and delivery/ NICU nurse at heart.

After undergrad, Michael chose to pursue a graduate degree out of state in nuclear chemistry. It didn't take long for him to realize that it was not a good fit and that it was more important to be close to family. He moved home where he was able to start a career as a quality assurance auditor at a pharmaceutical company. Fast forward a few years and now he is a lead data scientist and automation engineer for that same company. During his tenure at the same company, he decided to go back to school and obtain his MBA with Joey along his side every step of the way. Through the long nights of doing homework after going to his job all day, to weekends that were spent writing papers and doing research, Joey was always by his side willing to lend a helping hand.

As their careers are rather different, Joey and Michael decided that they need to have something special that they can do together. This sparked the beginning of their photography business. They love being able to capture special moments for families, and one of their most recent photoshoots consisted of their adoptive friends, their new son, and the birth mother. They felt so honored to be able to capture the new memory of their growing, blended family.

Other hobbies that Michael and Joey enjoy together are: gardening, exploring the metro parks, crocheting/knitting, staying active, and always doing projects around the house to make it feel more like home.

Family means everything to them, and they have been instilled with a strong sense of family values. Since we told our families that we are planning to grow our family through adoption, we have received nothing but love and support.

Why Adoption?

We are looking to grow our family through adoption because we have previously considered surrogacy but with Joey’s history of witnessing the miracle of adoption, we felt that this was the best option to achieve our dreams. There are a multitude of reasons why adoptions occur but for us the love of a child is the only thing that matters. Whether it is in the best interest of the child or the best interest of the birth family, their adoption story will always be painted in the most positive light. The child will know their story and just how special they are from day one. Adoption gives us an opportunity to be a family, while also giving this child the chance to have a unique story in life and we could not think of a better way to build our future family. Joey always had stories of adoption throughout his career. Spending time with birth parents as they mourned the decision, holding them as they cried, and supporting them in their time of need while also being with the adoptive parents as they felt a new love that they never could have imagined. It was truly beautiful to witness from both sides and adoption has always held a special place in Joey and Michael’s life.

Family & Home

We currently live in a smaller diverse community in northeast Ohio. Nestled in a quaint village, their neighborhood has playgrounds, walking trails, fishing ponds, and paved wooded trials. They are just down the street from a park that has even more amenities and dog safe areas that they like to explore on the weekends as a family. The neighborhood is full of children running and playing every night in the street and the community as a whole is close knit, with everyone willing to lend each other a hand whenever they can.

Both Michael and Joey have positive relationships with their families. Their home is in the exact middle between both sides of their family, meaning that their house is often full of friends, cousins, and relatives who share their passion and values of the importance of family. Whether it is a quick trip to the local zoo, or a calm night around a fire, friends and family can always be found close by.

How others describe me

Joey is a compassionate person who is always willing to help anyone who needs it. While he is a bit of a dreamer, that quality is what made Michael fall in love with him in the first place. Joey never stops working and improving himself, always aiming to be a little better than he was the day before. From a young child he always knew that caring for people was his biggest passion which led to his successful career as a Registered Nurse. There was not a single stranger that Joey ever met. Everyone that met him feels like they have known him their entire life. He starts and ends each day with a smile and he believes in the impact that a smile can make on someone's day.

Joey would describe Michael as one of the most hard working men he knows. Michael could watch a youtube video and be able to replicate it perfectly. He has spent most of his time renovating their home, creating such a perfect space for them to grow their family. Michael is driven and passionate about everything he puts his mind to accomplishing in life. Joey knows that whatever child comes into our life will know what it is like to always be hardworking and dedicated because that is who Michael is. Michael always knows how to make Joey laugh and smile, he is both a child at heart and a 100 year old man at the same time. It is quite impressive to be honest. Both Joey and Michael perfectly compliment each other with their personalities and will be able to offer their future child a well rounded home to grow up in.

How We Met

We met in 2019, and instantly felt a forever connection. We sat and talked for hours and hours and knew that we shared similar interests and values that would make a perfect partnership. Our families instantly accepted our new found love and quickly realized that we were meant to be together. Michael already had Jamie, our eldest dog, and part of welcoming Joey into the family was getting her approval. From the instant that they met, Jamie accepted Joey with open ‘paws’. Soon after, we added our youngest dog Jack Jack to our new growing family. Fast forward to 2021, we said ‘I do’ in front of our family and loved ones and we became one. We spent our honeymoon getting our first home together set up and immediately knew that we wanted to fill the home with unconditional love and start the journey to grow our family through adoption.

Advice to Future Child

You will never not know what love is. Your life will be surrounded with it from both of your dads and the family/ friends both of your dads have. There will never be a day where you will feel unsafe. Your story is unique and will always be celebrated. We want you to feel proud to be adopted because you ARE special and a one in a million person. We have prayed and wished and loved you without even meeting you. We will teach you what it means to be accepted. We will teach you what it means to live a life of honesty. We will teach you what it means to love thy neighbor. Blood or not, Family is family and we will be a family that loves each other with infinite possibilities. Our child will know their birth story and will be reminded of how strong their birth family is. The birth mom/ parents will always be shown as heroes and never be painted as less. If the opportunity allows it we would like to keep a connection to your child's birth family because family is important no matter the connection. Everything happens for a reason and we know that no matter what has led us to the point the only thing that matters is that we all have love for the child in one form or another.

Perspectives on Open Adoption

We love the idea of a healthy open adoption and tailoring that to the needs of both the child and the birth family. We believe that it is crucial that our adoptive child not only understands their heritage and birth family history, but also that they understand from a young age what a hero their birth mom is. We know that the decision to place a child for adoption is never easy, but we want to make sure that there is opportunity for them to have a healthy, open, relationship with their birth family.

Favorites

Joey

Favorite Movie: Up
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: turning Christmas Morning into a family game
Hobbies/Interests: photography
Dream Vacation: Disney Cruise
If I Could Choose a Superpower: ability to elevate anyone's mood

Michael

Favorite Movie: Harry Potter
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Christmas
Hobbies/Interests: photography, gardening
Dream Vacation: tour around Europe
If I Could Choose a Superpower: teleportation