Welcome! Meet:

Mike + Kristen

ER Doctor / Stay at Home Mom

California

Caucasian

Christian

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

All About Mike & Kristen

Hi!

Thank you for taking the time to check out our profile! We are Mike and Kristen, and we have one biological daughter named Olivia, who will be two years old in April. We are both 35 years old, and we live in Southern California. Southern California has always been our home and Mike’s work is established here, so this is where we look forward to raising our family permanently. Both of our extended families are located in Orange County, CA, so we enjoy birthday parties together, lunches on the weekends, and regular get-togethers. Family time is a top priority to us, and everyone in our family is thrilled to welcome any new addition(s). We have two small dogs that we rescued six years ago. Jefferson is a small Mixed Terrier, and Pinot is a small Maltipoo with three legs. The two dogs and Olivia get along great, but we know Olivia is ready for human siblings.

Why Adoption?

Adoption has always been something that we have wanted, regardless if biological children were an option. We are thankful for the healthy pregnancy and birth with Olivia, but we are ready to move forward with another dream we’ve always held close: adoption. We’ve wanted adopted kids just as much as we wanted a biological kid. We believe that love and familial bonds are not defined through our genes, but it’s through our hearts, faith, commitment and love as a family that will bond us forever. We don’t care if our children don’t look like us; there is beauty in every face that God creates, and we celebrate each person's uniqueness. We consider adopting a child the greatest gift, and we are so thankful to the birth mother that chooses us.

Family & Home

We bought our home in Orange County, CA in 2022 and we love our neighborhood. We are a short bike ride from the beach, while we also enjoy our daily walk to the local park. We live on a quiet, private street with caring, respectful neighbors, and kids of all ages play in the streets throughout our neighborhood. We loved this home specifically for its wonderful school district, where children can receive a quality education. The city we live in is also culturally diverse which was important to us as well. Our home has an empty bedroom which is ready and waiting for our future child(ren), and Olivia has saved toys to share with her new sibling(s).

Both of our families live in Orange County too, so any child that comes into our family will also inherit two sets of grandparents, four uncles, two aunts, and three cousins (ages 10, 8, 7). There is so much love to go around, and the entire family is so excited to welcome this new addition.

How others describe me

Kristen describing Mike:

Mike is hard-working, dependable, loving, kind, a wonderful partner to me, and a fantastic father to Olivia. He is remarkably selfless; always thinking about the rest of the family before himself. He cares for people all day long while he’s at work at the hospital, and then he comes home and never gets tired of caring for his family. He amazes me. I can trust him with anything, and I do! I know Olivia is in the best care when she’s with him, and the bond they’re forming is a beautiful father-daughter relationship. Mike loves to cook and he has become quite the chef. He’s gotten really good at mastering tasty meals for all of us to enjoy together.

Mike describing Kristen:

Kristen is a passionate, considerate, loving, fun partner and mother. She has a heart to help those in need and to help make the world a better place. Her passion for this is contagious. Kristen is always looking for new ways to make a difference in her community. She is an incredible mother who devotes her time to making sure Olivia is growing up to be a respectful, intelligent woman who is in awe of this world. Kristen is also an incredible wife who is dedicated to ensuring our marriage has a strong foundation, that our love continues to grow and we always remember how to have fun.

How We Met

We met through our (Christian) church in Santa Monica, CA. We had lived individually in Los Angeles for about 10 years pursuing our own careers before we met through our friends' weekly Bible study. After meeting, we were friends for about a year-and-a-half before dating seriously at the beginning of 2018. We were engaged in 2019, and then married in 2020 but the pandemic knocked our original wedding plans. We had a small covid-safe 20-person official wedding ceremony in our backyard in July 2020, and then had a larger celebration one year later. We knew that if we could make it through wedding planning during a global pandemic, then we could make it through anything!

Advice to Future Child

You are loved beyond measure. You are wanted, cherished and irreplaceable. There is no one in the world who was created like you. You were created for a purpose and the world needs the beautiful gifts that you have to offer. Life can get hard sometimes, but you are capable of wonderful things, and we will always be here for you every step of the way.

Perspectives on Open Adoption

We view open adoption on a case-by-case scenario. We understand that a bond between a mother and her biological child is precious and we do not want to take that away, so we would be more than happy to send photos and updates to the birth mother if that’s what she would like. We are open to discussing additional contact if that is something that is desired.

Favorites

Mike

Favorite Movie: The Notting Hill
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: Christmas is a big one in our family. I love all the family time, cooking big feasts, and we just started introducing Olivia to Santa Claus which has been so fun!
Hobbies/Interests: cooking, DIY home upgrades, church activities, Disneyland, music/concerts
Dream Vacation: family vacation with both rest and adventure
If I Could Choose a Superpower: Flying, so I can fly above all the traffic in southern California!

Kristen

Favorite Movie: P.S. I Love You
Favorite Holiday/Tradition: I love to celebrate all holidays (4th of July, Halloween, Easter, Valentine’s Day, New Year’s Eve, etc.), but Christmas is definitely the biggest in our house. Christmas starts at the beginning of November, and lasts until the end of December.
Hobbies/Interests: volunteering throughout the community, playdates with friends and their kids, church activities, we have Disneyland passes so we enjoy going regularly
Dream Vacation: anything tropical with my family
If I Could Choose a Superpower: instantly transported somewhere (because I hate waiting in traffic!)