We met as teenagers when our families moved to the same area and Matt's mom trespassed on Janice's parents property...

Thankfully, even after this unexpected introduction, we became friends. While initially we were just buddies, over time a love grew. Realizing how much we had in common and how similar our dreams were, we started dating as Janice was finishing up college. We were married a few years later surrounded by friends and family. We've been married 14 years, started 4 businesses together, travelled to 14 countries & 41 states together, and we're excited to begin this next chapter as parents.

We've been through some tough times too; fortunately, we have grown and evolved in similar directions and we feel confident our paths are aligned for the long haul. We are for each other and supporting each other's dreams is very important. We also have a lot of fun together - laughter, silly dancing, and lots of cozy Saturdays on this green couch are mainstays in our home.

For years before we started dating, I (Matthew) had the biggest crush on her. Janice is the best friend you could hope to have. She is strong and soft, steadfast and flexible, brave and vulnerable.

The forest calls to her and she loves being in nature. After selling her coffeehouses she became a yoga teacher and is now getting her masters in sustainability. She's no stranger to hard work. She's also wicked smart but doesn't need to be the loudest voice in the room. Janice loves her friends deeply and has cultivated a deep community of people from all walks of life. She is equally comfortable hosting a house full of people or staying in with a book.

A few of Janice's favorite things: she loves smoked veggies and fish but can't touch any raw meat. She loves dark chocolate and sour candy, but couldn't care less about milk chocolate. She loves used book stores and tends to be more of a cat person. She remembers everyone's birthday and gives the best gifts. Janice celebrates all of life's moments, big and small. She is an amazing partner and will be an amazing mom.

-Matthew

How to describe Matt? He's funny, kind, thoughtful, tender-hearted, smart, and imaginative. Matt is an inventor, making a career out of his creative problem solving and design-minded brain.

He's an adventurer at heart - always most alive when he's outside, near the ocean, flying in the sky, immersed in the forest, or swimming in cold water.

He shows up for people - a true friend that demonstrates his love by acts of service. He can talk to anyone and often is the first in the group to ask unconventional questions that really help people open up. He's often the life of the party and loves having people over to the house.

Some fun facts: Matt enjoys his coffee black, but also loves the occasional mocha, he cooks the best salmon ever, he designed and built a house from scratch, he can't stand it when there are TVs in restaurants, he abbreviates everything, he loves rock climbing, and he can fix just about anything!

He is a wonderful, supportive partner in life and I know he will be an amazing dad.

-Janice

We didn't always know we wanted to be parents; we married young and did not know if it would be part of our story. When we did discuss it, we always spoke about adopting "someday". But something shifted in our early thirties that made us truly treasure the idea of expanding our family to include a child.

We started trying to get pregnant back in the spring of 2020, expecting it to be easy and thinking we would adopt our second child. Two years later, Jan got pregnant, but sadly miscarried. Medical issues made continuing to try close to impossible. In the beginning of 2023, we decided to pursue our "someday" dream of expanding our family through adoption.

It was a hard decision to stop trying and while that decision came with some grief, it also came with a great sense of relief. We feel so secure in our decision to adopt; it feels like returning back to our original intention that was always supposed to be.

We know that adoption isn't just about us - we realize we're committing to a lifetime partnership. If you choose adoption and decide we're a good fit, we're so excited to meet you and get started on the journey together.

We have a wonderful extended family! Jan has one sister and Matt has two brothers, all married to wonderful people. Both Matt's parents and Jan's parents live close by and are excited to be grandparents (again). We also have 2 nieces and 3 nephews who can't wait to meet their new cousin. Our family knows adoption well - we have several extended family members and close friends who were adopted.

Traveling is a huge part of our life! Nearly every summer, we take a month long road-trip to see friends and family across the country (luckily, we have unconventional jobs that allow us to work from the road). Matt is currently working on building an earth roamer for us to live and travel in during the summers.

We also love getting out of the country each year, to take in new cultures, people, and food. Some of our favorite places include: northern Italy, Big Sur, CA, Washington State, and Sedona, AZ.

We're so excited to bring our future child along with us on our travels and introduce them to new places as well as some of our favorites.

We spent the first 13 years of our marriage deep in the entrepreneurial world - Jan ran her own coffee house and Matt worked tirelessly on his product design company. In 2017, we built a commercial building together to house the second location of Jan's coffeeshop.

In 2022, feeling fulfilled in what we'd created and also ready for a new chapter, we sold the coffee shops and the building we made together. Since then, we've had a lot less hectic life - slower mornings and more time together. We're each pursuing new, less all-consuming careers, but we're so grateful for what our time owning businesses taught us about perseverance, grit, and kindness. We know we'll carry that into whatever is next. This feels like the perfect time to welcome a new member of the family.

When we're not working, we absolutely love spending time with friends, traveling, cooking together, going to our neighborhood haunts, and listening to records together. We're lucky to live in a neighborhood with lots of local spots and we feel deeply rooted here.

Jan loves anything music as well as books, writing, baking, and yoga. Matt enjoys rock climbing, flying, and making things.

We live in a bright, modern home with tons of natural light. Our house is filled with plants, books, and cozy spaces. We've lived in this neighborhood for almost eight years and have the best neighbors! Our house is located in a charming, historic, and diverse area and is also walkable to wonderful parks, local shops, coffeehouses, and restaurants. We are also within 2 miles of world class museums, a major university, and many art galleries.

Our backyard includes a pool - Matt used to teach swim lessons to kids, so he is well prepared to teach our future child how to swim at an early age.

Mostly, we love our community here. It's not uncommon for us to be on a walk and run into many neighbors either on their porches or out walking their pets. We're lucky to be about a 1/2 mile from some of our best friends and we often walk to each other's houses.

We promise to provide this child with unconditional love in a stable, safe home filled with friends and family.

We promise to provide a supportive environment and give them every opportunity to flourish and find joy.

We promise to not force our wishes or dreams on them, but rather provide them with a balance of discipline and freedom that will help them find their own path.

We promise to pursue a relationship of trust with them and provide the resources they need to be successful in life.

We promise to share the world with them and to take them on adventures with us.

We promise to not avoid difficult conversations, but rather pursue a wholehearted relationship with them.

Most of all, we promise to care for them and love them to the best of our ability every single day.