Introduction
Dear Expectant Parent(s),
Hello, we are Kellen and Nick! We appreciate you taking the time to read our story and learn more about us.
Our Story
Our love story started slowly, but once ignited, has burned strong and steady since 2008. Upon her return from a semester abroad in Australia, Kellen visited her high school best friend, who lived in Boston and was dating a friend of Nick’s. We ended up forming a fast friendship, which included matching ringtones.
We began dating two years after we first met, and after three months, Nick moved to Northern California. Since Kellen was not ready to let him go, she followed him to the West Coast. After five short years in California, we embarked on a cross-country trip to move back to the Boston area to be closer to Kellen’s family.
After 13 years together, in 2021, we married and started trying to have children. Unfortunately, we aren’t able to have biological children. We very much want to be parents and feel that adoption is the path for us to grow our family. Nick’s father and uncle were adopted, so we are honored to grow our family through adoption.
About Kellen
Kellen grew up in Northern Massachusetts, the younger of two daughters of an analytical computer programmer and an artistic museum curator. Her sister is a talented artist who loves history, while Kellen excelled academically, and studied piano and ballet. While attending a liberal arts college, she studied abroad in Australia, where we returned for our honeymoon.
After moving to California, she got her Master’s in Economics, and has found her career as a data scientist at a non-profit organization, which affords her the opportunity to work mostly from home.
Her mother passed down the family baking skills, and an apple pie recipe which won her 2nd place in a Pi(e) Day competition. Giving back has always been important to Kellen’s family, and in addition to donating to worthy causes and participating in community service, she also volunteers to foster cats — both of our pets are rescue animals.
Kellen has an emotional heart and an analytical brain, which helps her to be incredibly understanding and patient when dealing with emotions and feelings. She loves to follow instructions, especially in the kitchen, and even when the instructions don’t seem to be working, she is great at finding solutions and workarounds. I look forward to seeing her as a mother and the incredible amount of love she will bring. I have seen her overcome some of the toughest challenges, like moving across the country for me, and come out stronger. Kellen is insightful, thoughtful, caring, and will always give more, without thinking twice. I know with all my heart that she will make an outstanding mother, even more so than she is an amazing wife.
About Nick
Born and raised in Southern California, Nick grew an independent spirit and a strong work ethic by spending summers working with his dad and later selling pools to make money for college. Family trips to national and state parks helped stimulate Nick’s interest in cross country road trips, and eventually the rest of the world. He looks forward to exploring more places as our family grows.
Before teaching, Nick studied engineering and worked in retail. After seeing many customers struggle with math, he realized that his calling was to help students better understand math and its importance in daily life.
He enjoys reading all genres from sci-fi to romance to graphic novels, as well as building his collections of LEGO and Star Wars toys, lunch boxes, stickers, and refrigerator magnets. Nick dreams about the day he will get to share these passions with a child, as well as watch them find their own passions as they grow.
Nick is an incredibly patient and understanding person, which makes him a great husband, friend, and teacher. He makes time for others, volunteers for after-school activities, helps friends or family, and does everything with a smile on his face. He makes a point of asking everyone how their day is going – much to the surprise of many retail and drive-thru workers!
I always knew he was great with kids and would be an amazing dad, but it became even more apparent when he was teaching from home in 2020. I witnessed his compassion for students firsthand. I cannot wait to see Nick thrive being exactly what he is meant to be – a wonderful father.
Our Home
We live in a two-family home that we share with Kellen’s sister. She is on the first floor and we’re on the upper two floors. Although built in 1921, most parts of our home have been updated, and we have a perfect nook in our bedroom for a crib. Along with the backyard where the dog loves to run around, we have a home office where Kellen and her sister work together from home, and a spare bedroom that will be perfect for a child to call their own.
Our neighbors on both sides both have amazing gardens, and they generously share their produce with us during the summers; we are also often surprised with loaves of bread and bags of bagels just because they want to share with us! Very rarely can we make it around the block on a dog walk without running into and chatting with a friendly neighbor.
Living on a one-way street has its perks as it is relatively quiet, and public transportation is easily accessible, making trips into Boston to attend the ballet or see a Red Sox game a breeze. We are far enough outside of the city to enjoy multiple parks near our home and community events like a weekly farmer’s market, live outdoor music, and yoga in the park.
Our Family
We both grew up spending vacations and holidays with our extended families, including grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins, and we look forward to sharing our family’s get-togethers with a child. Our cousins have several young children, and we can’t wait to add another to the mix.
Although Nick’s family still lives on the West Coast, we regularly visit each other, and the visits are sure to increase with the arrival of their first grandchild! With Kellen’s sister downstairs, her parents just an hour away, and her entire extended family living in and around New England, family get-togethers are frequent and full of kids and dogs! Kellen has always spent every summer going on vacations with both sides of her extended family, and we look forward to creating similar memories with a child.
We have two pets. We fostered our cat, Bentley, when he was very sick. After a while, we decided that we wanted him to be a permanent part of the family. We also rescued our dog, Snuggleton, who is a sweet boy who loves to snuggle and is gentle around children. Kellen’s cousin’s children love when they get to play and take care of him.
All of our friends and relatives are thrilled that we are pursuing adoption to grow our family and could not be more supportive. Our parents are very excited for the first grandchild, and Nick’s mom is already pre-planning her first trip to meet the baby.
Hobbies, Interests, & Traditions
Kellen loves doing jigsaw puzzles so much that she has a subscription service that mails new puzzles to her on rotation, and Nick enjoys helping occasionally (usually toward the end!) while snuggling with our dog and reading a book. As part of a book duo (that started out as a club) for the past several years, Nick loves reading and has read more books than he can even count.
During the pandemic, we stumbled upon at-home escape “room” games, and we’ve done so many we can’t remember which ones we haven’t done when trying to buy new ones! We also are big Jeopardy! fans, and we watch the show every night with our tribute candle to Alex Trebek. Kellen loves making bread and pizza at home, while Nick loves eating bread and pizza with her.
Kellen took ballet lessons her entire childhood, and every year her mom would take her daughters to the ballet. Kellen introduced Nick to the ballet in San Francisco when her mother gave them season tickets. After moving to Boston, we have continued the tradition with the Boston Ballet.
School vacations Kellen spent with cousins and extended family, and her family has continued those traditions. While neither of us is particularly religious, we enjoy celebrating Christmas (usually three times total with both sides of Kellen’s extended family), and Nick still uses his grandmother’s menorah to celebrate Hanukkah. Each winter is filled with family dinners and celebrations, and each summer is spent relaxing and enjoying the outdoors in upstate New York or rural Maine with family.
Thank You
Since the beginning of our relationship, we have been referred to as “Kellen and Nick” or “Nick and Kellen,” not just one or the other. We’re ready for that to change and to add another member to our team.
If we are lucky enough to become parents, we promise to love our child with all of our beings and do our best to provide a wonderful life for him/her. While education and the arts will be important aspects of their childhood because these subjects are important to us, we will support and nurture any interests that our child may develop. While we are not the best at sports, we could be great cheerleaders for an athlete! As the first grandchild in our immediate families, our child will be loved – and sometimes spoiled! We will make sure that they grow up with an appreciation for their blessings in life…..With a large extended family, there will many young cousins to play with.
We will support whatever level of openness you feel comfortable with, even as that level might change, but we will always let the child know that they are loved by all their parents. We would love for you to remain part of our team, if you are comfortable with this. Regardless of the openness in our adoption, our child will always know about you and the selfless choice you made for their wellbeing.
Thank you for your time and consideration, and for all that you are giving to this world.
Sincerely,