Hello! I am Julie from Los Angeles, California along with my son, Cole. Though I can’t begin to understand what you are going through right now, I am truly inspired by the love and strength it must take to make this incredibly difficult choice. I promise you that I will love your child completely and unconditionally, and will use all of my joy, patience, understanding, silliness, and maturity to raise them. I love music, animals, games, travel, the beach, the snow, and learning new things. I have an amazing four-year old son who came into my life through adoption, a group of loving friends and family which includes his birth family, and a big space in my heart hoping to welcome your child. Thank you so much for taking the time to get to know me.

I am really excited about adopting again. I had a prior marriage that didn’t work out, and struggled with pregnancy. Because I’ve always wanted to be a mother, I knew that adoption was my path to having a family. I was blessed with even more family than I had hoped for when I adopted my son Cole, because his biological family has become an important part of our lives. Motherhood has been my dream come true. Every day I get to laugh and love with a tiny human, celebrating him for who he is, and helping him learn to feel confident, happy and strong. My dream is that our family will have two siblings, each with their own personalities, dreams, and challenges, and that together we will play, love and grow. I am so excited to meet you and your child.

I’m originally from Los Angeles, California, but I traveled around the country growing up. I lived in Miami, Florida, went to college at Harvard University in Massachusetts (my dad went there so it was easier for me to get in), law school in Berkeley, California, lived in Chicago for a bit, and eventually moved back to Los Angeles to make my home. I love living here because I’m a really active person, and I can go to the beach to play volleyball one day, and to the mountains to snowboard the next, and there is always a choice of fun, interesting things to do. Also, I’ve surrounded myself with a village of good friends here. My son is learning to be so kind and thoughtful because the people surrounding him treat him, and each other, with love and kindness.

As a parent, my hope is for my children to grow into self-confident, kind, creative, optimistic people, secure in their places in the world and their connections to the people they love. Being a mom is the most amazing, humbling, and interesting thing I’ve ever done.

My friends tell me that I am open minded, loving, and loyal, and that my positive energy is contagious. I bond right away with animals and children. I love travel, the beach, the snow, and, most of all, being my adopted son Cole’s mom. I believe life is about the people you connect with and the joy you experience with them, trying new things and practicing fun traditions. Together with our dog Studly and our cat Pablo, our family has so much love to give. I have surrounded myself with a village of good friends who are the most amazing chosen aunts, uncles and cousins to my child, and who cannot wait to welcome a new member of the family.

On any given day you can find us learning something new, like how to dance hip hop, jumping over the waves at the beach, or sledding down a mountain, and then finishing up with snuggles with our animals and a good book.

When I ask my family and friends what I should share with you about myself, they tell me that I am incredibly loyal, caring and open-minded. I value people, and connections with them, so much. I like being able to see things from other people’s point of view, and I always try to see the good in people.

For me, parenting is loving someone more than I had ever thought possible, helping them learn how to be themselves in the world, and learning and growing with them. I am a get-down-on-the-floor, run-around-playing-tag, laugh-a-lot kind of parent. I want my kids to love life, and live it while being good to others, so that they continue to surround themselves with amazing people as they grow. I want them to feel good about themselves and know who they are and who they want to be. If they are comfortable with it, I hope to include my children’s biological families in our lives, and build a huge chosen family based on love.

Cole cannot wait to be a big brother! He just turned four and has been asking for a sibling since he could talk. He wants to bring his new brother or sister to the park and play hide and seek with them. His friends at school say he is “gentle,” “kind,” and “fun to play with.” He loves to help younger kids learn how to ride tricycles or put on their shoes. He is always smiling, and loves animals, music, the beach, snow, farms, and books.

I am really lucky that Cole’s biological parents are such wonderful people, and that they and their families are part of our lives. His birth parents were so young when he was born, and were just not ready to raise a child. I send them notes and pictures, and we love to go visit them in Arizona. They have been able to visit us in LA as well. I hope that you, and your family, choose to become part of our family too. I respect how hard this is, though, and no matter what you decide, your child will be surrounded by love.

Time with our biological and chosen families is one of the most important things in our lives. I have created a tight knit, supportive group of friends in Los Angeles who are my family here. Around the holidays I host a big game and gift night, where we all get together and exchange gifts and play games. My friends and I also enjoy making dinner together, going on trips and just being together. My close friend Joanna and I love taking our children and her nieces to playgrounds. My friend Lisa just had her third child, and her oldest daughter is my son’s age. We go to the farm and beach together. My best friend Paula has an eight-year old son, and we love to go jumping at trampoline parks and play with trains together.

Cole and I play at least once a month with other families who also have adopted children, doing everything from visiting a park to potlucks at our houses. Two of those families just welcomed new babies, and they all cannot wait to meet a new child! My son’s biological family is an important part of our extended family. When they can, they come to birthday parties and holidays, and we enjoy traveling to visit them as well.

I have close friends around the country, who we go on fun trips to visit. I also have extended family: the three cousins I grew up with each have their own children now, and we visit them in the summers in Florida and North Carolina.

I live in a big, comfy four-bedroom house in Eagle Rock, California with a backyard. I love living here in a suburb of Los Angeles: I can go to the beach one day (it’s 30 minutes away), the mountains the next (I’m about 15 minutes away from fabulous hiking), and there are so many choices for live music and interesting events that it’s impossible to get bored. It takes about an hour and a half to get to the mountains to sled or snowboard, and about 45 minutes to get to Disneyland or our favorite pick-your-own veggies and ride-on-tractors farm. I love exploring my neighborhood too. I moved here because of the great schools, but we are also close to festivals, farmers markets, restaurants, a karate studio, a music and dance school, coffee shops, playgrounds, and two different indoor kids play spaces. My neighbors are so friendly: we have Thanksgiving and Halloween get-togethers, and I love to catch up with them while walking my dog Studly. I also love just hanging at home, chilling with my family and friends. I’ve filled my garage and backyard with a hammock, grill, musical instruments, ping pong/air hockey/ pool table, foosball table, and other toys and games.

I have always had furry love in my home. Studly is a 5 year-old terrier mix who I rescued when he was 8 weeks old. He loves squeaky toys, running in circles, hiking, and giving my son and I big kisses. Pablo is a year-old shorthair cat who loves chasing feather toys, tagging along in my basket when we ride bikes, and snuggling next to me and my son while we read books. Both of them love children of all shapes and sizes, and can’t wait for their new brother or sister!

As a mom, the most important thing to me is creating a family where everyone feels safe and loved for exactly who they are.

I love connecting with friends and family, including my son’s birth family, celebrating holidays, snuggling, reading, and playing. I am excited to show my children all the world has to offer! If they’d like to learn to snowboard or play the drums I would love to teach them, but I will also help them explore any other activity that interests them. We will all sing and play and go on traveling adventures together. If they decide to go to college, it will be easier for them than most to get into Harvard (both my father and I went there). Most of all, I want them to feel supported no matter what they decide is right for them.

Every child is unique and full of so much potential. I want them to be proud of who they are, and to know that they have a loving family who will be there for them no matter what. My two children will be different people, with different personalities, ideas, and birth families, but they will always have each other and our shared chosen family.

Thank you so much for taking the time to get to know us. Please know that I support any decision you make, and that if I am fortunate enough to adopt your baby, they will be showered with love. I will play with them, support them, read to them, laugh with them, dance with them, learn from them, travel the world with them, snuggle with them and share stories about you with them. If you decide it is what you want, I will spend time visiting you with them. I will share your hopes and dreams with them. I will do everything in my power to help your child blossom into their best self, whoever that may be! No matter what, they will know how much love went into their adoption.

- Julie & Cole (and Studly and Pablo too)!