Hi there! We're Peter and Matt from Los Angeles, California! Thank you for considering us to be the parents of your precious child. We’ve dreamt of starting a family through the gift of adoption for years, especially since Peter himself was adopted and had a wonderfully positive experience. You can trust that we will shower your child with unconditional love and support. We know you have a lot to consider, and we’re so grateful for you taking the time to hear our story. We would also love to learn more about you! Whether you choose us or another family, we are sending you strength and love just the same. Thank you for learning about us!

Adoption was an instinctual choice for us as Peter was adopted at birth. He cherishes his adoptive family and the life he has led thanks to their love and support, and is so grateful for his birth mother's courage in choosing adoption. Together we’ve had many discussions on what we believe makes a family strong, and sharing the same genes has never been at the top of the list, though that can of course be a beautiful thing. We believe a family is built from unconditional love, shared values, a supportive community, and a healthy dose of humor and adventure.

On our first date, we shared an amazing sandwich that came tied in a red and white string. We both knew there was something special, and it wasn’t just the sandwich. Matt saved that string and years later wrapped it around Peter’s wrist and proposed. The string represents a long spool of incredible highs and lows that made us stronger at every turn- building a house, surviving a pandemic, getting a dog, career changes, family losses, births of our nephew and godchildren. It represents the strong threads that connect us: devotion to family, giving back to our community, a spirit of curiosity and open-mindedness, a sense of humor and adventure. And the string serves as a reminder that above all else, what matters most are the little, everyday moments like taking our dog for a walk at sunset, leaving surprise love notes around the house, and of course, sharing a good sandwich.

Where to begin! We love to travel. Recent favorites include a trip to Kiawah Island, South Carolina, taking Matt’s mom to Ireland to learn about her ancestors, a bike trip in Spain, and snorkeling in Hawaii with our sweet little nephew. At the same time, we cherish being at home. One of our favorite things to do is host our friends and their kids for pool BBQs in the summer and board games by the fireplace in the winter. Not to mention, our house is consistently voted best decorated every Halloween by our neighbors! We share a love of music, and take advantage of LA’s many concerts. We dabble in our own musical endeavors too, recently participating in our family’s annual talent show with a duet of Fly Me To The Moon, with Peter on the piano and Matt singing along. Giving back to our communities is important to us. We’re always looking for new ways to help others, from swimming long distances to raise money for cancer research, to making meals for food banks.

I grew up in South Carolina, the oldest of three boys. From an early age, I loved three things: music, swimming, and school. These things came to define me: I have a life long love of singing, performing in musicals and in concerts that took me around the world. I also swam competitively in college, and even competed afterwards in a Masters league (where I won the national championship!). But my love of learning is perhaps the most important of all. I worked hard in school and got into Yale University, where I thrived. And since graduating, I’ve seized the opportunity to learn and grow in every chapter of my life. Today, I have the privilege of working in Hollywood, making television series for the whole world to watch. This job combines so many of the things I love: creativity, team work, passion, and resilience. I’m excited to pass on these values (and more) to our future child, and maybe even teach them to swim the butterfly, too!

Matt has a big, kind smile that can turn around even the hardest days. Though he has a successful and busy work life, he always prioritizes taking care of me, our dog, home, family, and friends. He is a natural in the kitchen, making the simplest things, like chicken tenders, taste gourmet. His green thumb keeps our home bursting with happy plants. Matt’s empathy runs deep - his eyes are quick to tear up with joy any time his loved ones share their good news, or with sorrow sharing in their difficult moments. Our pup Roger feels it too. Whenever Matt pulls into the driveway, Roger puts his paws up on the window sill and wags his tail until Matt walks in the door, where they share a greeting as if they’d been apart for months. Every night it’s the same excitement, and every night I can’t help but think how much more exciting it will be to see our children jumping into Matt’s arms too.

I grew up outside of San Francisco, just across the Golden Gate Bridge. During my childhood I spent summers in the Midwest with my extended family, sailing in Lake Michigan and riding roller coasters at Cedar Point in Ohio. I also spent a lot of time studying Spanish and volunteering in Guatemala, lived in Spain for a year, and went to college in New York. I’ve lived in Los Angeles for over 10 years, where I work as a producer on projects that combine creativity and technology, inspired by my love of film and the arts. In my spare time you can find me playing tennis and beach volleyball, visiting museums, or cooking new recipes. I love to make crafts from scratch, from holiday cards to tie dye shirts to Halloween decorations. My favorite thing of all, though, is sitting with my husband and our dog Roger watching the sunset from our balcony. I’m overwhelmed with excitement to think that there will be a child to join us soon!

When we met, the first thing I noticed about Peter was how bright and genuine his eyes are. He has the warmest disposition — he is endlessly encouraging, slow to anger, gentle and honest. He cares deeply about his family and friends, and will do anything to support them or make their lives just a little bit brighter. He once flew to his parents’ house just for the afternoon to help babysit our newborn nephew! He’s also the most tender “dog dad” to our pup, Roger. Seeing him snuggled up in bed with Roger or running circles together in the backyard just makes my heart burst. When he’s not helping others, he cares deeply about self-enrichment: whether it’s learning to play the piano again after 25 years, or teaching himself to cook so he can have dinners ready when I get home from work, or perfecting his beach volley serve or tennis backhand — Peter’s always learning and growing. I love that, and so much more, about my perfect husband.

We live in a small, family-oriented neighborhood in the hills of Los Angeles just by the Hollywood sign, with hiking trails, playgrounds, tennis courts, and coffee shops walkable in any direction. Despite being in a big city, our neighborhood is quiet and peaceful. The streets are bursting with trees and wildflowers, families are always out walking with their kids and dogs, everyone is on a first name basis with the mailman, and neighbors will drop off a fresh loaf of bread just because. We love to explore the city, taking advantage of all of the rich cultural diversity- amazing restaurants, museums, and attractions. And we will frequently take weekend trips to one of many nearby spots like Malibu, Laguna Beach, Santa Barbara, San Diego, and Solvang. In LA, the ocean is never too far. Our dog Roger fits snugly into a backpack we wear to bring him on bike rides along the beach in Santa Monica. And you can’t forget about our annual trip to Disneyland with our friends and their kids.

Roger is our sweet four year old labradoodle and is the epitome of gentleness and warmth. His cuddly and playful spirit has brought us so much joy and expanded our hearts. He is just as excited about an adventurous hike as he is curling up on the couch. One of our favorite things about him is how much he loves our friends’ kids, and they love him in return. We can’t wait to see Roger in his new role as a big brother!

We consider our parents and siblings not just family, but our best friends. We’ve actually blended both sides into one big family, sharing holidays and trips together, and staying in touch on one of many family text chains. Peter’s parents still live in the house that he grew up in, so we often make a point of going back to Mill Valley, CA to visit them. His brother also lives nearby, and recently he and his wife welcomed their first child — we always make time for a play date.

Matt’s mom lives in South Carolina in the house he grew up in, too. Visits home often include a trip to Kiawah Island, for bike rides on the beach and oyster roasts. While Matt’s dad has passed away, his memory is very much alive in all of us, and we know he’d be so proud of our journey to becoming parents. We are very lucky that one of Matt’s brothers lives in Los Angeles, so we get to spend a lot of quality time together. Matt’s other brother works in London, but even though he’s far away, he still thinks he’s the favorite uncle to our sweet dog! We have both benefitted so much from a stable, loving, connected family — and feel so blessed to remain close with them to this day. We know that we will do everything in our power to give the same gift to our child.

We promise to create an environment where our child feels safe, supported, and loved unconditionally. We will encourage them to use their imaginations, to be curious, to be kind to others, and to be healthy in body, mind and spirit. We believe the best way to instill these values is through quality time spent together. Spending time with our child as a family unit, as well as with our extended family and friends, will be our number one priority. We will do our very best to model all of these values in our own lives and relationships. And with these building blocks, we will let our child decide for themselves where their passions lie and support whatever direction they choose for their lives. We’re so excited to see how they grow up and what we will learn from them as well. We’re also excited to share this experience with you through an open adoption. We want our child to always understand their adoption as a completely normal and beautiful thing, and to be proud of their birth story.

We are deeply grateful for you taking the time to read about us, and considering us to be the parents of your precious child. We promise that we will shower your child with love every day, and will never take for granted how lucky we are to be together because of your selfless gift. And we will call upon our supportive family and closest friends to help raise your child, as we know how important a loving community is to building and sustaining a strong family. We are intentionally choosing to build our family through adoption, not just because of our deep connection through Peter’s own adoption journey, but also because it is such a beautiful example of the values we hold dear.