Hi there! We are Athena and Matthew from Encino, California. We feel so blessed and appreciative of you for taking the time to learn about us. We have so desired to start a family. Despite the physical hurdles and heart-breaking experiences we faced with infertility, it is so important to us and we feel so hopeful about the possibility of adoption and expanding our family. The physical challenges have not deterred us from our dreams of becoming parents and raising a child. We know you will read many profiles, but hopefully you will be able to see what is unique and special about us and how much love we have to give. We want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for considering us.

We have always dreamt of becoming parents. We love kids and we cannot wait to complete our family. It is so important to us. We tried for many years to have a baby, and after many rounds of IVF, donor eggs, and a miscarriage, we realized there are many ways to become parents and to have children. We are more ready than we ever have been to become parents. We cannot wait to make our family complete and share the love, kindness, and beauty in this life with our children.

We met briefly in high school and reconnected years later though mutual friends and social media. We began talking and instantly felt a spark, sharing our mutual love for the Los Angeles Lakers. Matthew attended Kobe Bryant’s last game as I was watching from my couch. In awe of our love for Kobe and the Lakers, Matthew asked for my phone number. We arranged a first date and became inseparable ever since. We fell in love and this love continues to grow everyday. We got married in 2018, in our favorite place, Hawaii surrounded by our family and friends. We are blessed to have found each other. We never let a moment pass without expressing our love and affection. We are blessed to have such a loving relationship based on love, kindness, mutual respect, communication, and our shared love of family. While we have many shared interests, we are also unique. We believe our differences create a beautiful partnership making us a strong couple.

I am a positive and upbeat person. Family is and always has been one of my top priorities. My friends and coworkers describe me as having a loving and good spirit, always willing to lend a hand to those in need. I strive to always be loving, compassionate, understanding of others, and willing to learn new things. I think I tune into people’s needs and pride myself on being a good and loyal friend, daughter, wife, aunt, and person. I come from a stable and loving family and they always emphasized compassion, love, support, and family closeness and I love that I come from such a loving and warm family. I believe this is where my love of family and the desire to become a mom comes from. I am a preschool teacher at the same preschool my sister and I attended and I could not be more thankful to have found a place where I can make a difference and truly feel fulfilled.

Athena is the most loving and supportive individual I have ever met. She is my biggest cheerleader and advocate for being able to accomplish as much as we have together. She is mentally and emotionally strong being able to juggle the acts of life both expected and unexpected. She is always there and will go out of her way to make sure everyone is loved and feels taken care of. I love that she still hand writes letters to everyone she has crossed paths with in life.

She loves to take things in and enjoy the moment. She is happiest when others around her are happy as well. She has the ability to sense and read rooms and people making sure everyone is heard and seen. Sharing our lives together was the easiest choice I ever made, and she truly has enriched everyday of my life since we reacquainted and got to say “I do”.

She will give anyone, friend, stranger or foe, the shirt off her back and help anyone in need. Her eyes glow brighter with each day she gets to add to those around her. She is going to make an excellent mother, I have full confidence in this and can’t wait to see it in person.

I am a creative, forward thinking, energetic, loving person. I love to enjoy all things outdoors and spend time with loved ones, friends and family. I am lucky to be connected and in touch with my family close and far away, I choose to spend time with them whenever possible.

Some of my goals in life are to make each day better than the last. I cherish memories and spending time with others the most. I am a helper in this world and try to help those around me in every way possible. My family has always been there for me to root me on in life and athletics. They are compassionate and taught me not only to do my best but be a good sport at all times. My parents continuously guided me in a positive direction of kindness, love and care for others.

I love my job and I am lucky to be surrounded by a supportive group of like minded individuals. In my line of work we are fortunate to help individuals from all walks of life and across the United States. We help with tax planning, setting up businesses, and achieving overall financial freedom for our clients. Being able to work with the general population and bettering others lives is very gratifying to me.

Matthew is one of the most loving and loyal human beings I have ever met and I am so lucky to call him my husband and best friend. He wears his heart on his sleeve and shares the love of family and friends. He is affectionate and never takes a moment for granted; always expressing love and affection. This is one of my favorite things about him. Matthew is young at heart and inspires me to try new things. He is always up for an adventure and reminds me with his encouragement to give things a try.

Matthew is a supportive and loving partner and is the first person I want to share news with, a funny story, or a challenge I may face. He offers a different perspective that is important and I appreciate. He is one of the hardest working people I know, but he will always make time for family and friends and is always willing to help those in need. Matthew has so much love to give and I know he will make a great dad, just as he is an amazing Uncle. Like our wedding song says, “ I get to love you”, my love for him is such a blessing.

We love our neighborhood and community. We live in a three bedroom condominium in Encino, California. It is a family friendly neighborhood. It is a beautiful and walkable neighborhood with great schools. People are always out and about walking with their families, kids, and pets, as well as exercising. We are surrounded by beautiful parks, restaurants, and kid friendly activities.

It is a great place to raise a family. We are close by to our families, so dinners and barbecues as well as visits and fun are frequent. We live thirty minutes from beautiful beaches, an hour away from mountains and snow in the winter, parks and hiking are nearby and we are surrounded by so many wonderful activities that are kid and family friendly. We are very fortunate to live in a place that has such an amazing array of activities. We live in a diverse community a place that has a multitude of museums, cultural events, music, theaters, outdoor gardens and we feel it is a wonderful place to grow our family and raise a child.

Our dog Tucker is the sweetest dog in the world. He loves cuddles and playing, and he especially loves getting a new toy. We got Tucker when we first started dating and he has been the best addition to our family. He has filled our lives with love and happiness. He is warm and loving and great with kids!

We are so blessed to have such incredible families who we value, cherish, and love spending time with. We are very close to our two nephews, and niece and love creating beautiful memories together; not just at special occasions, but being present and making our families feel special and loved always. Family is our number one priority and that is something we both hold near and dear to our hearts. It truly takes a village to raise children and we are so thankful that we have such supportive and loving families.

One of the many beautiful things about us and our families is that we come from culturally blended and diverse family backgrounds. We have an interracial marriage and come from different cultural backgrounds which we appreciate and believe is very special. Matthew is half Korean and I come from a Greek background. We learn from one another, incorporate, and embrace each other’s backgrounds, traditions, and differences. We value this as a rich and positive part of our marriage and family. We have learned a lot from one another and celebrate our unique and beautiful differences. I have learned to cook many of the Korean dishes and love learning about his ancestors and their history in Korea and Matt has embraced and loved learning about Greek food, culture, and traditions as well. The blending of our families makes our marriage so much richer.

Parenting is such a blessing and we could not be more excited to begin this journey. Parenting is showing and expressing love and affection, kindness, patience, open communication and healthy limits. It also is about creating experiences and passing on values and lessons as you help your child grow. Matthew and I come from different cultural backgrounds which has been really a beautiful experience for us. We honor and acknowledge different cultures and how special that is to bring to a family. We value and embrace diversity and family closeness. We value the importance of the family unit and extended family and love sharing our multi-generational moments and experiences together. We cook and celebrate and talk with four generations and these experiences are memorable and priceless and we cannot wait to share this with a child. We have weekly family dinners and value these as an integral part of our family life. We value kindness, love, education, honesty, and giving back. We want to be respectful to you, the parents, but we would love an open adoption and plan on communicating to your child regularly about adoption and being adopted. Thank you for taking the time to learn about us!