Hello! We are Palestrina & Stephen along with our two kids, Aria & Piper, from Eastvale, California. We can’t even begin to express what an incredible mother you are, and how the decision you’re considering for your baby shows so much care towards them. From the bottom of our hearts, we want you to know that we admire your courage and strength for considering adoption for your child. This decision certainly isn’t easy, but know that what you’re doing flourishes from the love you have for your child.

We are honored that you are considering us as part of your baby’s story and we’re excited about this beautiful way for our roads to cross in life.

We are an active, fun, loving family, who believe strongly in “chosen family”. Palestrina’s biological family hadn’t been present much during her childhood, leaving families in the community taking her in with open arms and treating her like their own. Stephen had people in his family who were adopted. We both have spoken about a plan to adopt before and during our marriage because of the significance it meant to us, and we’re excited that we are now at a stable point in our lives to pursue it.

We are already a blended family! Aria is Stephen’s biological child and Palestrina’s step-daughter, making her Piper’s half sister. She lives with us full time, and we always try to uplift and encourage Aria about her roots and to ensure she feels wanted and belongs in this family.

We believe each of our individual stories pave the way of who we are. We promise to empower your child by teaching them how their story is a unique part of who they are and the incredible person they will one day become.

We met in 2015 at VidCon (a convention celebrating online video). We became fast friends through our shared love of Disneyland! Stephen being a California resident his whole life, and Palestrina, a tourist from Toronto, Canada who adored the place, it was a nonstop conversation full of fun Disney facts, and fun tangential conversations.

We skyped every night, and talked at all hours of the day (despite the time difference). Palestrina would say good night to Aria and have little chats.

A year later Palestrina came to visit for the following VidCon and sparks flew. We got engaged under the stars at Palomar Observatory.

We love our jobs and working from home! Creating is our passion and we both work as Mental Health Advocates striving to make our world more Neurodiverse-friendly! It’s our ultimate goal to raise our children with the knowledge about how their minds work, and create better support systems to achieve success in life!

I grew up in Canada, and have always been independent and dedicated — getting up early on my own to join crossing patrol. I enjoyed being in charge and joining every club at school (and even starting a few)!

In my college years I found my love for working as a camp counselor; I taught kids how to edit and animate short films. I’ve worked creatively in multiple fields since then, and now have found my passion as a creative director at a mental health friendly company where I can work from home and spend lots of time with my family.

I love to bake with the kids, go on walks, jump on the trampoline, and eat ALL the food!

My Career: Creative Director for How to ADHD (Youtube Channel)

The first thing that caught my eye about Palestrina was her stunning enthusiasm for living life to the fullest. She’s a curious world explorer; she always wants to know what’s around the corner, or down the path. Palestrina pushes herself, and everyone around her, to be the best versions of themselves they can be.

She has a passion for creating, and an incredible drive. Her passion for people, and helping them understand complex subjects is one of the things I most love about her. She wants to make sure everyone has the opportunity and the tools to be the best version of themselves.
Even though we are a blended family, Palestrina has raised Aria as though she were her own, through most of Aria’s firsts and achievements, as well as hardships and tears.

I am nothing short of thrilled to see Palestrina shine once again as the beautiful parent she was clearly always meant to be.

I grew up in sunny San Diego, California. I was always energetic, enjoyed learning and how to build things, both on my own and in scouts. I loved watching cartoons and being able to see how the art of animation came to life, and I wanted to be able to tell these kinds of deep powerful stories too. This led me to my career as a part time animator on a mental health EduTube channel, which I find deeply fulfilling.

When I was younger I was diagnosed with ADD. Growing up, that was challenging, especially in an environment that didn’t understand how to encourage someone with a disability. My family was very logic oriented; if you have emotions, don’t share them. Every day I make sure to support the people I love and encourage them to embrace their emotions and have space to feel them.

I’m a stay-at-home dad, which I’ve always wanted to be. Spending quality time with my family is essential to me. We love exploring, hiking, going to the aquarium and I love being able to share what I’ve learned with them.

One thing I always loved about Stephen was his open-mindedness. Day to day he constantly keeps up with my ambitions in life and all the wild ideas I throw at him. His answers are never “no” but rather - “ok, how can we make this dream possible?” He’s always been supportive, encouraging and thought-inspiring.

When I saw an idea for a play fort for the kids, he found a floor plan, got the materials, and helped me make it happen.

His love for us is remarkable; when things get tough he is the rock to hold us together, and keep our spirits lifted. When I first saw his interactions with Aria, I knew he was the one. He’s playful, warm, and always looking out for the kids’ needs first.

We have two wonderful kids, Aria 10 and Piper 5. They both have a strong love and bond with each other. Aria loves being the caring big sister for Piper and teaching her new skills. Piper is independent and loves to learn. We always believed that Palestrina and Aria came from worlds apart to connect with each other— and she’s helped her flourish into the amazing 10 year old she is today. Aria is a social butterfly, loves video games, science, and baking. Piper is a wonderful sister and you can tell she has so much love to give. She loves school, learning, Star Wars, and her favorite toy cow.

Both keep asking about wanting to expand our family — “Mommy, are we going to have another baby yet?” — and with the nature of our family’s values being a blended family, we have no doubt that our future child will be welcomed with open arms.

We live in Eastvale, California, a part of Riverside County. There are so many parks, scenic routes, bike trails, and nature!

We specifically moved out to this suburban area in 2020 to provide a safer, better school zoning area for our growing family. While still being within driving distance from beaches, aquariums, and the lively life of LA. This neighborhood is very diverse.

We spend a lot of our time with our friendly neighbors and their kids! The kids love jumping on the trampoline, playing in the playroom, and playing games together.

Palestrina’s friends and family live in Canada. Stephen’s friends live throughout California (mostly San Diego). Even though our friends are far away, they make an effort to visit every couple of months. We have an annual “orphan” Christmas party that celebrates any one of our friends who want to have close people to spend the holidays with.

The kids love when our friends visit and those friends act as pseudo aunts and uncles to our children.

Thank you for considering us as adoptive parents to your child. Your child is only here because of you, and we will love and cherish them for the unique person they are and will become.

Wishing you the best on this journey,
Palestrina, Stephen, Aria & Piper