Stuart and Heather

Thank you for selecting our profile. We are deeply humbled that you want to learn more about us. We have no idea what you may be experiencing or the emotions you are feeling, but we recognize you are searching for the option that is best for you. We respect you as a mother who is taking the time to educate yourself.

One thing we want you to understand about us is that we really want to be parents. It is something that we have tried to do on our own. We have struggled with infertility but we are not letting it hold us back from our goal. We are excited to raise a child (or children!) so that we can pass down our knowledge and values. We hope that adoption will help us grow our family.

We want you to know that we support your decision, whichever direction you go, and so thank you so much for your consideration! We hope you enjoy getting to know us better.

With Love,
Heather and Stuart

We met in the summer of 2005 through close mutual friends and very quickly fell in love. Following a few years of dating, we decided it was time to live together. Our apartment was in Oakland, California and though small and cramped, we made it a fun place to live and met many wonderful friends that are still part of our lives. We loved our apartment and the life we were beginning to build together. At the end of 2009, we got engaged during a trip to New York City. We could not have been happier!

Ten months later we were married by our close friend presiding over the ceremony with family and friends in attendance.

A couple years later, we purchased our first home in Castro Valley and said farewell to our little Oakland apartment. After 3 years of living in Castro Valley, we moved back to Oakland where we purchased our current home, a fixer-upper!

After almost ten years of marriage, we are very close to each other and still love each other very much! We are loving, stable people with a great family/friendship network.

We love going on long hikes, finding new places to eat breakfast, exploring the world together, and hosting the occasional backyard BBQ. We love our life together and look forward to what the future holds for us as we prepare to grow our family!

When we got married our plan was to start a family right away, but we were faced with some complications. I (Heather) have endometriosis and it has made getting pregnant very difficult.

Even prior to being diagnosed with endometriosis, I was drawn to adoption and envisioned that we would one day grow our family in this way. But, we decided we would first pursue options to get pregnant.

Over the last couple of years, we tried naturally to conceive but it was not successful. We have not let these setbacks get in the way of growing our family.

We’re excited about adoption because we want to be parents! We have both found purpose in many things in our life over time. Hobbies, our friends and family, and our careers. Raising a child will take us to the next level as people and we’re ready to do it. We have a lot of love in our hearts and we know that the love we have to give a child doesn’t depend on our matching DNA.

FRIENDS DESCRIBE ME AS: Loyal, happy, creative and adventurous

FAVORITE MOVIE: Mary Poppins and Coco

FAVORITE BOOK: Where the Wild Things Are

INSPIRED BY: Good design, art and the natural world

FAVORITE MEMORY: The day we got married!

GROWING UP: I grew up in a suburb of the San Francisco Bay Area as the youngest in my immediate family. In school I was always involved with student government, sports, and various clubs. During my college years I attended CSU, East Bay which is located in the neighboring city of Hayward. I graduated from there with a bachelors in Liberal Arts and minors in French and Photography.

OCCUPATION: Today, I am an educator at Saint Leo the Great School in Oakland. I have been at my school for the past three years teaching in various roles. I am now the second grade teacher there. Once a child joins our family, I plan to become a full time mother and stay home to raise the baby. In my free time you can find me out tending the garden, reading a book or simply just taking a nap. I also enjoy traveling, hiking, gardening, running, interior design, permaculture/ sustainability, and volunteering within the community.

WHY I WANT TO BE A MOTHER: As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a mother. I often dreamed of having a family of four children when I was younger and eventually growing the family further through adoption.

FRIENDS DESCRIBE ME AS: Funny, creative, relaxed and ambitious

FAVORITE MOVIE: James Bond 007

FAVORITE BOOK: Flatland

INSPIRED BY: Technical challenges

FAVORITE MEMORY: Our wedding day!

GROWING UP: I was raised in a small town in Virginia called Staunton with my two sisters. During high school, we lived on a farm and it was one of the most amazing experiences. After high school, I lived in Georgia for four years, making music and learning how to record bands and later headed out to California with a friend to pursue a career in music recording.

OCCUPATION: I currently work for an electric vehicle manufacturer named Rivian, focusing on the website and sales side of the business. I love helping to build companies! In my free time, I have been diligently completing restorations in our house, one room at a time. When I’m not building on the house, I like to spend time learning about a new technology or electrical engineering skill or some new way to apply either of these passions to cooking a new kind of meal. I enjoy photography, scuba diving, cooking, hiking and traveling.

WHY I WANT TO BE A DAD: I’ve applied myself to many things over the years: hobbies, career, friends and family and traveling to wonderful places. I think having a child to teach about all these things that matter to me would really add a greater purpose to my life.

GROWING UP: I was raised in a small town in Virginia called Staunton with my two sisters. During high school, we lived on a farm and it was one of the most amazing experiences. After high school, I lived in Georgia for four years, making music and learning how to record bands and later headed out to California with a friend to pursue a career in music recording.

We live in the vibrant city of Oakland, located in Northern California. Oakland is a wonderful and diverse place. As it is centrally located, we have easy access to the country, the beach, and the mountains. San Francisco is also only a 10 minute drive away. It is one of the many reasons why we love where we live. Our street is nestled between two larger neighborhood districts. These two enclaves supply us with an excellent variety of food, shops, schools, and parks, all available within a walking distance from our home!

Our Mediterranean style home is a split level with three bedrooms and a small backyard. It is located on a quiet one-way street. We purchased this fixer-upper and have been remodeling it one room at a time, adding our own personal touches to it. We enjoy the process of updating our home to fit our personalities and getting to accomplish this project together. Stuart does most of the construction, and Heather does gardening and decorating the interior!

Our neighborhood holds an annual street party potluck every October. All of the families on the block are invited to come out and gather under the large evergreen tree at the end of the road for food, fellowship, and fun. Our close friends only live a few blocks away which makes it easier for us to hang out more often.