Families Waiting to Adopt

Meet

Melissa & Erica

Greetings

Adoption is a beautiful act of love that is close to our hearts! (One of us, Melissa, was adopted at birth.) We know firsthand the many complicated emotions that can come with this process and appreciate your willingness to get to know us. We would be honored to be part of your journey!

The Story of Us

We met in Indianapolis, Indiana in 2008 after sharing emails through an online message board and have been inseparable ever since. We were married on a muggy September day in Central Park in New York City in 2011 surrounded by our families. Together, we are an adventurous team that can do anything we set our minds to!

We began trying to start a family 8 years ago. Through the ups and downs of fertility treatments, including an emotional miscarriage, we never gave up hope on becoming parents. We welcomed our daughter, Grey, to the world in the fall of 2021. Because of the difficulties that many same-sex couples experience in finding a welcoming adoption agency, we searched diligently for an organization that would help us in our journey to grow our family. We're excited to work with the Sacramento Adoption Center, who has welcomed us with open arms, & we are thrilled to take this next step in growing our family.

Meet Erica (by Melissa)

Erica is my most favorite person in the entire world & my best friend. She is kind and warm and her love for her family and friends is deep and unwavering. Erica loves adventures and was the catalyst behind our cross-country bicycling journey in 2013 – from the Atlantic Ocean (Yorktown, VA) to the Pacific Ocean (Florence, Oregon) 90 days later – to benefit one of our favorite charities. Kids love Erica because she is always there to play whatever game can be imagined or sit down to read a book or color or do art projects. She is an incredible mommy to our daughter and will instill compassion, peace and love in your child!

Loves: swimming, fantasy football, self improvement and art projects, going to Yosemite and Italy, and Melissa and Grey

Fun Fact: She played soccer from ages 7-18 and played the flute in her high school marching band

Meet Melissa (by Erica)

Mel is my soulmate and my absolute favorite person! There is no one I’d rather do this thing called life with. She's an incredibly dedicated full time mommy and caretaker for our projects around the house. She’s creative, intelligent, compassionate, funny and just so much fun to be around. Kids love her- no one can make our daughter laugh the way Mel can! She' s helping Grey learn to color, express her creativity, and think outside the box! She’ll pass on her creativity and indescribable sense of humor to your child.

Loves: playing sports, collecting sports memorabilia, attending concerts, US history, visiting Disneyland and Maui, spicy food, and Erica & Grey

Fun Fact: She’s been skydiving twice!

Our Adventures

We love spending time outdoors, biking, hiking & kayaking near our home in the Sierra Nevada mountains. We live near a beautiful trail along a canal where we take Grey and our dog Louie for walks multiple times a week. It’s so peaceful!

We also enjoy camping and try to take an annual trip to Yosemite National Park to escape from it all and really reconnect with nature in a beautiful setting.

Traveling is one of our favorite pastimes that we plan on sharing with our children. We’ve traveled all across the United States and Europe, including London, Paris, Rome, Maui, and Disneyland- we love experiencing historic places, cultural sites, and incredible food! (And Disneyland- we’re big kids that love going every year!)

The place we call home is so much more than just our house- it's the whole mountain area! We feel at home whenever we are hiking and biking the nearby trails, visiting the lake, camping at the state parks, and visiting Placerville and Lake Tahoe. We love to visit Apple Hill in the fall to pick pumpkins and eat delicious homemade pies, and return in the winter to cut down our own Christmas tree! We are also an hour away from Sacramento when we want to have a day in the city.

What's particularly awesome is that our cool climate allows us to stay active in the summer and enjoy a wide spectrum of outdoor activities almost any time of the year!

Our Community of Family and Friends

We often travel to Indianapolis, Indiana to visit Melissa’s parents, sister, and nephew, or host them when they visit us. A favorite tradition is Christmas Day Brunch with them in Indiana. Melissa’s parents love being involved in Grey’s life and always said that two grandbabies was never enough!

Erica’s parents live just a few miles from us and provide extra sets of loving hands to help with our daughter! Erica’s parents share our zest for adventure, and our traditional “Family Fun Days” have been great with Grey and we are excited to add even more kiddos in the future. Erica’s brother lives in Oregon and loves coming down to teach Grey about nature.

We have a community of friends nearby that have been very supportive of us on our journey to build our family.

Finally, we’ve raised a sweet dog named Louie, who is always ready to give love, receive belly rubs, or walk by Grey’s side on hikes. He’s an awesome big brother to her!