For fun together, we enjoy going for walks in the neighborhood, playing on the playground (even as adults), watching TV together, and doing puzzles. We also enjoy going to shows: musicals, symphonies, ballet, and Cirque du Solei. We have regularly attended elite and college gymnastics events near us. We are eager to share our experiences with this child.

Nicole loves taking flying trapeze lessons. She also loves watching Cleveland sports and Ohio State football, both on the couch at home with the kitties, and in-person at the stadiums, whether the game is home or away. Nicole hopes that the child will enjoy watching Cleveland sports with her as the child grows up.

Tarun enjoys learning to golf, playing video games, cooking, and gardening. Tarun looks forward to teaching this child about games involving strategy and thought. Tarun hopes cooking tasty meals will inspire the child to learn about gardening and nature.

We are excited to share our hobbies and activities with this child, but we also look forward to the child finding their own hobbies and passions that bring them joy.

We love each other, balance each other well, and have a strong marriage. Even when life has thrown us curveballs, our relationship has always provided comfort and stability.

Nicole loves that Tarun makes her laugh everyday by being silly with her and the kitties. She loves how thoughtful and selfless he is, and how he puts her and the cats first. She also loves Tarun’s cooking: he is an excellent cook, and often makes a vegetarian version for Nicole and a meat version of the same recipe for himself. Tarun is thoughtful not in just these types of daily actions, but also in how he views the world: he likes to learn about things, think about them, and then form an opinion about the situation. Nicole admires this about him. Even though Tarun is one of the smartest people Nicole knows, she admires that Tarun is still always trying to learn something new.

Tarun loves Nicole for four of her character traits. First, Nicole is a forgiving person; she understands that people make mistakes and forgives readily. Second, he loves her altruism. She is generous to her friends and works to make the world a better place. She keeps Tarun’s heart open to the world. Third, Tarun admires Nicole’s conscientiousness. Nicole is so well-organized; without Nicole, Tarun feels his life would be complete chaos. Finally, Nicole is energetic and joyful. She is always up for an adventure or a new activity, and Tarun loves to make her smile and laugh.

We were both born in the U.S. and think of ourselves as Americans. However, we come from very different racial and cultural backgrounds. Tarun’s parents are originally from Gujarat, India. Tarun grew up speaking a local language, Gujarati, at home, and he still speaks it with his parents. Nicole is Caucasian and Hispanic. Nicole’s mother is of Mexican and Spanish descent and Nicole’s father comes from Eastern European and Russian decent.

As an interracial couple coming from very different cultural backgrounds, we understand the value of and celebrate cultural diversity. We have blended our cultures in our relationship in small daily ways and in larger ways. For example, at our wedding, we had an Indian ceremony and a Western ceremony, and the combination was perfect! Nicole walked down the aisle to “Cielito Lindo,” a mariachi song that her grandfather used to sing to her, and the wedding was officiated by her brother. We had wonderful Gujarati food and got to taste some Indian sweets during the Indian wedding.

We will always be open with the child about their background, and we hope to encourage them to explore their own and others’ cultures. We will do our best to learn about the child’s cultural heritage and incorporate aspects into our daily lives. If there are questions that we cannot answer or situations where we need advice, we will ask others for advice or look for resources to help. The world is not “colorblind”, and neither are we. Rather than ignoring differences, we want to celebrate them. The differences in our own lives have brought us great joy. We hope to provide a loving and supportive environment where a child can explore, and we look forward to teaching them and learning from them along the way.

We live in a lovely one-story home in Texas with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. We also have an office/library and a small room adjacent to it for our kitties, Rosie and Daisy. The living room, dining area, kitchen, and gym space are all very open with big windows. We have cozy furniture, and we spend many nights watching TV with the cats on our laps. We have a lot of cat toys and cat trees everywhere for our kitties, including play areas. Our decorations focus on family: we have a “family crest” that we imagined together, a map of our adventures, family pictures, and beautiful photography taken by Nicole’s dad. Our small front yard has an herb garden. Our back yard is fenced, has a patio, soft grass for play, and flower beds for digging in the dirt.

Our neighborhood is very family-friendly. It has sidewalks, two playgrounds, two schools, and a neighborhood pool within walking distance. There are a lot of families with young children. We often see them playing outside, and Halloween trick-or-treating is always adorable. We are friends with our neighbors, and the neighborhood association regularly host events for families.

Nicole was born and raised in Ohio, and her parents and younger brother live there. We see Nicole’s family several times a year. When we visit Ohio, Nicole’s mom always prepares cookie dough and matzo ball soup. Nicole and her family love watching Cleveland sports and Ohio State football. We often plan trips to see Nicole’s family based on whether we can see a Guardians, Browns, or Cavaliers game together. Nicole’s family enjoys puzzles, card and board games, going for walks, and seeing shows.

Tarun was born and raised in Georgia. His parents, older brother, and younger sister live near Atlanta, and his older sister lives near Seattle, WA. Tarun’s parents enjoy Cirque du Soleil shows, and his whole family enjoys watching Friends and playing poker (no money). Tarun’s niece recently visited us in Dallas to explore college and see museums. Tarun’s older nephew loves Roblox, and his younger nephew loves building with Legos.

We alternate Thanksgiving and Christmas between Nicole and Tarun’s family each year. Nicole’s family usually enjoys enchiladas, mole, and tamales around Christmastime. Tarun’s family enjoys traditional Gujarati food. Wherever we spend Thanksgiving, college football will be on with Nicole’s family rooting for Ohio State and Tarun’s family rooting for Georgia.

First, thank you so much for looking at our profile. If you are considering adoption, we cannot imagine the emotions that you are going through. Please know that whatever you decide, we admire and respect you, your selflessness, and your love for your child.

A little bit about us: we have been together for 10 years and married for almost 3 years. We met online when we were both in graduate school in Seattle, and we bonded over our shared love of exploring the Seattle area, dumplings, Star Wars, and chocolate. During the COVID pandemic, we adopted our first cat together: Nicki, who was 15 years old at the time. After he passed, we adopted Rosie and then later adopted Daisy. Rosie is the lap cat, and Daisy loves to play! They are huge parts of our lives and important members of our family.

We are an interracial couple. Tarun is Indian, and Nicole is Caucasian and Hispanic. We learn about, appreciate, and honor each other’s cultures. For our wedding, we blended our cultures and families with an Indian ceremony and a Western ceremony, a Gujarati lunch, and a shared reception, complete with a tequila toast (one of Nicole’s family traditions), all in one day! We plan to bring that same spirit of openness and celebration to this child’s heritage and cultural background, and we are excited to add some of their culture to our family’s story.

Education and curiosity are at the core of our lives. Tarun is a finance professor, and Nicole works in infectious diseases research. We want to provide the child with a great education and a supportive environment for learning and exploration. Beyond school, we hope to share with the child our adventures, travels, and friendships with people from all walks of life. Most of all, we want to provide a child with an opportunity to find what they love and form their own opinions, as they pursue their passions.

Very early in our relationship, we decided that we wanted adoption to be part of our lives. We wanted two children: a biological child and an adopted child. When infertility became a reality for us, pursuing adoption was our natural next step. We are ready to become parents and grow our family through this incredible experience.

We believe that openness and honesty are important for everyone involved in adoption: you, the child, and us. The child will always know that adoption is part of their story, and they will always know who you are. We would love to share updates, letters, and pictures with you. We are open to ongoing contact: visits, emails, phone calls, etc. We hope that, together, we will find what works best for all of us, and that the child feels connected to you and comfortable asking you questions.

Thank you again for taking the time to read our letter and consider our profile. We have immense respect for you and your love for your child. We wish you all the best in your journey, and we would be honored to be a part of it.

Tarun & Nicole