Tomas and Victoria

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From Us to You

As we are writing this letter to you, we imagine you reading it in front of your screen and we imagine our souls connecting through the screen, through the span of the internet, that has this magic power to change lives. You are considering making the most important and difficult decision. A decision that will change your life and the life of your baby. We can’t even attempt to imagine being in your shoes… One simply cannot… And even though we are on different sides of the screen, at different points in our lives, there is one thing that connects us. We know that you love your child with all your heart, unconditionally, forever… and so will we. You are a courageous and selfless mother who is trying to do what is best for your baby. Your baby will encompass our lives and any decision made will be with your baby in mind.

We both came from humble beginnings and came to America in search of better life and opportunities for ourselves and our future kids. We worked hard at creating a secure and stable home for a child. We are so ready and beyond excited to welcome your child to our loving home. We are really looking forward to watching your baby’s little feet chasing our cat Simba around the house, waking him/her up for “happy-face-pancakes,” singing lullabies, and telling bedtime stories in the evenings. In our family, we believe that anyone can achieve anything if provided with support and opportunities. We intend to create a solid foundation for your baby to grow in any direction he or she chooses. Our main goal is to provide an environment of support that nurtures a child’s healthy physical, emotional, intellectual, and social growth.

Your baby will receive all the love, attention, and support they would need to thrive and blossom. After taking maternity leave at the hospital where Victoria works as a nurse, she plans to work part-time, two days a week. During that time, Tomas, who is self-employed and creates his own schedule, would take care of the baby. In addition, Tomas’s parents, who live nearby, would help us anytime either of us may need any assistance. Tom’s mother, who currently works as a teacher’s aide, is ready to become a full-time grandmother at any moment. Victoria’s mother, although she lives in Europe now, is just one plane ticket away from coming here and helping in any way she can (which will mostly include spoiling your baby). Our families and friends are ready to embrace your child and love and care for him/her.

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How We Met

Tomas was born and raised in Lithuania and Victoria was born and raised in Belarus. These are small neighboring countries that share a lot of history and cultural similarities, however, don’t speak the same language. Besides Lithuanian, Tomas and his parents speak Polish and Russian. Victoria’s family speaks Russian and Belarussian. Along with those languages, we also speak English. There are influences of all four cultures in our families.

Prior to moving to the US, Tomas was studying marketing at university and Victoria was studying to be a teacher. Both of us moved to the US in the early 2000s. We met in 2010 at Victoria’s friends’ wedding. Tomas enjoys photography, and Victoria’s friend asked him to take pictures of the wedding. After the wedding, with the great power of persuasion of big blue eyes and long butterfly-like lashes, Tomas talked Victoria into meeting again and showed her a Colorado she didn’t know at that time: beautiful high-peaked mountains, wildlife at the arms-reach, clear creeks, and breathtaking sunsets. We talked for hours about anything and everything while staring at the stars and it felt like we knew each other from a previous life. We have been together since. Later, Tomas went to college again and graduated with a degree in economics. Victoria studied Therapeutic Recreation and later changed her career to become a nurse.

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Why We are Choosing to Adopt

We always knew that we would want to start a family at some point in time, but we wanted to get settled and established first: travel the beautiful country we just moved to, graduate, find a job, and be financially stable. However, one cannot plan everything out in life. Life doesn’t work that way. When we were ready to start a family, after some time, we realized we couldn’t. We worked with reproductive medicine specialists for many years and underwent numerous procedures trying to conceive a baby. Despite many unsuccessful attempts, we are still very hopeful to become parents, create a family and have a chance to love your child to the moon and back. Our hearts are full of love, and we are ready to share it with your child and with you. We know that you love your child very much and all the love that will surround your child will take root in our joint family.

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About Victoria, by Tomas

It can be difficult to find the right words to write about someone when they simply mean everything to you. Which is what Victoria is to me. She has encompassed my life in every aspect and has transformed our house into a home. Victoria is a true go-getter; she decided to become a nurse at the age of 33, and once she sets her mind to something it will be completed. As a nurse, Victoria often sees people at some of their most vulnerable times and does everything in her power to advocate for all of her patients. I know she will be a loving, astounding, devoted, and selfless new mommy,  and will do it all without an ounce of hesitation. Victoria in many ways is a realist and is able to acknowledge the real work that goes into raising a family. She has great skills in the kitchen and is always trying out new recipes. She also has quite a talent for sewing from pillow covers to designing some of our Halloween costumes; she already has ideas for family theme costumes. Without any doubt, the two of us together move mountains and have created a space to love and nurture a child.

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About Tomas, by Victoria

Tomas is my better half. For most couples, it is just a saying, but I truly believe he is. Besides being my friend and my soulmate, he inspires me to be better, to do better, and to have aspirations and ambitions. Tomas has a degree in marketing and a degree in economics.  He is very good at math. You would expect him to be crunching numbers in the office, however, Tomas works with people and with his hands. Tomas is a real estate agent and a general contractor. He loves to help people find their new homes. Also, he remodels houses and fixes things and loves seeing how much his customers enjoy their new updated space. Tomas is a very responsible and reliable person who always puts the well-being of his family first. Tomas is a rock; he is a foundation any family could wish for. When you get to know Tomas closer, you will discover his soft side. He is very kind, silly, and talented. He loves cuddling with our cat Simba and spoils him rotten. He loves music, has a great voice, and enjoys playing guitar by the campfire. He loves biking and cannot wait to teach your child how to ride one (he talks about it all the time and already has a bike too). I have no doubt in my mind that Tomas would make a wonderful father – attentive, thoughtful, and playful. He will always be there for your child.

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Lifestyle

We are quite active and adventurous. We enjoy spending time outdoors. We love nature and like to engage in various activities with our family and friends. We especially enjoy spending time in the mountains. In the winter we like snowboarding and besides day visits to the slopes, we make sure to schedule a couple of longer trips to various resorts in our as well as other states. In the summer we do a lot of mountain biking, hiking, camping, kayaking, and paddle boarding. We do like spending time by the lake or by the ocean. We also plan yearly friends and family trips to Lake McConaughy and to California to catch some waves and rays of the sun. During our time together we have visited many national parks and traveled to Europe.

On the weekends we may join a volleyball game in the park, go to a local festival or a concert, or just have friends over for a BBQ and a hang out at the pool at our complex. Lately, our group of friends acquired a new interest: playing Catan. Catan is a board game, sort of like monopoly on steroids. It is strategic and competitive, and oh boy, games do get heated at times.

Your baby will be the center of all of our new adventures! It will be amazing to watch your baby experience snow for the first time, to build the first snowman together. We are very curious to find out if your baby will like the feel of the sand on their feet while we are at the beach. Apparently, some babies love feeling sand for the first time while some are really surprised by the exposure to a new texture they never experienced before. We wonder what your baby’s favorite song will be for sing-alongs during our road trips and what his/her favorite part of Disneyland will be. We can’t wait to find out.

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Our Cat, Simba

Simba is our cat. He is a two-year-old orange tabby, and his character is as orange as it gets! He is a very playful and adventurous cat that is full of energy. He loves kids and people! One of our neighbors’ kids thought that Simba had a motor inside of him because Simba is a real “purring machine!”

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Home & Neighborhood

We live in a townhome that we own. The ground floor consists of a kitchen, dining, and living areas. It is an open concept that allows for the whole family to spend time together and to keep an eye on your baby while prepping meals or completing chores. Right off the living room, we have a patio that opens into the spacious common area with beautiful trees and lush grass. Our neighbors love wildlife and provide feed for birds and squirrels, so we get to enjoy watching many kinds of birds right outside of our patio.

The master bedroom and baby’s room, along with a full bath, are upstairs. Baby’s room is south-facing and is filled with warm rays of sun throughout most of the day. It makes it very cozy and inviting. We are very excited about decorating it. Tomas is planning to build a themed bed: a car, a spaceship, or a princess carriage… Whatever it is — he has his tools ready! Downstairs in the basement is another cozy family room and a guest room with a full bath.

Our complex is rather small and quiet although it is a 10–15-minute drive from the heart of the city. Our neighbors are very friendly, and we know many of them by name. Complex amenities include a swimming pool and jacuzzi as well as a tennis court. It is wonderful to hear kids’ laughter and splashing at the pool in the summertime and we cannot wait to join them with your baby.

Although we live in the city, we are currently building a second home in the mountains near the skiing resort with a projected completion date of Summer 2023. We are really looking forward to spending time together near nature. We are excited to teach your child how to ski, hold her/him in our arms as we slide down the tubing hill, and cheer and shout on the day when training wheels get to come off of the bike. We are ready to guide and support your child in anything they would like to do, we will make sure to provide options and opportunities, let them ask questions, form their opinions, and encourage them to be adventurous.

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Our Families and Friends

Tom’s parents, Teresa and Stas, live here in Colorado about a 20-minute drive from our house. They moved to the United States from Lithuania in 2015. Tom’s mother loves children and works as a teacher’s assistant so she can spend time with them. She is always thinking of ways to help kids learn and develop. She spends extra time preparing for lessons, and looking for new ideas for arts, crafts, and activities. Back in Lithuania, Teresa and Stas owned and managed a hair salon and Teresa still gives beautiful haircuts and treatments to her family and friends. Tom’s father, prior to managing the salon, worked in construction and now sometimes helps Tomas with his projects. Tom’s parents share our love for nature. Teresa and Stas love traveling, meeting new people, and learning about different cultures. Tomas and his parents speak four languages and would love to share their knowledge and love for adventure with your child.

Victoria’s mother & sister live in Belarus. Victoria’s mother, Katya, is currently retired and spends most of her time gardening. She enjoys growing flowers, fruits, and vegetables. She also loves cooking and baking. When she comes to visit, she will most likely start a garden to make sure the baby has all the necessary vitamins and minerals fresh from the garden and will spoil the little one with fresh baked cookies and pies. Katya has a very warm, kind, and loving heart. Kids have a natural affinity for her, and she always finds a way to comfort and console them.

We have a close group of friends, many of whom we have known for 12 years. A lot of our friends are immigrants like we are, therefore, during our gatherings you may hear many different languages, such as Lithuanian, Spanish, Polish, Russian, Chinese, and others. Many of our friends don’t have their immediate family in the US, which made us even closer. We spent many holidays & celebrations together, took multiple road trips and vacations, and helped and supported each other during hard times. A number of our friends recently had children, and some are expecting, and we would love to have play dates together, sleepovers, trips, and birthday celebrations together.

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Family Traditions

Most of our holidays, we spend with our friends. Thanksgiving and Christmas are usually hosted by one of the families and everyone would be invited to their house. Guests usually bring a dish to share. We love trying all the wonderful food as there are dishes from different countries and cuisine. For Christmas, we play a “white elephant” game. We have plenty of pranksters in our group, so you must stay vigilant to hang on to the present you want! For New Year’s celebration, we organize a trip to the mountains where we rent a large house to fit everyone. In the daytime, we pack it full of activities like making snowmen, skiing, snowshoeing, snow tubing, or snowmobiling. In the evening we play board games, twister, or sing karaoke. In the summertime, we plan two camping trips a year, one for the 4th of July, and another to Lake McConaughy. While camping we go hiking, swimming, paddle boarding, and kayaking. In the evenings we make marshmallows by the fire, play charades, and sing songs. Another yearly trip that we do is to California, usually timed around one of the local festivals.

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Our Promise to You

We promise to care and love, to be understanding and accepting, to guide and inspire, to give boundaries and support, to empower and encourage. We look forward to happy days full of laughter and joy, but will also be there for sleepless nights and struggles. We promise to be open-minded and ready to listen. We promise to grow with your child, to always strive to be better, and to be self-aware. We promise to be honest. We cannot imagine or understand what you are going through, although we do promise that we will never forget your most selfless and brave act.