Hello,
We've been thinking about how to begin this letter, and "thank you" doesn't quite feel big enough for what we're feeling. Still, it's the most honest place to start. Thank you for considering something so meaningful and life-changing.
It's really nice to meet you.
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After reading through so many profiles, we kept coming back to yours. There was something about it that felt familiar and it stayed with us. In some ways, it reminded us of how we found each other years ago, two people crossing paths in a crowded, chaotic online space but recognizing something that just felt right.
A little about us: I'm Brendan, and my husband Alfie and I have been together for over a decade. We met on an online dating app, built our early life in a small one-bedroom condo that somehow felt like it shrank every year, and now live in a beautiful row home on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC that we truly love. It's the kind of place where we can cook dinner, host friends and family for board games or parties, and feel settled. If all goes according to plan, our next chapter will take us just outside the city to Northern Virginia, where things are a bit quieter and full of young families.
We share our home with our miniature goldendoodle, Piper, who is very much the center of daily life. She's equal parts sweet, entitled, and endlessly entertaining, convinced every park belongs to her and every guest has arrived specifically to see her. She keeps things lively and will no doubt take her role as "big sister" very seriously one day.
In terms of who we are, Alfie is the steady one: a kind, tall, corn-fed Midwesterner who came east for school at UVA and stayed to build his career as an attorney in DC. He's also the tidy one, the keeper of tasks and the family calendar, and a tireless host. He's a doting husband, a very silly uncle, the best dog dad, and an avid hockey fan and player who spends more time at the rink than he probably should.
I'm more of the creative daydreamer, a teacher by training and a writer (books, movies, and plays) by avocation. I grew up in central Florida, studied at Georgetown, and love the mix of structure and curiosity that comes with working with students and creating new stories. On any given day, if not working on one of my writing projects, I might be helping an eleven-year-old master algebra, guiding a teenager through a trigonometric proof or a history lesson, or convincing a high schooler that ancient Latin texts aren't all that bad but actually full of drama, gossip, and surprisingly relatable characters. I'm also the one who loves good food and can't seem to stop smiling.
Together, we balance each other well—organized and creative, practical and a little dreamy. We know each other's strengths, weaknesses, hopes, and desires. And we can promise you this, our child will be adored, educated, and perhaps a little spoiled.
When we saw your profile, what stood out most was your smile. We were also struck by the way you talked about your family, especially the closeness you share with your mom. The fact that you call her every day, even just to share something small, says a lot about who you are. We also admired how you described your ability to make people feel comfortable. That came through clearly in your video. There was a calmness and warmth to you that felt genuine and reassuring, and it resonated with us. Out of so many remarkable people, you were the one we felt most drawn to.
Alfie and I feel incredibly lucky to have found each other and to have built a life and forever kind of partnership that feels full and truly ours. Our families are a big part of that life. We each have close relationships with our parents, really great siblings, nieces and nephews, and aunts and uncles who make everything more fun. It's a lively, supportive circle, and one we're excited to grow. Now we're hoping to share that life with a child and to create a home filled with curiosity, support, laughter, and care. A child in our home will be deeply loved, encouraged to grow into themselves, and, if Alfie has his way, very well dressed and quite possibly on ice skates sooner rather than later.
Like anyone going through this process, we've caught ourselves daydreaming about the everyday moments—dinners around the table, school days, holidays, and all the small in-betweens. We've even, somewhat sheepishly, asked AI to generate glimpses of what our potential children might look like. We've spent more time than we'd like to admit looking at those images and imagining pillow forts, birthday outfits, snotty tantrums, and cheering them on from the sidelines at future sporting events.
It's exciting and a little surreal to feel that this could become real, and that you are part of what makes that possible. If we're lucky, we would love the chance one day to share some of those real moments with you.
Thank you again. We're really glad to have matched with you.
Warmly,
Brendan and Alfie