Jane & Jacob(and Eva)

Mephisto and SumiThis is us exploring the Amazon River in Brazil with a local guide

We are a family living in New Jersey just across the river from New York City. We have been married for more than 10 years and have a 5-year-old daughter Eva. We want very much to bring a new child into our family whom we will love and cherish unconditionally.

Top 3 Things We Want You to Know About Us

Our family bridges two cultures (American and Russian) and there is nothing we love more than getting to know people from different backgrounds. We would love to learn about your heritage. We speak both Russian and English at home, so Eva is bilingual -- and if your child joins our family, he or she would be bilingual too.

When in doubt, we make a joke! We believe that laughter is often the best way to wind down at the end of the day, calm an upset child, or just to share good memories. One time, Eva lost her toy fire truck in the park. We joked that it had probably met a beautiful dump-truck and they had run away together, and Eva’s crisis turned into a laugh in 10 seconds. Now whenever we go to that park we add to the story about the fire-truck and dump-truck’s adventures together.

We believe strongly in sharing the load. We share the housework so that we have time to share the fun things too. We’re both very involved in our daughter’s life as well as in the day to day work of running a household, and we feel that it makes us much stronger as a family. Each person learns that they can play an important role. When Jane was growing up in a family of six kids, it was important that everyone contribute. Jacob’s family was much more traditional, and it was only after moving to the U.S.that he learned to cook – and discovered that he loved the creativity of it! Jacob is the family chef, while Jane does the cleanup. Equality among all members of the household is an important value for us that we look forward to passing on to your child.

Jacob by Jane

Jacob is a very involved and patient father. Every morning he rides Eva to school on the bike. Along the way, he doesn’t mind answering questions like “Dad, why does the sun disappear at night?” 49 times in a row. He will lavish the same patience and loving care on your child, 365 days a year.

I have always been impressed at how much courage and determination it took for Jacob to immigrate to the U.S. as an adult, knowing no English at the time, and then make a success of himself by getting his Master’s degree in Business and building his professional career in technology. This was a lifelong dream that Jacob was able to achieve through hard work and the support of his mother, who moved to the U.S. with him. Encouraging every member of our family to pursue their dreams is one of our key values, and we would support your child in making his or her dreams come true.

Jacob likes to do sports like biking, hiking, and racing electric cars. (In this race I beat him to the finish by about an inch and he was pretty shocked!) Both of us enjoy trying new things, not just for the fun of it, but also because it builds important character traits like self-confidence and the ability to face new challenges. We would do our best to make sure that your child has the chance to learn and try new things, discover their talents and meet all the challenges that life brings with confidence and a sense of joy.

Jane by Jacob

Growing up with 3 older brothers, Jane learned to throw snowballs – and baseballs -- like a pro. She loves all kinds of sports to this day. She’s teaching Eva to ski, build great snowmen, and hit home runs. We feel that sports not only help kids grow up healthy and strong, but they also teach you not to fear failure, and how to work in a team. Jane would love to pass along these skills to your child also.

When Jane was growing up, she wanted to be a writer. She later trained to be a teacher, and reading is one of her favorite hobbies. She loves exploring the world of books with children, and often goes to Eva’s school to read to the class. Her favorite children’s stories are “The Adventures of Curious George”, because of the monkey’s curiosity and fearlessness. All this reading has created a rich fictional cast of characters that Jane uses to create her own kids’ stories. Every night when she puts Eva to bed, she makes up a new bedtime story to lull Eva to sleep. Jane looks forward to reading with your child and introducing them to the wonderful world of imagination too.

Jane’s secret passion is interior decoration. One night I woke up at 3 a.m. to find that she had gone into our spare bedroom and single-handedly moved all of the furniture into a “much better pattern” (though I can’t honestly say that I saw the difference). She has already fully decorated the nursery for your child with animal wall hangings, bright wallpaper, and lots of soft teddy bears.

Spending Time Together

We met in Moscow, Russia, where both of us worked for the same company. Jane: “I was first drawn to Jacob by his sense of humor – no matter how hard a project was, or what problems we encountered along the way, Jacob made it seem like a blast!” Jacob: “I fell in love with Jane’s optimism and determination; once she sets her mind to something, she is unstoppable, and I knew she’d make an amazing partner in life.”

Our relationship was solidified when Jane got sick with the flu, and Jacob took her home, tucked her in, and made her hotdogs and macaroni for dinner. After that we became inseparable, and we were married a year later!

Jacob is now the head of a small technology startup, and Jane is a manager in a financial company, but we both have flexible work schedules, so we are able to spend lots of time together as a family.

In warm weather we go on bike trips, or hikes in the state park near us. We love getting out in the fresh air, away from computers and cell phones and TVs. Sometimes we go camping. Once we went to a big camping get-together in the woods. The idea was to sit around the campfire with friends singing songs and eating good food. As soon as we got there it started raining, and we spent 3 days in the rain and mud. Despite that we had a wonderful time. We would like to show your child how much fun it is to spend time together outdoors – hiking, talking and sharing the wonder of nature together.

Every summer we spend at least a week or two on the water. We both grew up loving the water – Jane’s family went every summer to the lake country in North Carolina to visit her relatives, and Jacob’s family traveled to the Black Sea in Russia for summer vacations. Last summer we went to a lake in upstate New York and someone brought their pet pig! Jane couldn’t resist petting him and they soon became friends. We feel that there are so many beautiful places to see in the world that we try to go to a new spot each year.

Seeking Out New Experiences

We think it’s important for kids to appreciate all the diversity there is in the world around them. So we take trips together each year to interesting places. Two years ago we went to Costa Rica and Jane learned to make pottery. The salsa bowl she made is kind of funny looking and lumpy, but we always use it for chips and dip! Our daughter Eva learned that it’s important to try to learn new skills even if you’re not perfect at them. This is a value that we’d like to teach your child too.

We believe in encouraging creativity. When Jacob was growing up in Russia, everyone participated in home theatrical productions and musical events. We do a lot of dressing up and imaginative play at home, and are also involved in the local children’s theater. Here is a recent picture of our daughter’s group performing “The Golden Goose” with our home-made decorations and costumes. There is always a lot of giggling involved, but we see how much acting has helped build confidence for Eva. We would love the opportunity to welcome your child into these kinds of activities.

This year we went to Israel, which is the home of Christianity and other religions and has a lot to teach us about history. We feel that learning about other cultures helps make us more open and accepting of people from many different backgrounds. We are teaching Eva to always be open and welcoming, and we would pass along these values to your child also. While we were in Israel, we did a tour on a camel! Camels can be a bit smelly, but they’re much friendlier than they look.

Our Home & Neighborhood

We can’t confirm that some locations from “Sex and the City” were filmed near our house, but there are rumors….

Our house is perfect to accommodate another child. We have a bright and sunny nursery with a screened deck next to it, a back yard which is perfect for kiddie pools, and a beautiful kids’ playroom stocked with toys.

We feel that we have the best of both worlds – the cultural richness of New York City, and the quality of life of the suburbs. Locally there are a million activities too. For example, every Sunday during the winter we go ice skating at the local rink with the family of Eva’s friend Kabir (below).

Eva’s school provides a wonderful environment where kids are inspired to learn, and they get a high quality of education. Your child would attend the same school and Eva would love to be the “big sister” who keeps an eye out and helps your child settle in at school happily.

A merry-go-round in Central Park? We can plan it on a minute’s notice.

We have two parks just around the corner, with large playgrounds and even a small waterpark. Here Jane is with Eva and her friend Eliza at the park.

Family and FriendsJane comes from a big family, with five brothers and sisters. Jacob’s immediate family is smaller (just one brother), but he has many cousins who live nearby. We go to lots of Russian-style big sit-down dinners to celebrate anniversaries and birthdays and christenings, where everyone is eating and talking at once! Later we dance to Russian music which helps us burn off all those calories. Meanwhile, Jane’s family has reunions twice a year at each other’s houses, where all the little cousins get spoiled with attention by all the adults.

We celebrate our differences within our family. Aunt Alla, who taught Eva to swim, lives in Eastern Europe. Jacob grew up in Russia, while Jane’s roots are from the South, and we have preserved traditions from both. Our friends and family are from all over the globe, and we wouldn’t want to have it any other way. We look forward to learning about you and your child’s history so that we can weave this into our family traditions too.

Our close friends Oona, Debbie and Corinna, who live within a block of our house, have helped us raise Eva. They take her to the park and to museums, hang out with her in the back yard, and keep a special stock of red licorice on hand at all times. One of our favorite traditions is our annual Easter Egg hunt, which Debbie (who’s Italian) takes care to organize. Our friends are looking forward to having another little one to spoil with attention!

Some of Jane’s brothers, sisters and nephews at Jane’s latest family reunion in September. Everyone was excited about our plans to adopt and they’re already planning to welcome a new child to the next reunion.

Family and Friends

Our close friends Oona, Debbie and Corinna, who live within a block of our house, have helped us raise Eva. They take her to the park and to museums, hang out with her in the back yard, and keep a special stock of red licorice on hand at all times. One of our favorite traditions is our annual Easter Egg hunt, which Debbie (who’s Italian) takes care to organize. Our friends are looking forward to having another little one to spoil with attention!

Jane, her sister Kate, and Eva as a baby. Kate was in the Marine Corps for years, and has a lot of experience commanding rowdy troops. She has an amazing calming effect on small children, and is planning to have Eva visit her ranch in Nebraska this summer to explore the woods and fields with her and learn about cows and horses. She would love to welcome your child there too.

Our cats Mephisto and Sumi are very patient with kids (except when someone starts pulling their tails – then they run and hide under the bed!). We got Sumi when we were in Moscow, and when we flew back to the U.S. she meowed all the way through the flight, while sitting in the cat carrier under Jacob’s seat. She’s a small gray cat with a loud meow! Mephisto is a big fluffy New York cat whom we rescued from the street as a kitten. He loves snuggling on the couch with us under a warm blankie.

Grandma is great with babies – she had six of them herself and she knows just how to comfort a crying baby. When Eva was little, Grandma used to rock her in the rocking chair for hours at a time! She loves children and would come and stay with us to help out while your child is small.

Jacob’s cousins Gary, Lena and Zina at a recent dinner. Gary knows how to do the best Russian dancing and is the favorite person for the kids to dance with.

Moving Forward

We admire your commitment to giving your baby the brightest possible future, and we are hoping with all our heart to be chosen as adoptive parents. We struggled for several years with fertility treatments before having Eva, and now we hope to continue to grow our family through adoption. Our promise is that if you choose us, we will love your baby unconditionally and provide a safe, nurturing and happy environment that will help him or her grow to their highest potential.

We are committed to sharing your child’s experiences with you through ongoing contact, based on whatever your comfort level is. The child will always know that you care about him or her very much and want him/her to have the best possible life.