Kelli and Jeff
Hello!
Thank you for taking the time to learn more about us. We look forward to getting to know you, and hope you get a glimpse of our personalities, including our quirkiness and fun-loving nature. We can imagine that you are being faced with making a lot of hard decisions right now, and we admire your strength as you consider making an adoption plan for your child. We are praying for you at this time, and always.
About Us:
We consider ourselves to be pretty easy-going people (okay, maybe Jeff is a little more easy-going than Kelli)! We have been married for 4 ½ years, and together for a total of 9 years (including 1 year doing long-distance when Kelli took a job in Ireland).
We met on an online dating website called “Ok-Cupid.” After a few messages and phone calls, we decided to go out on a first date…on which we played a friendly round of miniature golf. The lady handed us our golf balls and clubs and asked if we wanted a score card, to which we both said no (it was our first date)! Of course, we were both keeping score in our heads, and let’s just say Jeff had the upper hand. We both have a competitive spirit and enjoy challenging each other.
People say we have an “Interesting relationship.” We have the tendency to banter back and forth. To the people that aren’t familiar with us it might look like we’re arguing, but in reality, we’re just “verbal jousting.” To us it’s more like a playful debate. We enjoy challenging each other which has helped us to grow and appreciate the other person’s point of view.
If you’re wondering what we’re talking about here’s an example: Kelli and Jeff both have very strong opinions on what the better part of an Oreo is. Jeff thinks that the cream filling is the best part of the Oreo, and the wafer like substance on the outside is just the delivery system for the “double-stuff” filling. Kelli knows the chocolate cookie is the better part, which is why they keep trying to make different types of cream to find a suitable match for the better part of the Oreo – the Cookie! In reality, neither of us cares that much about Oreos, we just like to debate for the sake of debating!
We enjoy travelling (mostly to see family and our seven nieces and nephews), our annual “roller coaster day,” having day-long board game days with friends, relaxing football Sundays, and going bowling. Jeff’s “fly-by-the-seat-of-his-pants” mantra compliments Kelli’s “planner” mentality, which comes in handy when Kelli’s ideas do not go quite to plan. Jeff is like the cream of the Oreo – keeping things held together, when Kelli starts to crumble like the cookie!
About Kelli
I enjoy the outdoors and like to read on the back porch – the quiet backyard and all the trees remind me of camping as a child. Other outdoor activities include walking in the park, traveling the countryside, and taking in scenic landscapes. I also enjoy playing a variety of board games (Jeff has helped me get into some more strategy-based games). I enjoy travelling and during my year abroad, I was able to see Italy, Russia, and Malaysia! I look forward to traveling again and seeing different areas of the world. I would love a new little travel partner as well who I can show the world to.
I am a big “numbers” person and my current job as a Tax and Financial Planner allows me to work with numbers daily! I enjoy helping others through filing their tax returns, and planning for their ideal futures. Setting goals and helping people achieve those goals brings me joy. I even incorporate this into my hobbies of cooking and baking, where you can include some basic math skills.
It has always been a dream of mine to come home from work, squat down, and be greeted by children running up to give me a big hug! I had a small glimpse of this when Jeff’s sister from Texas was visiting with her three children. Two of them came running up as soon as I walked into Grandma and Grandpa’s house for our weekly family dinner.
Faith is a huge part of my life and I am a practicing Catholic. Although Jeff and I do not share the same faith, we do agree on treating all people with love and respect. Charity is important and we support local charities through monthly donations, as well as having regularly volunteered for those in need. We have been involved in food pantries in the past and hope to get back into regularly volunteering again.
About Jeff
I have been thinking about what the kindest thing is that Kelli and I can do as human beings to make the world a better place. Giving a child a safe and loving home is something that we can absolutely provide and has the added benefit of hopefully causing positive ripple effects in the world.
I work as a software analyst at a local hospital. It’s a job I really enjoy because it challenges me mentally and allows me to help patients in indirect ways. As you might be able to guess from my job title, I am more of an “indoorsy” kind of guy and enjoy video games and board games when I find time. I look forward to having a little game partner to play with in the future!
Just because I’m “indoorsy” though doesn’t mean I don’t get outside at all. I enjoy playing Ultimate Frisbee when there isn’t snow on the ground and have been involved in a co-ed soccer team for the past several years. Downhill skiing is a fun winter activity I also really enjoy, especially since it is something my Dad and I can still do together. We try to hit the slopes a few times each year.
I am not a person of faith in the traditional sense; however, I am someone that respects that everyone has their own beliefs. Part of why our marriage works is that we both value and respect that we each have a different belief system. We will continue to respect one another’s beliefs as we bring a child into our lives, and show them the importance of treating others with love and respect.
Thank you!
Thank you for taking the time to get to know us a bit more. We would enjoy getting to know you!
You can reach us by contacting our adoption counselor, Linda Fiore by texting (773-919-5702), calling (773-919-5702), or e-mail (Linda@centerforfamily.com). You can also contact us directly by emailing jeffandkelliACFB@gmail.com!
