Nancy and Frederick

We want you to know that we are wonderful parents who will nurture this child to become whoever it is he/she wants to become. We want you to know that in the garden that is our family, this child that you give birth to will grow to his/her full potential. All of this is the truth and yet, the words cannot capture what we hold in our hearts.

How we met

(Nancy)
The odd thing is that I have often thought that the way I met Frederic is reminiscent to the qualities of an adoption. I saw an article on the web that Frederic had written. I found his writing unique and intriguing, and even though he lived in another state, I eventually found a way to track him down and arrange a meeting. We met at a restaurant the following month (under the guise of talking about the article). We were married 18 months later. Frederic and I never would have met had I not reached out to him. We really had almost nothing in common, not our backgrounds, our work, or even our hobbies! But the instant we met we knew that we were good for each other, that we could nurture and nourish each other. None of the joy that we have together, not our daughter Juliet, not our home, not the experiences we have shared, none of it could have happened without first my taking the initiative, and second, the universe giving us the chance to make it work. While we come from oceans apart (Frederic was born abroad), we are nevertheless family. We know first hand that family has nothing to do with coming from the same place or being “the same.” Family is where we find the garden that nourishes us and waters us with love. And as with Frederic and I, family is something that can start out as unlikely as it ends up meant to be!

Things that are important to us as a family

We are both spiritual people. While we don’t subscribe to any particular religious rules, we do believe in trying to be present in every moment. When we are with Juliet, regardless of how many things need to get done (and there are usually a lot), we are committed to being with her with our full attention. The same holds true for how we interact as a couple.

Gratitude and generosity play an important part in our lives. We feel incredibly blessed with all that we have. We feel a desire and a responsibility to help others, to give where we can, even when it is not easy. Helping others and contributing to the world is a center point to us. It is important that our children come to know the true joy that giving provides. This year will be the first year that Juliet will get to read the “Dear Santa” letters that come in to the New York City post offices, and to have the experience of offering a gift to a child in need.

Learning is also a very important part of life for us as a family. We are committed to learning whatever and whenever we can, to keep growing, to keep stretching our minds and hearts. We do not believe in just coasting through life, getting comfortable and closing off to the world. We are very comfortable but we do not use this as a reason to stop learning. As a matter of fact, it is just the opposite. If ever there is an opportunity to know, understand or experience more, we grab it. We are confident that our children will develop this passion for learning as well.

Who We Are

Nancy: I was born and raised in Manhattan. Despite being a city girl, I grew up as an athlete, competing seriously in lots of different sports. But it was riding horses that grabbed me most. Through my twenties and thirties, I competed in horse shows across the United States. While I don’t have the time now to ride as much as I would like, I still own a horse and can’t wait until Juliet and our next child get old enough to ride to get back in the saddle and share my love of horses. Riding will definitely be a part of their lives, if they want it. Right now the activity I am most involved in is yoga. I am going to begin training to be a teacher this fall. Juliet and I love doing yoga together. Although only three, she practices a few poses with me every morning and she is already a little yogi!

Professionally I am a psychotherapist with adults and couples. I am also a writer of self-help books. I have my own office out of the house and work four days a week. What I love about my profession, besides getting to help people live happier lives, is that I can arrange my schedule to work around my life. During the day I can run home to have lunch with Juliet and pop in to surprise her at the playground. I love what I do and it gives me the flexibility I need as a mom. In this way, I feel blessed to have both a work and a home life that I have chosen.

Frederic:
I was born in a tiny village in Northern France, close to the Belgian border. Because of the proximity to England, Belgium, and Holland, at an early age, I was exposed to various cultures and languages and today remain fluent in several languages. I spent my twenties and early thirties studying in England, Spain, Belgium, and Russia. Languages, music, and writing were my primary interests. I came to the States to study film, which I did while managing a theater company in New York. Five years ago I decided to make the transition from theater to film. I have had several projects produced and brought to the screen. My career allows me a great deal of freedom and because of this, I am fortunate to be able to devote more quality time to my family, something I wouldn’t be able to do if I had to commute or work in the corporate world. So too, with my years of artistic and multicultural experience, I am able to provide a strong creative environment for our children in addition to raising them to be bilingual.

The Family:

We are a very active family. We spend most weekends running around the city going to museums, concerts, and other kid-friendly events. We are both huge film buffs and have just started taking Juliet to kids’ movies. She loves it (mostly the popcorn), although we don’t usually make it to the end! Because we keep a car in the city, it is also easy for us to zip out of town. We spend a lot of weekends in the country, visiting our horse, going to local farms and beaches, having picnics, or just taking walks in the numerous woods around New York. Almost all of our friends have children about Juliet’s age, and so we spend a lot of time hanging out with other families as well, which seems to be Juliet’s favorite activity of all.

Home

We live in the greatest city in the world (we’re biased). We believe New York City is the most wonderful place to live and raise a child. There are infinite things to do with children, and every kind of class imaginable. Juliet is only three and she has already taken classes in music, gymnastics, ballet, art, and baking!!!!! We live in a neighborhood that is filled with kids and often feels just like a giant playroom. The only thing that limits us in terms of activities is our own imagination. Our apartment building is filled with young families and lots of Juliet’s friends live right here in the building. We live in a big, beautiful apartment with lots of space for Juliet and her friends to run around. Juliet also has a wonderful and loving nanny, Dona, who has been with her since she was born and whom she adores.

Another Child

We are delighted and amazed every day by our daughter and the enormity of our love for her. Having a child has created so much love in our lives. We want to keep this momentum growing with a second child. Being parents has been such a wonderful experience that we simply cannot wait to do it again. We also feel strongly about the importance of the sibling relationship. Both of us were very close with our siblings growing up and we want our children to have this precious brother/sister relationship as well.

Finally

Again, there is no way to capture in words how we feel about loving this next child that will be a part of our family, or how much we respect the decision you are making right now. There is nothing larger in life than the choice each of our families is now involved in. We believe that a child will find his/her way to our home, and that your decision to select us as parents is part of something larger, and simply what is supposed to be. And there is one thing we can promise you without reservation, that this child will be loved, cherished, and adored, always.