C L AY AND H A R I S

T H A N K YO UWE ARE S O G L A D YO U FOUND OUR PROFILE.

we are

H A R I S AND C L AYfrom New York

hello and

WE ARE FULL OF JOY BUT STILL HAVE ROOM IN OUR HEARTS TO NURTURE AND LOVE ANOTHER CHILD

W e don’t take adoption lightly and can’t imagine what you are going through. We have been through the process once before with our daughter Ella. We are lucky to have a great

relationship with Ella’s mother and father. We think she is ready to be a big sister. Let’s just

say that her sharing game is showing lots of improvement.

We pinch ourselves every day that we get to live in a lovely home and community and travel regularly

to spend time with our supportive families. We live close enough for Haris to commute to New York City for work but far enough to have a big, wooded backyard and some space to breathe and play. Our two dogs, Tanzen and Prada, round out the picture. We can often be seen playing in the yard or

checking out some of the trails or restaurants in the area.

W E A R E R E A DY TO

S H A R E O U R L OV E

W I T H A N OT H E R C H I L D

A N D T H A N K YO U

S O M U C H F O R E V E N

CO N S I D E R I N G U S F O R

T H AT P R I V I L E G E .

OUR WEDDING DAY

We met six years ago. Clay

chose the restaurant and put

on his most fashion-forward

outfit. As soon as Haris s epped foot

inside, he turned around and said, “This place is too

loud...and what’s the deal with those pants?” You see,

Haris is as honest a person as you’re going to meet.

He is loyal and puts honest communication first. Cl y

could tell Haris was a straight shooter. He followed him

away from that noisy Mexican restaurant, and we’ve

been following each other around the world ever since.

O U R S TO R Y

WE GOT MARRIED IN NEW YORK CITY

THREE YEARS AGO.

A CLOSER LOOK AT U S

WE LOVE TO MAKE EACH OTHER LAUGH

VISITING HARIS’S FAMILY IN SWEDEN FOR NEW YEARS

Our families came from all over the world to

attend, and this meant the world to us because

family comes first or us. We had a procession of

nieces and nephews as part of the ceremony, and

we even had our niece and nephew cut the cake.

We wanted to set the tone for the rest of our life:

kids are the future, so they defini ely matter today.

We adopted Ella two years ago in Texas. We are so

lucky to still have a relationship with Ella’s mother

and father. We moved out of the big city and now

live in Upstate, New York in a picturesque little,

historic village. Once Ella got used to the dirt

and grass, we all settled into our quieter, more

serene home life. We are ready to welcome

another child into our life to run around outside

with Ella and play with the neighbor kids on our

quiet, dead-end cul de sac in the summer time.

WE MADE A QUICK TRIP UP TO MONTREAL ONE

WINTER TO EXPLORE A NEW CITY

HOW WE

MET

H aris is from Bosnia and Hercegovina. He

moved to the U.S. when he was sixteen.

Haris is a self-starter. He taught himself

English and started working right when he

got to the States to provide for himself and his

family. Family is very important to Haris. He is dedicated to open, honest communication and wants very much to share his life story with his children, a life story that involves surviving a civil

war and keeping family together at all costs.

H A R I Sa little about

ELLA & HARIS SPLASHING AT A POOL

HARIS GETTING HIS MUSEUM ON

Haris is a managing director in the city

but has always valued a good work/life

balance. He works from home two days a

week in order to stay rooted with his family;

a family he wants very much to expand.

DO WHAT YOU L OV E WHAT YOU DO

HARIS OFFICIATING A CLOSE FRIEND’S WEDDING

HARIS’S COWORKERS DRESSED UP AS ELVES

HARIS WAS EXCITED TO SHOW CLAY ONE

OF OUR FAVORITE CITIES, SARAJEVO

C L A Ya little about C lay is from a

farm in Ohio

and wants

to raise a family

with similar honest,

Midwestern values:

Don’t be afraid to get dirty. Put

in an honest day’s work. Be kind.

Clay is eager to welcome a new child into their lives and can’t wait to spark his or her curiosity and creativity, too.

WE HAVE AT LEAST ONE PICTURE PER SUMMER WHERE CLAY IS IN

THIS EXACT SAME SPOT

Clay is a teacher through and through. He is currently on a leave of absence from his actual teaching job (middle and high school) and has been staying home to take care of Ella for the past year, but

he can’t seem to take the teacher

hat off. Whether they are walking in

the woods or playing in Ella’s room,

Clay is always trying to spark Ella’s

curiosity. And curious she is. She asks,

“What’s that?” about 500 times a day.

DO WHAT YOU L OV E WHAT YOU DO

ALL SMILES

CLAY AND ELLA DOLLED UP FOR A HOLIDAY DINNER

CLAY’S SILLY SIDE CLAY TEACHING

W e live in a quaint, historic

village in New York. It’s a picturesque, wooded

cul de sac where the neighbor kids ride bikes and play on each other’s swing sets. There are tons of hiking

and outdoor activities to enjoy up

here, and we are also close enough to

be able to enjoy the cultural activities

New York City has to offer. W E L I V E D I N N YC F O R A L O N G T I M E , S O I T I S I M P O R TA N T F O R U S TO B E C L O S E E N O U G H TO TA K E A DVA N TAG E O F A L L T H E C I T Y H A S TO O F F E R , TO O.

W e have two tiny little dogs. Tanzen is a Miniature Pinscher.

He thinks he’s a very big, tough

guy, but he’s actually a softy. He likes cuddling

with us on the couch and letting Ella rub

heads with him. And food. He really loves

food. Prada is a fi teen-year-old Pomeranian.

People still think she’s a puppy. She’s young

at heart and loves nothing more than to be

petted...continuously, all the time, forever. Like

she’s annoyed we’re not petting her right now.

O U R H O M EAND CO M M U N I T Y

this is

Meet Our Pets

WE HAVE 4 ACRES TO EXPLORE IN OUR UPSTATE HOME

PRADA TANZEN

ENJOYING THE VIEWS OF THE

ADRIATIC FROM OUR SUMMER

APARTMENT IN CROATIA

FAVO R I T E F O O DCLAY CheeseHARIS Chocolate

FAVO R I T E H O L I DAYCLAY 4th of JulyHARIS New Year’s

FAVO R I T E T V S H OWCLAY Killing EveHARIS Drag Race

W e love to explore and travel. We visit

family in Oklahoma for Thanksgiving,

family in Sweden for Christmas and

New Year’s, and spend our summers in Croatia

with family. We also love exploring our local area.

There are tons of local antique shops, restaurants,

and outdoor activities.

We are both avid readers, and Clay also loves to

write. Haris took up baking recently, and Clay

cooks. But let’s face it, neither of us is winning

any contests anytime soon.

F O R F U N

what we do

OUR FAVO R I T E S

WHY SO SERIOUS, HARIS? PARIS IS FUN

GRABBING A BITE AT ONE OF OUR FAVORITE LOCAL SPOTS

FAVO R I T E H O B B YCLAY ReadingHARIS Baking

FAVO R I T E S E A S O NCLAY FallHARIS Spring

FAVO R I T E D E S S E R TCLAY Chocolate with Peanut ButterHARIS Chocolate Everything

DATE NIGHT IN GERMANY

WEEKEND TRIP TO SEE FRIENDS IN DC

Haris’s mom and dad live in

Florida, so we get to see them a

few times a year. Ella loves “Nena”

(Haris’s mom). She’s the go-to

babysitter of choice. Haris also has

cousins in Sweden we see around

the holidays. Then Haris’s entire

family gets together every summer

in Croatia. There are tons of nieces

and nephews on both sides, and

they all have one thing in common:

They adore Ella and can’t wait for a

new addition.

OUR FA M I L Y

AN ENTIRE GENERATION OF CLAY’S FAMILY AT A WEDDING

HARIS AND HIS COUSINS ARE

LIKE BROTHER AND SISTERS

CLAY’S WHOLE FAMILY STRIKES A POSE

WE LOVE TO TUBE IN CROATIA

CELEBRATING ELLA’S 1ST BIRTHDAY IN CROATIA

W e are blessed to have mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters,

cousins, nieces, and nephews all over the world that we often get to see. Clay’s family lives mostly in

Oklahoma. Ella says, “Neigh,” when

you ask if she wants to Facetime

with grandma because grandma

has horses! Clay’s sister also lives in

Oklahoma with her family of fi e,

and we get to see them when we

visit for Thanksgiving. We give the

best presents by the way.

and friends

W e don’t take parenting lightly at all. We believe in

nurturing the child and bringing out their unique

qualities. We are raising Ella to be considerate

of others and aware of her own feelings. Education is very

important to us. It played a major role in making us the men

we are today, and we try to instill the love of learning into Ella.

We also value the power of the family meal. It was even in our

wedding vows that no matter how big our family becomes,

Clay would continue to cook and Haris would continue to do

the dishes. Sitting around the table together at dinner time

is an important way we continue to share in each other’s lives

and grow our bond as a family.

PA R E N T Sus as

E lla is the ultimate big sister in waiting. She loves her baby

dolls and is in constant motion

tending to them. She is strong-willed

but utterly kind and considerate. She

puts her toys away and is more likely to

share the bells in music class than to

take them for herself. Oh, and bubbles...

just like every other child, she loves

bubbles. Luckily, we have plenty of

bubbles for a little brother or sister.

E L L Ameet

READY TO BE A BIG SISTER! LEAF PEEPING GRADUATION DAY AT GYMNASTICS

ELLA’S FIRST CHRISTMAS

ELLA HAS A LOT OF LOVE IN HER LIFE

T hanks again for reading our profile. We take the commitment

of parenthood extremely seriously and thank you for even

considering us with that responsibility. Open, honest

communication and family are extremely important to us. That’s why

we are looking to grow our family through adoption. We would love to

get to know you better!

T H A N K YO U

in closing

W E WO U L D L OV E TO H E A R F R O M YO U ! I F YO U H AV E A D D I T I O N A L Q U E S T I O N S F O R U S O R WO U L D L I K E TO S P E A K TO U S , P L E A S E

CO N TAC T T H E A D O P T I O N A L L I A N C E B Y CA L L I N G 1-800-626-4324.

W E CA N ’ T T H A N K YO U E N O U G H FOR GETTING TO KNOW US BETTER, AND WE

HOPE WE’VE ANSWERED ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE.