Welcome back to our Who Are You? series! If this is your first time here, we encourage you to check out some of our previous posts. In the last several weeks we have covered the Our Story chapter, About Me Chapter and the Home Chapter, as well as more general posts about Writing for Singles and Showing, Rather than Telling.

This week we will be focusing on the Hobbies, Interests and Traditions section. This is the section of your adoption profile where are able talk about what makes you/your family unique. It could be your passion for restoring vintage cars, a family tradition that involves picking apples and making cider or simply just a knack for cleaning the house each weekend. Whatever is unique to you will tell your story best and help a birth mother better understand who you are.

Tip #1: Show How You’ll Share Your Interests with a Child

While we certainly want you to explore your own individual interests or hobbies, we also want to hear what you like to do as a family or what you hope to share with an adopted child in the future. Here is an example of how to tie your interests in with a child.

While everyone says they like to read, Michael goes beyond that – he collects books. He has everything from the first edition of Animal Farm to a rare, signed copy of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. There is nothing that Michael would love more than to share his love for reading with a child. He can’t wait for storytime!

You’ll see in the example above that we first establish that this is a unique passion and that it says something about who Michael is as a person. We also mentioned two books, Animal Farm and The Lorax – this gives the birth mother a sense that not only does he collect famous books, but also books a child would be interested in. And then at the end, we tie it into a child by weaving in that Michael would like to share this passion and help a child build a collection of their own.

Tip #2: If Most of Your Interests Revolve Around Family, Talk About That!

Let’s say you want to go another direction, like talking about your family traditions. We recommend that rather than trying to choose your favorites, simply break them down by season. Remember, most birth parents are between the ages of 20-30, so they are reading things on line in list format – let’s try to cater to that by using a list here.

With each season comes new traditions and as a family, we love to keep those traditions alive by passing them down from generation to generation. We cannot wait to share these special moments with a child.

Spring: Cinco De Mayo! Tara’s family is Mexican-American, so every year they throw a great big party for the special day! There’s nothing better than her Abuela’s Tamales Hojas.

Summer: The highlight of each summer is Fourth of July at Michael’s parent’s home. There are always lots of fireworks, plenty of hot dogs, and all the cousins are around to play games while the adults relax in the summer sun.

Fall: Football season! Michael and his dad are BIG Notre Dame football fans, and each year they love going to a couple of games and rooting on the Fighting Irish.

Winter: While no one likes the cold, we sure don’t mind it when we are walking through downtown admiring all the Christmas lights. We also love going ice skating at the outdoor rink near our home. The holidays are such a magical time, and we cannot wait to share them with a child.

In the example above, we gave the reader four things throughout the year that you hope to share with a child. We also gave them some detail about why we enjoy those special moments – because of family. This gives the reader the notion that you spend the most precious moments in life with those you love, and in turn, a child would be surrounded by family and friends during those special times.

We hope this post has helped you understand how to better tell your story. Stay tuned for more Who Are You? posts in the future, and make sure to check out our other posts for more tips on how to create the best adoption profile for your adoption journey.

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