Hello! We are Alina and Gavin from The Woodlands, Texas. We hope this profile gives you a real sense of who we are. We know how much thought goes into a decision like this. Gavin is from Scotland, Alina is from Russia, and moving to the US was a deliberate choice. Turns out moving across the world wasn’t a terrible idea! We’ve built a home, made friends, and somehow convinced Texas to feel like ours. Adoption is also something we chose with a clear head. We just hope that by the time you finish reading, you have a real sense of who we are — whatever you do with that is entirely yours. If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading. We’d love to tell you more.

We’ve been on a longer road to parenthood than we expected, navigating fertility treatments and training our patience to zen-master level. We like to think that the amount of love, wisdom, and moral strength we’ve accumulated along the way has brought us closer to the kind of people a child deserves to grow up with. Our Doberman can only absorb so much of it — honestly, she’s not far from her own Netflix profile and Amazon account. But some things are meant for a human being. And there’s a lot here waiting for one. It took a few books and a lot of honest conversations with ourselves to get here, but at some point it stopped being about our journey and started feeling like something bigger.

We met in Moscow in 2014 through a dating app. Gavin showed up to our first date in a suit waistcoat and I remember thinking, who even wears those anymore. Apparently he does, and somehow it worked. Before we got married, our families met, which turned into a mild diplomatic operation. My father wasn’t comfortable relying on a translator, so I was expected to translate for five people at once. We brought in a few bilingual friends and everyone survived. Three months of Covid lockdown in the same apartment, two cats, one dog, two languages, two cultural backgrounds, and the occasional heated news debate later, we’re still standing. Underneath it all, we want the same things: staying grounded, valuing education, and strong principles. We celebrate both Catholic and Orthodox Christmases. Twice a year a family crew of six, plus two newly added nieces come to stay with us.

I grew up in Moscow, raised by a doctor mother and a pilot father, which probably explains why I have a hard time being dramatic about things. I have an older sister, a half brother, and enough cousins to never run out of family gossip. I spent 13 years in international journalism, newsrooms, radio, news agencies, which taught me how to cut through noise, and still find politics occasionally interesting. My friends would tell you I have a good sense of humor, mostly delivered with a completely straight face. I’ve been told I have a resting Cillian Murphy expression, which I choose to take as a compliment.

What excites me about becoming a parent is harder to put into words without it sounding like a greeting card, so I’ll just say this: I have a lot to give, I’ve been patient getting here, and I believe a child who grows up knowing they are wanted, loved, and exactly where they belong, is off to a pretty good start.

Alina is the kindest and most thoughtful person I know - she has a huge heart and will help anyone without hesitation. She loves animals and nature, and her patience is endless (puts up with my Scottish accent). She’s incredibly capable and determined. After building a successful career in international journalism, on the back of her passion for health and fitness she pivoted to opening her own fitness studio from the ground up, and now she’s following her passion as a videographer. I have endless admiration for how fearlessly she chases what she loves. She has more friends than I can count, which says everything about her character. She has so much love to give. I know she will be an amazing, patient, and nurturing mother, and I can’t wait to build our family with her.

I grew up in Scotland as the oldest of three siblings, with big age gaps - 10 years to my brother and 15 to my sister. I still remember the awkward teenage moment visiting my sister in the hospital when the nurse asked if I was there to see my girlfriend. Friends describe me as ambitious, focused, and calm under pressure. I’m the type who always chases perfection (more of a flaw than a strength). I’m an engineer by training and now run a composite manufacturing company. While I love the leadership side, I’m still a massive geek at heart. I’ve been fortunate to have lived in five different countries and traveled extensively. I love travelling, our animals, and cycling.

What excites me most about becoming a parent is helping shape a life positively and sharing every experience along the journey. After years focused on careers and fertility treatments, we’re now slowing down and ready to build our family. I look forward to showing a child the world we’ve explored and bringing balance, love, and purpose to our lives.

Gavin grew up as the oldest of three kids, and it shows in the best way. He has this thing where he cannot leave something unfinished, even if it’s late into the night. I think that’s a big part of what’s helped him get where he is—he simply doesn’t give up. He’s the most reliable person I’ve ever met. He works hard, loves cars, is passionate about all things IT, and somehow always knows how to find just about any movie or TV show. Whether he actually watches them is another question. His version of watching a film involves a phone in hand, simultaneously looking something up. He calls it multitasking. I call it a short attention span with good intentions. There is nothing in this house he can’t fix apart from my accent. He also loves the idea of cooking, specifically the part where you buy kitchen equipment. The actual cooking is less of an interest. He loves being on the water and on land, but the beach is not his thing.

We have a few interests between us. Alina has tried nearly every form of fitness and even owned a studio, and lately we’ve been exploring the local fitness scene together. We recently went to a Hyrox event to support a friend and are now considering competing ourselves.

Gavin likes cycling, is a dedicated gamer, and has a quiet obsession about how things work. After a storm knocked out our generator, he spent days researching online before fixing it himself. He is still proud of it.

Alina loves reading, audiobooks, and podcasts, from The Diary of a CEO to history and medicine. After seven years in music school, she still plays the piano occasionally. And since they say it helps to keep the brain sharp, she considers it her long-term investment against Alzheimer’s ;)

We go to concerts when we can. The best so far have been Coldplay and Ed Sheeran. We’ve also seen a few legends who’ve been around since the 90s: Sting, and the Backstreet Boys, who we grew up with and who are now, objectively, old dudes.

We both love to travel, with Alaska, Australia, and Iceland on our list, and we think there’s no better education than seeing the world.

We live in The Woodlands, Texas, a master-planned community about 27 miles north of Houston, built around the idea of living in harmony with nature. It has parks, miles of trails, a strong arts scene, and a genuine small-town feel despite being close to a major city. It consistently ranks among the top places in the U.S. to live and raise a family, and the public schools are a big part of why families come and stay. The summers are hot. Texans don’t say hot, they say “character-building”. Every spring the bluebonnets come out and half of Texas drops everything to take family photos in them. Galveston beach is about two hours away, known for its scenery, seafood, and access to cruise travel. We’ve also enjoyed exploring more of Texas, including Elon Musk’s private rocket facility. We drove to Boca Chica in 2021 to see SpaceX’s Starbase. We got closer than expected and came away with a few good photos.

We ring in the New Year four times—Kazakhstan, Alina’s place of birth, Moscow, Glasgow, and finally Texas—with a glass of champagne for each time zone. By the time midnight reaches The Woodlands, we’ve definitely been celebrating.

As we write this, Gavin’s family is visiting, all eight of them, and the house is operating at full capacity. This week includes a boat trip, a cooking class, pool time, and board games. Gavin’s family has a great sense of humor about themselves. His younger brother is the middle child, and the running family joke is that they were expecting a girl, which is why there aren’t many photos of him. He takes it well, mostly. When Alina first met his mother, she understood about half of what she said. Glaswegian is technically English, but it takes some getting used to, so her strategy in those early months was to smile, say yes, and hope for the best. They get along great now, and her ear has since been calibrated.

Every summer Alina goes to Moscow, which never sleeps, and is still her favorite city in the world. The culture, history, incredible food, and energy that carries late into the night are a big part of it, and most of all, it’s where her people are. Her mother’s main goal during visits is to feed her back to full capacity, and her sister is always ready for whatever is on, whether it’s a concert or a night out.

For us, parenting has never been about creating a smaller version of ourselves. We see it as passing on the best of what we have—knowledge, love, a sense of humor, and a strong backbone—while giving a child the space to figure out who they are. Children are not extensions of their parents. They are their own people from the start, and the job is to help them navigate the world, not to script it for them. We hope to raise a child who is grounded, curious, and kind, not just because we encourage it, but because that’s what they saw at home every day. When it comes to open adoption, we are genuinely open to staying in touch and sharing updates and photos. We can only imagine how meaningful it is to know how your child is doing, and if we can offer reassurance through ongoing connection, we want to do it, with the level of openness that feels right for you.

We’ll leave you with this: friends of ours, people who don’t know each other, have said independently that they’d be happy to have us as parents. One of them said they’d honestly love to be reincarnated as Mika, our dog. We’ll take that as a good sign. We know what you’re carrying right now, and we don’t take lightly that you’re here, reading this. Whatever you decide, we hope this gave you a real sense of who we are. Thank you for reading all the way through. It means more than we can say.