My family is looking for love. Real love. A family to settle down with for the long haul. Here’s how our personal ad reads:

Us: Fun-loving family of five. Enjoy board games, building forts out of couch cushions, pancake breakfasts, and soccer at the park. Lots of noise, lots of laughter, occasional meltdowns. We clean up our messes, always bring a beverage and/or dessert, and are working on our manners.

You: Up for some fun. Cool with spontaneous plans and keeping it casual. Might be into the occasional trip together. Not into trying too hard. Parents like good food and drink, and adult conversation when possible. Kids like imaginary play and dance parties. Bonus points to Patriots fans. No commitment-phobes, please.

I told you we’re serious. We’re not looking to just play the field. I mean, while we love having other families in our lives (and we have some fantastic ones), we still long for that one — the one you can visit in your sweats, plan travel together, or call in the middle of the night for an emergency. The one that just gets you. All of yous.

And because we’ve had great love before, we know what we’re looking for.

A bit more about our, ahem, past. Admittedly, we’ve had a couple bad breakups. Our first great love moved to Maine. (We still love them, just not as often as we’d like!) Other good relationships fizzled a bit when our flames moved to the ‘burbs, as good city catches often do. I’m sure they’re moving on with nice ‘burb families in each other’s big yards, and it’s all just lovely. 

Last year, we were dumped rather suddenly when the family across the street moved back to England. We all shed some tears over that one. OK, me especially. I mean, the mum (mum — how fantastically British!) was the perfect package — proper enough to be charming, and improper enough to be fun — and the kids were so sweet and feisty and said quaint things like “brilliant,” and “pram” instead of stroller. We’d while away the dark winter afternoons at their house having tea, and for a brief time, it was all, well, brilliant.

And just recently, we learned that our current steady — a family we’ve celebrated numerous birthdays with, put down roots with, traveled with — is shipping off to Switzerland.

“It’s not you, it’s us,” they said.

And so, the search continues. We keep swiping at the proverbial Tinder: Yes to nature lovers, no to conservatives. And we keep dating, trying on other families to see if we have a future together. Every time we have a great brunch, or a fun pizza-and-play evening, we get to wonder, “Could this be the one? Could this turn into something more?”

And until it does, we’ll keep believing they’re out there.

Jessie Keppeler
A Maine native, Jessie migrated down the coast to Boston after college, and it’s been home ever since. She has lived in various corners of the city — from Allston and Brighton to Newbury Street and then Jamaica Plain — before settling in Brookline with her husband and three daughters. As much as she loves home now, she also likes to leave occasionally: recent family travels include Italy, Belize, and Washington D.C. Jessie writes with a cat curled up nearby and a dog at her feet. And a cup of coffee. Always.

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