ABOUT RYAN

Ryan is thoughtful, curious, patient, and humorous. He takes time to deeply listen but always has time to be silly. Ryan teaches chemistry at a local college. Ryan is also a natural with our friends’ young kids - teaching them how to ride a bike and blow bubbles while swimming. These characteristics will make Ryan a wonderful dad. 

ABOUT RACHEL

Rachel is a compassionate, hard-working, creative person. Rachel had a successful career in Spanish education and now works in the world language

tutoring center at a local college.

Between helping students learn and develop their understanding of other cultures, and growing up caring for her sisters, Rachel is going to be a great mom.

 OUR HOME

Our house is a cozy, turn-of-the century home, just outside the historic district of the town we live in. Our village is highly walkable, with sidewalks to the local school district, public library, church, the downtown green for the farmer’s market, summer music series, and local art shows - all places we would go to with our adopted child. 

Our corgi, Arthur, is very kid-friendly - loving to give cuddles and kisses. He is gentle and loves going on walks with us and our friends’ children. We also have backyard ducks! Our adoptive child would learn how to care for animals and enjoy eating fresh eggs!

We live in a tight-knit community. We are all invested in being each other’s village for the children we have - baby-sitting and attending each other’s kids’ activities. Our broader community also has incredible resources for children: a local musical and theater group, local art museum with community education classes, farm-school, as well as concerts and nature preserves at the near-by college.

MEET OUR FAMILY

Family is exceptionally important to us! We make sure to see each side of our families at least every other month, both of which live in West Michigan. When we’re all together, we spend time cooking & baking, playing card games, going on walks and bike rides, and visiting the beach. 

Rachel has three younger sisters: Lydia, Naomi, and Anika. Lydia is married to Connor and Naomi is married to Jack.  Rachel’s mom is Linda. Lydia, Naomi, Anika, and Linda are all nurses. Rachel and her family members all share a creative side: Rachel’s Mom and sister Naomi sew, Lydia plays a number of instruments, and Anika is a gifted baker.

Ryan has one younger sister, Sara. She is married to Trey and they just welcomed their first child (our first nephew), Maverick, this summer! Trey loves working on cars (professionally and as a hobby), and Sara has many hobbies in the world of crafting. Ryan’s parents, Randy and Cindy, love spending time with their new grandson, hanging out at the lake, and attending college sporting events. Cindy is a software engineer and Randy works in fundraising.

TRAVEL & VACATION: 

We love traveling - whether it’s domestic adventures like camping, kayaking, biking, or backpacking or international exploring of language and culture! We also greatly enjoy hosting dinner parties and community hangouts with all ages welcome! Our backyard has plenty of space for kids to run and play games while their parents hang out with us under our covered patio area. We also enjoy singing in a local community choir.

OUR HOBBIES:

We always say, "people over places and things," because spending time with family and friends is what brings us the most joy. That said, we love getting outdoors for adventures like hiking, kayaking, fishing, and skiing. We’re an active family, much to the dismay of our lazy dog! We also enjoy trying out new restaurants and breweries, but James is such a fantastic cook that we equally love staying in, cooking together, and diving into a new Netflix series.

IN CLOSING