12
Washington
Bible Church
Ellie 7 yr
Ellie is a blooming extrovert. She is friendly, inventive, confident, and excited to have a younger sibling one day. She often will ask to take care of her younger friends as "practice." At school, she likes to lead, help, run, and play with her classmates. Her favorite parts of school are science, reading and music. Her teacher recently praised her "strong desire to help others." In her spare time, she builds things, explores our backyard, bakes cakes, gardens, and plays video games. She also loves biking, swimming, hiking and trips to our local library. She spends lots of time with her cousins and both sets of her grandparents, and writes to pen pals in Washington, Texas, and France.
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Darrin and Rachel first met in 2006 and started dating in 2009. They dated long-distance while Rachel was away at college, finding a mutual love of comics, card games, adventure, and music. After getting married, they also enjoyed playing volleyball together and watching Seahawks games. They both grew up in the greater Seattle area and after their daughter Ellie was born in 2016, they were thrilled to be able to buy a house there, near family and friends. Darrin is a former truck driver, who now works in a school district. Rachel is an ASL interpreter. Their daughter loves making friends and playing with every kid she meets, and her second grade year is off to a great start. We have a tetra fish and 6 chickens, and our daughter would love a cat someday.
Darrin enjoys golfing, BBQ, cheering on all Seattle sports teams and teaching Ellie to swim and play piano. He shares his love of sports and music with Ellie every chance he gets. He has always wanted kids and hoped to adopt since he himself is adopted. Friends and family say he is creative, diligent, fun-loving, loyal and honest.
Darrin was adopted from Hiroshima, Japan by Japanese-American parents, Phyllis and Jerry. he has one younger sister Katie who married Isaac in 2012. They now have a son and daughter, Ellie's cousins. We all live within 20 minutes of each other, and we spend lots of family meals, day trips, vacations and holidays together.
I graduated high school in Kent and attended one year at Puget Sound Christian College, but the college closed the following year. I currently work as a Facilities Manager for the Northshore School District. I enjoy my time with staff and students - interacting with them and assisting in keeping the schools safe and clean. I have been employed there for 8 years now and plan on staying with the district.
I walk 3-4 miles everyday and enjoy listening to podcasts about current events, world history, and various cultures. I also like sports, especially golfing, and have friends over for board games, BBQs, and yard games. I also enjoy camping and video games.
I'm typically not very fancy, but I do enjoy dressing up on occasion - like in this picture, taken at a vinyard in Lake Chelan. I love being outdoors and trying new things. When I asked my friends and family how best to describe who I am, they responded with the words: "bold, brave, inquisistive, and just." I see each day as a new adventure and opportunity to learn something new. I try to show our daughter, through my own example, that mistakes and failures are not bad, but ways to grow, build, and explore. I am bi-lingual (fluent in American Sign Language and English) and currently learning Japanese with my nephew. My favorite hobbies are reading, runnning, Disney-bounding, and playing board games. I nerd-out over any sci-fi or fantasy novels and consider members of my book club to be close family.
I started learning American Sign Language (ASL) in high school and later went to went to Bellevue College to earn an AA degree and become more fluent in ASL. That was a wonderful time of growth and discovery for me, where I really fell in love with learning. I tranferred to Western Oregon University for my BA in ASL/English Interpretation and now have been working as an interpreter for 10+ years. I love my career, but it always serves as a way for me to partner with others and grow rather than just paying the bills or being the center of my life. I get to meet and work with all different kinds of Deaf and hearing people and create a bridge of communication betweeen them. I take what I learn from each interaction and use it to fuel my interactions as a wife, mom, and friend to others in my life. I have especially grown from my working in school districts and with youth as a tutor and volunteer in co-ops and mentorship programs.
Rachel is always trying something new and getting to share new experiences with Ellie. They both love animals and dressing up, so meeting ponies at the Midsummer Renasaince Fair is one of their favorite traditions. She also creates Disneybound outfits with her friends from items she receives in clothing swaps. Rachel also shares her love of reading, story-telling, and fantasy with Ellie's classmates by volunteering at her school and library reading times. She enjoys running, weight-lifting and volleyball along with anything the kids at youth group are up for playing. She's also learning Japanese and planning trips for their family to Japan and France within the next 2 years, beacuse she has always wanted to travel.
Ellie is a blooming extrovert. She is friendly, inventive, confident, and excited to have a younger sibling one day. She often will ask to take care of her younger friends as "practice." At school, she likes to lead, help, run, and play with her classmates. Her favorite parts of school are science, reading and music. Her teacher recently praised her "strong desire to help others." In her spare time, she builds things, explores our backyard, bakes cakes, gardens, and plays video games. She also loves biking, swimming, hiking and trips to our local library. She spends lots of time with her cousins and both sets of her grandparents, and writes to pen pals in Washington, Texas, and France.
Our house is in a family-oriented neighborhood very close to Ellie's school. There are nearby parks, kihing trails, and our local library. Our home has a big yard and all of Ellie's grandparents live closeby. We often set up tents or "box castles" in our living room when she is in a "creative construction" mood. She has a pet fish named "Seahawk" and wanted to get a second one soon to name "Mermaid." We love that we can walk, bike-ride, and puddle-jump on our street.
"A Day in the Life"
We recently adopted 5 chickens from a friend who needed to find them a new home. Darrin enjoyed building a coop and run for them to play in when they aren't roaming our backyard. Every morning, he leaves for work early, so Ellie and Rachel share the morning together, feeding the chickens and getting ready for work and school. Ellie likes to be responsible by getting herself ready most days and being first in line when she arrives. With any time she has left, she likes to build crafts or paint something to give to her friends, teacher, or school staff. She likes school a lot. Rachel drops her off, then goes to interpreting assignments in the greater Seattle area, or volunteering in her class until the school day ends. Then we hike, read, play games, do puzzles and eat dinner together, or visit grandparents until bedtime. Ellie also has piano lessons once a week and swim lessons as often as we can schedule them with her "swim tutor." On weekends, we love going on outings and adventures together like the state fair, aquarium, and friend's houses.
Family values:
