Shawn and Michelle
Hi! We’re Shawn and Michelle from Seattle.
When deciding how to grow our family, adoption was the first path that we have chosen to pursue. Shawn’s mother, uncle, and cousin were all adopted. Both of our extended families are quite small, and we are excited about the chance to expand our family trees through the open adoption process. We hope for a relationship with our child’s birth family that is open, honest, and mutually respectful, where we grow with one another. We look forward to sharing meals, enjoying the outdoors, and creating family traditions together.
We met through a mutual friend in 2014 and, even though we lived in different states, soon found ourselves talking on the phone each night. It was easy to connect over our love of travel, music, and our all-around quirkiness. We made our first home together in San Francisco, where we adopted our cats Barley (brown) and Mash (grey). We moved to Seattle in 2018 to be closer to Shawn’s family and the Pacific Northwest that we love. We love the region’s climate, along with its proximity to the ocean and mountains. These things enable some of our favorite activities like camping and skiing.
Shawn (as written by Michelle) has an effervescent personality and can find adventure in everyday activities. He loves cooking, watching sports, and biking, which he finds exhilarating in all seasons that Seattle has to offer. While he brings a lot of energy to social gatherings, he is also great at connecting one on one. Shawn will make an amazing father because he is patient and considerate. He is looking forward to reading his favorite books together and introducing our child to the Chicago Cubs.
Michelle (as written by Shawn) is honest, trustworthy, and will stick with her loved ones to the moon and back. She loves crafting, being immersed in a good book, lifting heavy weights, and, most of all, animals! If there is a dog or a cat in the room, you can guarantee that Michelle will be the first one to find them. Michelle has a lot of love to give, and a lot of wisdom to impart. She is a thoughtful and clear communicator, but also knows exactly the right time to let her silly side out.
Together we like to travel and explore new places, in Washington and around the world. In the winter we enjoy getting out in the snow, and in the summer we take our trailer out camping. When we’re not out and about, we enjoy playing board games with friends (like Dutch Blitz or Ticket to Ride), having folks over for a backyard gathering, or snuggling with the cats while watching sci-fi shows on the couch.
Our home is full of art and music. And when we venture out into the world, we do our best to seek out both wherever we are, along with whatever new and exciting thing that place may have to offer (especially foods!). You can often hear Michelle say “I’ll try anything twice!” when visiting a new place, and we try to stay true to that mindset wherever we are.
We are excited to become parents and are looking forward to the journey of open adoption.
We wish you the best in whatever lies ahead,
Shawn and Michelle