Nick and Shanin

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From Us to You

First, we want to thank you for taking the time to read this as a way of getting to know us a little. While we can’t know exactly what you are going through, we know the decision you will make is very difficult. We have been praying for you every day and we look forward to the day when we can pray for you by name. We appreciate the amount of trust it would take to allow us to raise your child, and we would be forever grateful for this most precious gift.

We (Nick & Shanin) met in the spring of 2007 and fell in love. By that fall, Nick moved to where Shanin was living, and the following year, in August of 2008, we got married! Now we are living in Nebraska near Nick’s new job.

We each have multiple educational degrees and treasure the life experience those years of learning brought to us. Because of the great friendships we still have from our time in school, at all levels of learning, we want to give your child those same opportunities for lifelong friends. We both have large extended families with which we still spend time with, so your child will have a great family life. We plan to encourage a mindset of lifelong learning, making sure to help them discover their likes and dislikes in pursuit of finding their own calling in this world. We believe Christian education offers many benefits and we hope your child will follow in our footsteps toward higher education. On a more personal level, we will share the light and love of Jesus as a natural part of our daily family life.

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About Shanin

All of Shanin’s character traits that attracted me to her, from the time we started dating to now being married over 16 years, are as true today as they were at the beginning. She has a strong sense of what is right and what is wrong which is grounded in her understanding of the Bible and the principles that are found there. Her spiritual grounding is in her relationship with Jesus, which is a continued source of strength to her and I know that her time in getting to know Him is well spent.

Shanin comes from a musically talented family and shares her love of piano with others whenever she has a chance to play. She is also an avid reader and has successfully instilled that love for reading in many of the children that she was nanny too as well as our niece, nephews, and younger kids in our extended family. Cooking is something that she is great at, and is even better at teaching those who want to learn. Many of the girls she nannied for still ask for special times to come over just so they can have her teach them how to cook up some kind of tasty treat.

If you have the privilege of being close friends with Shanin, she will stick by your side through the good times and bad. In fact, she has a friend from 3rd grade that time and distance cannot separate, and whenever she is within driving distance she always tries to connect in person whenever possible. This can also be said for her close friends she made in high school, and later in college. This loyalty comes from a heart that cares for others and truly wants the best for them which is why I count myself blessed to have her as a friend and ultimately as my wife. I can hardly wait to watch her be a mom and use her God given talents to raise your baby to be their best self.

Shanin’s hobbies include:

• Reading
• Cooking
• Hiking
• Gardening
• Photography
• Crocheting and painting

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About Nick

Nick’s faith in God is the solid base that helps him to be the amazing leader of our family and is one of the first things I noticed about him when we met. He has a very caring heart and loves to have discussions with others about Jesus and how much He loves them.

Nick is a hard worker and always does everything he can to provide a wonderful life for our family. He even went back to school a few years ago and it led to his newfound passion in computer science. He currently uses his degree in database management and he is excelling in it. He is also a genius when it comes to fixing computers, which both sets of parents and myself find very handy.

Nick is so good with our niece, nephews and all our cousin’s kids. They get so excited when he walks in the room as they know that he is willing to get down on their level to play. I can’t wait to see him be a daddy and play and snuggle with his own kids. He’s so excited to teach our son or daughter how to do lots of different activities, like chess and bike riding, and to help them grow to be amazing people themselves.

Nick’s hobbies include:

• Video games
• Hiking
• Woodworking and shop activities
• Reading
• Computer programming
• Talking with friends on the phone

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Why We Are Choosing to Adopt

We have always wanted to be parents and have discussed adopting since we were dating (2007). We always thought that our family would consist of biological and adopted children. The reality is that biological children will never happen and we still want a larger family. Part of being a family is sharing our love of Jesus with those we care about and raising our children to know and love Jesus as much as we do.

Nick is looking forward to:

• Teaching your child how to ride a bike
• Showing your child how to play chess
• Taking vacations as a family to fun destinations
• The day-to-day times of learning and discovery while teaching life lessons like how to tie your shoes.

Shanin is looking forward to:

• Trips to the library for story time
• Time at the park
• Going swimming
• Cuddles

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Our Home and Neighborhood

Nestled in a medium-sized town that is thriving and growing, our home is situated in a community with schools and other amenities close by, one of the local libraries specifically. We just moved into a new rental townhouse with a nice backyard and room to grow and make memories with your child and our extended family. Someday we hope to own our own house and property as the idea of our forever home extends beyond a mere backyard as we would like a piece of land that provides ample space to roam and explore. Having acreage inspires picnics, gardening, playing with pets, and perhaps even raising a few chickens or planting fruit trees. The possibilities are endless, and we look forward to making that dream come true.

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Our Lifestyle

As much as Shanin enjoys exploring the world outside, she finds immense joy in the heart of our home: the kitchen. Cooking is not merely a chore but a creative outlet for her. She loves experimenting with new recipes and treating her loved ones to delightful goodies that leave lasting impressions on their taste buds. She loves to share her cooking skills with others. Though Nick is not a cook he enjoys taking Shanin out to eat on special occasions.

Spending time with family and friends is at the core of who we are. Whether it’s organizing family get-togethers, hosting friends for meals, or planning outings, we thrive on the love and laughter that fill these gatherings. We love spending quality time with our friends and family, engaging in playful and competitive games that foster laughter and togetherness. Whether it’s board games on a cozy night in, friendly sports matches in the park, or going camping, we value the bonds we share with our loved ones.

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Our Vacations and Leisure Time

Vacations are something that we look forward to when we have the opportunity to plan one. We like to adventure to new and old destinations and experience new places, people, and cultures. We enjoy camping at the lake, or in the mountains and visiting the ocean when we can. We envision taking your child on road trips and plane trips to experience fun and exciting places around the world. Family reunions are one of the trips we take almost every year and that is a tradition and a vacation rolled into one.

Places we have been and will revisit with your child:

• Florida beaches / Sea World
• Montana mountains
• Camping on the Oregon coast
• Northern California / Redwood national park
• Colorado
• Tennessee Aquarium
• Zoos

Places we want to go:

• Europe
• Alps
• Spain
• England
• Germany
• Czech Republic
• Azores
• Australia / New Zealand
• Shedd aquarium – Chicago
• San Diego Zoo
• Indianapolis Children’s Museum
• Ark Encounter
• Kentucky

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Our Careers, Passions, and Callings

Shanin currently works full time as a computer aided drafter but eagerly awaits with anticipation the chance to be a full time mom.

Instead of releasing her creative energy in a drafting program she will enjoy:

• arts & crafts
• music classes
• library story times with your child

She can’t wait to share her love of reading with your child like she did when she was a nanny for many years. Because of the bonds that she made with her nanny kids, many of them are still in contact with her.

Nick currently works as a database developer for a multinational company. This is a newer development in his career since he just recently graduated with his degree in 2021. He is the computer genius of the family and is passionate about everything computer related. Although he finds computers to be interesting, he strongly feels that helping others to know Jesus as their personal friend and Savior is his ultimate calling in life.

This calling has led him to be:

• a leader in church
• working in small groups
• having personal one-on-one conversations to challenge others

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Our Friends and Family

Although we could spend a large amount of time talking about our family and friends we will highlight some of the things we like to do with them and who they are as people.

We are surrounded by a very close knit group of family and friends. On a regular basis we get together for “family potlucks” and game nights. Several families in our circle of friends have children ranging in age from 3 – 14 years old. Our siblings have kids aged from 10 – 17 years old and while they live out of state from us we get together at least yearly. They are all very excited about having a new cousin in the family.

Our parents are thrilled to become grandparents again. Shanin’s parents have even left Colorado and moved closer to us to be more involved in your child’s life. Nick’s parents are retired and living together in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. They have plans of making many visits to Nebraska and we will make trips to visit them as well.

Generally speaking our family and friends are generous, kind, and willing to help each other in everyday life. If we need help they are willing to stop what they are doing and come to our rescue. They share in the bounty of their gardens, their talents of photography, and hospitality, all in an effort to live life to the fullest.

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Our Traditions

Our favorite holiday is Christmas. We split our time between each side of the family. Nick’s side gets even years and Shanin’s gets the odd years when it comes to traveling to our parents’ homes or them visiting us. Our traditions around this time of year are a big Christmas tree, large family sitdown meals, and lots of time for puzzles and games.

Our family also has something that many do not; that is Birthday seasons.

• Everyone gets 2 weeks around their birthday to guarantee they have a really good day.
• That might include getting cards and presents on different days throughout those two weeks.
• Outings or parties can be planned in that time frame.
• It all goes to extend the fun and celebration of the person being celebrated.

Broadly speaking we celebrate most major holidays by getting together with family and friends just sitting around visiting, eating good food, playing games, or watching our favorite movies. Sometimes the holiday determines the activity that we are doing together such as in years past we have done a Turkey Trot 5k on Thanksgiving morning and then spent the afternoon eating and playing games.

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Our Faith

For us Jesus is first and foremost, the head of our lives, marriage, and family. To keep Him there we work to know and understand what He taught as outlined in the Bible. There are many great lessons about how we should be living our lives, especially treating others as we would like to be treated. Of course, we attend church and bible studies with several other families and share our commitment to raising children who will seek to know God for themselves; to know who Jesus is and what He has done for each one of us

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Racial and Cultural Diversity

We want your child to feel happy and loved in our home, but to also know where they came from. We will make sure that we include learning all about their culture and heritage by reading books, watching videos, singing songs, and talking to people from their culture to understand their traditions and way of life. We want them to feel proud of their roots. We’ll explore all the yummy foods from their culture as well. Cooking special dishes together, like traditional meals and when it’s time for festivals, we’ll celebrate them together and learn about their customs. We’ll take trips to other countries to help broaden their knowledge of the world and cultures. We would plan to visit landmarks, meet new people, and try new things to teach them that the world is a very diverse place.

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Our Promise to You

We promise to love and care for your child to the best of our ability, and we will ensure they know how much you love them, and that you made this decision purely out of love for them. We will honestly answer any questions your child has about you as we want to be as open as possible with your child. We plan to do what’s best for your child in all situations.