Hello! I’m Paula from San Diego, California. I am so excited that you are considering me as a parent to your child. As you learn about me, I hope you will see that I am someone who works daily to create a calm, loving, and supportive home where a child can feel safe, valued, and deeply loved. I am a fairly reserved and mellow person at first, but I am caring, friendly, and always try to treat others with kindness. I come from a big extended family and as an elementary school teacher, I have spent many years caring for and guiding children of all ages. Thank you for taking the time to get to know me.

Those who know me best would describe me as a listener. I believe that we all just want to be seen and heard and I strive to give that to others. I ask a lot of questions because I am genuinely curious about the people around me. My relationships with my family and friends are very important to me. I invest in the people I love deeply and am grateful every day for the community that surrounds me. That same spirit extends outward — when someone in my life is going through a difficult time, my instinct is always to show up and help in whatever way I can.

I have always wanted to have children. Early on, I was drawn toward adoption and the idea of opening my home to a child. I have a number of family members and friends who have adopted children, and it has been a wonderful experience for them. For the last fifteen years, I have joyfully helped to raise my friend’s son, Troy. We lived in the same house for five years and now live in adjoining houses so we can continue to be a part of each other’s daily lives. Troy has a number of special needs, both physical and developmental. He just turned eighteen and is one of the big highlights of my life. He shows joy freely and demonstrates love strongly. My relationship with Troy has strengthened my desire and confidence to adopt a child.

I live in California, about 20 minutes away from the beach in one direction and 45 minutes to the mountains in the other direction. The desert is about an hour away, so there are so many options for outdoor activities! I live on a property that is a little over an acre of land. It has two houses on the property; I live in one, and my friend, her husband, and their son, Troy, live in the other house. We live in a nice, quiet, hilly neighborhood with a large backyard. There is a wooden play structure for climbing, swinging and sliding in the backyard. My neighborhood community is a great one! Lots of people walk their dogs and everyone is very friendly. About a mile away, is the cutest little street with shops and restaurants all along it. There is a weekly Farmer’s Market all year long and in the summer there is a concert and car show once a week. These are fun events that bring the community together.

My mom was an elementary school teacher and I used to help her in her classroom, so it came very naturally to me to become a teacher myself. I have taught mostly first grade but will soon be moving to Transitional Kindergarten. These will be younger kids and I am really excited about it! It is going to be a new challenge for me and I think it is going to be a lot of fun. It will involve lots of arts and crafts and a lot of playtime! Working with young children has taught me the art of patience (some days more than others), the importance of meeting people where they are, and the incredible power of encouragement. Being a teacher allows me to have most of the summers off as well as time off during the winter holidays and at Spring Break. This gives me more time to spend with a child than I would otherwise have in a different job.

My immediate family is my mom, dad and brother, who is almost three years younger than I am. We are pretty close; talking and texting almost every day. We take vacations together and just got back from a trip to Mexico City. All of us are so excited at the idea of me adopting a child and including them in our family! Both of my parents come from big families. My mom came from a family of six and my dad from a family of seven. Having big gatherings was a lot of fun as I grew up, and I have always been pretty close with my aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents. We spent all holidays and birthdays together with a yearly camping trip with my dad’s extended family. The camping trips hold many great family memories, like campfires, playing games, and cooking together. We now go to different places each year together. This year the seventeen of us are spending a week at the beach! I look forward to making more memories with a new member of our family!

He’s a handsome Labradoodle with the prettiest eyes. Logan spends most of the day sleeping but when he is awake, he roams around the backyard looking for rabbits to chase. He rarely finds them and when he does, he is no match for their speed. He loves to go on walks but likes to keep them short so its usually only to the end of the block and back. Logan is extremely calm and has been described as “everyone’s friend”. I often wonder if he would go home with anyone who was nice to him.

One of my greatest hopes as a parent is that my child feels truly seen, supported, and loved. Not for what they achieve, but simply for who they are. I believe childhood should be a time of exploration and discovery, and I am committed to opening as many doors as possible, whether that means trying a new sport, learning an instrument, exploring the arts, or simply following a curiosity wherever it leads. Kindness and generosity are values I hold close to my heart, and I want to model them every single day. I believe children learn not just from what they are told, but from what they see. Whether it’s helping a neighbor, showing compassion to someone who is struggling, or simply treating every person with dignity and respect, I want my child to grow up understanding that the way we treat others matters deeply.

I would love learn about you! Should you choose to entrust your little one to me, I want you to know they will grow up knowing of your love for them and how blessed and honored I feel that you chose me. I would like to have an open adoption with you where we can maintain a connection whether that may be through phone calls, letters and/or visits. If chosen to parent your child, I want you to know I take this on with the utmost level of responsibility and will do my absolute best to raise your child with unconditional love, security, stability, and as many opportunities as possible. Thank you for taking the time to learn about me.