About Angela

I was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri in an urban residential neighborhood, down the street from a small park, my elementary school and highschool. I am the youngest of three sisters - we shared our bedroom, which made for many late nights telling silly stories, making up games, and whispering and giggling. My mom was a stay-at-home mom, so she spent lots of time with us, showing us how to bake, garden, sew, and give great hugs! On weekends, my dad would take us to the park to play whiffle ball, take us out for ice cream, or just put on the sprinkler on hot days so we could run and play in the water.

Music was a great part of my upbringing. My mom was from Panama, and so we had lots of visits from our Panamanian relatives, which always included guitar playing, singing and dancing. One of my favorite things to do was singing with my sisters Jane and Linda in harmony, while Linda accompanied us on the piano. We would sing for special occasions and for guests, and mostly just for fun! I had piano lessons, as well as oboe lessons and ballet and tap lessons. In school I participated in band, school choirs, dance classes, and highschool musical performances and dance recitals.

Another passion of mine in school was the French language. After graduating from highschool, I spent a month in France on a cultural exchange, and fell in love with France, its culture and its people. I was a French major in college, and would travel in France during my summers off. After graduating from the University of Missouri, I spent a year living and working in France, teaching English at a public middle school. Upon returning to St. Louis, I returned to the restaurant business waiting tables, which was how I worked my way through college; I had always loved working with the public and serving great food!

Years later, after having moved to Seattle, I rediscovered my love for singing and dancing, becoming involved in folk dancing, taking dance classes for my own personal pleasure, and taking voice lessons - something I had always wanted to do. Eventually I left the restaurant business to work for a dance company, and not long after I started my own dance business - it's truly a dream come true to be able to do something I love for a living! It was at a regular Thursday night dance that I met Matthew, and we got to know each other and became very good friends. Our friendship grew, and we came to admire and respect each other, and eventually, love each other! On our very first date, we knew we would spend the rest of our lives together, and we talked about our dreams for the future, which included having children. We dated for two years, letting our friendship grow deeper, and were married by our pastor at our neighborhood church.

I must say that falling in love with my best friend, and then marrying him, is a gift beyond my wildest dreams, and I am grateful for Matthew every single day. When I first met him, I was attracted to his sweetness, kindness, and his wholesomeness. He has a very strong Christian faith, which I find comforting, inspiring and grounding. I also admire his close relationships with his family. The first holiday I spent with Matthew's family was Thanksgiving 1997, and I'll never forget how after dinner, everyone went into the living room, and one by one, Matthew's nieces and nephew got up and played an instrument or sang a song, and then we all sang songs together - I felt right at home! Some things that Matthew and I enjoy doing together are playing games like Scrabble or doing crossword puzzles (the New York Times crossword puzzles are our favorites!), curling up on the couch and watching movies, PBS Mysteries, or reruns of Seinfeld and Friends, gardening, going for walks in the neighborhood, going on daytrips to small towns to browse shops and explore, choosing fun books and reading out loud to each other (we can't wait to read out loud to our children!!), and hanging out with friends and family. Although my family is mostly in St. Louis, I am very close with them, talking regularly on the phone, and visiting as often as possible. We are so very lucky that almost all of Matthew's family live very close, so we spend holidays together, as well as many other get togethers throughout the year.

Some things that I enjoy on my own are crafty projects, such as doing beadwork, painting the rooms in our house in fun ways, decorating candle holders, and anything else I can think of to make our home beautiful. I love cooking and baking from scratch, and always enjoy experimenting with new recipes. Even though we live in the city, I must be part farmer, because I get a huge thrill out of growing vegetables - I'm especially proud of my yearly pumpkin patch, and can't wait to share that with our child someday. I like lazy afternoons sipping on coffee and reading magazines or a good book. Singing is one my favorite things to do, and I enjoy singing at church, singing with Matthew, and also singing and dancing in an annual Christmas performance - basically, I sing every chance I get, and I am so looking forward to singing lullabies to our child someday. I truly can't wait to be a mom - to love, adore, nurture, dance and sing with, and cherish the greatest gift in the world - a child. Matthew and I have created room in our hearts and home, and are very ready for this next step in our lives. We hope that in reading this, you get a better picture of who we are, and we would be honored to talk with you and know more about you and your hopes and desires.