With Love, Mommy

As a foster parent, I've heard many questions about why we are doing this. We have heard comments like "I couldn't do that" and "You must be special to be able to do that."  It seems that people are so afraid of children in foster care, and they think we are bringing children into our family that have done something wrong. I have also had the occasional comment about what people may think are valuable qualities for a foster parent to possess. So it's about time for a Q&A! -Do you have to have super powers to be a foster parent? No way!  Remember, foster parents are just ordinary people who are able to care for an additional child who needs a home. Some are married, some are not; some work, some do not. There are foster parents who hope to adopt and there are some that only want to provide temporary care. We don't consider ourselves to be special or better than anyone else.  We are just ordinary people with a passion to help kids. -Should ev

                                                                "Our lives are made In these small hours These little wonders, These twists & turns of fate Time falls away, But these small hours, These small hours still remain" I've always loved the song Little Wonders by Rob Thomas, which was featured in Disney's Meet the Robinsons. But I've been thinking about the lyrics to the song a lot lately. We have been watching a lot of adoption movies, and that movie is one of our favorites. Besides the urge to belt out the lyrics when I hear this song, it's also a gentle reminder to be present and enjoy these little moments. It is far too easy to spend all of my time worrying about whether or not Cuddle Bug will be staying with us or if he will be leaving. It is consuming to think about what my family will look like in a month or a year, or even just a week.  As a foster parent, you have to be fluid and very flexible. You have to know tha

The most difficult thing about adding a new child to the family has been establishing new routines.  JT was so used to our old routines, which included frequent trips to the park and Gymboree, where he had our undivided attention.  Suddenly, we have a newborn that also needs our attention sometimes.  The great thing about having a newborn placed with us first is that our little Bug is relatively easy to care for, besides a touch of colic.  Even though Little J still has a big portion of my attention, he's still exhibiting some behaviors which I think is a result of the lack of routines these days.  We've been in survival mode.  Plus, J is really good at being 2. So, we have started some routines to help J transition from one activity to another, and also to help cut down on tv time and encourage more learning activities.  I started with a schedule that J can follow along with.  Most of our day is still playing with cars and trains, but we also do other fun activities.  And I