Addiction is such a hard topic for expectant moms to talk about. All of our infant foster placements were born with drugs in their systems. It can be hard for moms to seek medical and addiction treatment while pregnant because of fear and stigma.
We hope that fostering and adoption can bring these moms the resources and time to seek treatment. We are not afraid of a hard journey. Please know that you have options and that there are agencies and families willing to help.
If you are fighting with
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Since our brief foster care placement of a newborn, we’ve gotten 2 more calls for newborns in the NICU. Both of those cases ultimately went home with family (kinship). But, that has prompted us to pack and ready a “go bag.”
There are many things I missed having while in the NICU, like clothes to
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We’re off on a new parenting adventure - touring high schools. Yes, we already have 1 in high school, but the newest up-and-comer isn’t so sure she wants to go to a big public high school. She also has an extensive IEP, which affords her lots of supports.
We have toured a smaller public charter school
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Yesterday started off as a normal Saturday. Coffee, laundry, and then board games with family. As the day got warmer, the kids played outside.
Just as I was starting to relax with my sewing, my youngest runs into the room and tells me her brother is hurt. I found him laying on the concrete pad with
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One of my favorite hobbies to do while we wait for our next child is cross stitching. It is a simple thing to pass the time while watching movies or attending boring work meetings. I always have a blanket I’m working on and a onesie. My collection shrunk a little after I sent our last foster baby back
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For the first time in a long time, our “nursery” (a nook in our bedroom) got some use. Our brief foster placement last week had us using our bassinet, rocking chair, and swing.
We can’t wait to use it again - it will be worth the wait!
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This week we welcomed and said good bye to an infant foster placement. In a whirlwind of events, I spent an evening in the NICU, brought home a tiny bundle of joy, got 3 rough nights of sleep, did doctors appointments, social worker visits, and reunited them with their grandmother. It was both tough and
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We spent a week relaxing with family on the (cold) lake. It was an amazing time to rest and recharge. We hiked, played in the sand, tossed rocks, made smores, and watched the total eclipse with both sets of grandparents!
Pictured: Walter admiring the total eclipse while the sky was dark and the eastern sky
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Puberty, changing schools, foster kids moving in and out, and just growing up all bring on big feelings for our kids. Sometimes we can manage these feelings and sometimes we need more help.
All of our kids have been in therapy at one point or another. Some regularly see a therapist, school counselor, and/or
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We’ve been getting a lot of calls from our foster agency in the past 3 weeks. Foster homes are filling up and kids need a safe place to stay. We continue to say yes to placements and wait for the right fit.
This week we got a call about a child with a feeding tube. Our oldest child has had a feeding
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Individualized education plans. Big or small, these are written plans that have specific goals and supports for children in their classrooms. Many children need additional help with reading, speech, writing, or total one-on-one support.
Today I finished what I call “IEP season.” We have two
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Today is Valentines day and Ash Wednesday. In the Catholic faith, ashes are are put on your forehead in the shape of a cross while you are told, “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” It is the start of Lent, a season to remember our humanity, the life of Jesus, and the sacrifice he
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Happy lunar new year!
This weekend we celebrated lunar new year. We celebrate lots of different cultural holidays. Lunar new year is special for my kids since my twins have a friend who was adopted from China. This year I am managing a new team at work that has a group of Taiwanese employees.
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I know, it’s still winter, but camp sign-up season is in full swing. This year will be the second year that we have all the kids signed up for overnight camp during the same week!
Each kid sat down with Dad and looked at camp options. We have 1 going to tech camp, 2 going to horseback riding camp, and 2
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Today was beautiful out. I went hiking with the kids to explore the woods around the house. In the spring there are less thorn bushes and it’s easy to explore.
We found lots of small mushrooms, a broken fence, and tons of cool sticks. Adventuring with the kids in our own backyard is one of my
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Come From Away is one of my favorite musicals. It tells the story of Gandar, Newfoundland on and after September 11, 2001. That day in the town of 9,000 people, 38 planes with 7,000 people were grounded. The musical tells the story of how the town came together to support 7,000 strangers for 5 days. It
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Every Friday after school, we take the kids to the bookstore. They each get to pick out one book. This tradition goes along with our philosophy that books are “free” and the kids don’t need to spend allowance money on them.
My kids love the outgoing and searching for the next find. Most
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This week has been tough will illness in the house. Lots of fevers and nausea. It hasn’t got me yet, so I’ve been keeping everyone comfortable.
As a child I remember spending sick days at my grandmother’s house. It was a place not suited for children, and I was confide to the couch and
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On short weeks, when there’s not much homework, and it’s much too cold to go outside, the kids find other ways to have fun. Today they crafted a Minecraft armor set out of some leftover Christmas boxes.
Anytime the kids can play together, be creative, and not fight is great! Hopefully that continues
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I’ve been listening to a lot of Disney music lately (mostly while doing Disney puzzles). One of my favorite soundtracks is the Tarzan album. The first 2 songs, “You’ll Be in My Heart” and “Two Worlds” perfectly summarize how I feel being a mother, foster parent, and adoptive
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Last night for dinner we had a house favorite, “Daddy Sandwiches.” (Named such because Justin, Dad, created them off of one of his favorite restaurant sandwiches.) Justin picked up the kids from school and took them to the grocery store to pick up fresh ingredients for dinner.
As I was finishing up my
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With a big family, schedules and routines become important. We all know when and where we should be when is time to go to school, when we have to do chores, and who gets what seat at the dinner table. - But having a break from routines is also nice.
The past 2 weeks have been great breaking routines.
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This holiday season has reminded me how blessed we are to have loving grandparents so close.
My (Kim’s) father lives with us year round. He has his own in-law suite, so he has his “own” space, when the kids don’t invade it. He spent tons of time this break baking cookies and repotting
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Our youngest, Cecilia had her yearly school Christmas concert this week. She was so excited to sing. She refused to sing any of the songs in front of us in the weeks beforehand. I even got a notice from the school nurse (we get a notice every time a kid visits the nurse) and it said, “Cecilia states
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Having a big family means we do lots of things together. Sometimes that causes us to miss having personal time with each kid. During school breaks we like to have scheduled one on one time with each kid. They get to pick what we do, where we go, and if they want to include anyone else.
Yesterday was the
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This weekend we spent time as a family and as individuals working on art projects. Justin spent time painting miniatures for a new board game we’re going to play over the holidays. Our middle kids spent time sketching and drawing. I worked on a quilt that my daughter asked me to make her over a year
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Today we embarked on a new parenting journey - we have a kid with braces! I thought we were almost done with seeing firsts, but I guess even big kids have firsts.
Although my kiddo with braces is a big kid, I was shocked that they asked me to go back with them at the orthodontists office. It made me tear up a
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I always loved having an advent calendar as a child. Mine was filled with candy for each day. Today each of our kids has a small calendar for each day that they pick out (Legos, rocks and fossils, rubber duckies, and pokemon cards this year).
Our family calendar is a basket of Christmas, holiday, and winter
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We’re less than a week away from celebrating adoption day number 10 with our oldest. I can’t believe that it’s been 10 years since we finalized her adoption.
12 years ago we were finishing up our licensing to become foster parents for the first time. We had a baby at home and were ready
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I love Christmas time! It is my favorite holiday. The warmth, family, food, cookies, and making memories are the best.
The kids have been making cookies with Papa every day after school this week. We freeze them all and pull them back out on Christmas Eve when we host a huge family dinner. Many of
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Justin and I always wanted to be parents. We had baby names picked out years before we got married. We got pregnant immediately after getting married and were so excited for our future baby.
Everything was going perfectly until the weekend of Thanksgiving, when I just hit 25 weeks. The baby hadn’t
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Justin and I have been foster parents for over 5 years. We started shortly after our first biological child was born and were quickly placed with our now oldest daughter. That first round of foster care was amazing, we found our forever child and had a clear outcome to adoption.
3 years ago we started fostering
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Not only do we have 5 children and 3 adults living in our home, but we 3 dogs, 1 indoor cat, 2 fish tanks, lots of barn cats, some chickens, and beehives.
Sunshine is our oldest dog, she is almost 4 years old. Sunshine is 3/4 english bulldog and 1/4 beagle. She is a chunky gal that love to lick and lay
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Every morning is filled with a flurry of getting kids up, dressed, fed, and into the car. I double and triple check that everyone has everything they need, and then we’re finally off.
The drive to school take 35 minutes. Yes, it’s far, but the school is amazing and worth it. That 35 minutes in
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We have five wonderful children. They are excited to grow our family.
Jasmine:
Jasmine is 16 years old. She joined our family through foster care in 2012 and was adopted in 2013. She enjoys coloring, swinging, and all animals. Jasmine was born prematurely, is deaf and has autism. She has
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We have always wanted a large family. As foster parents we are able to help children and families for a brief period. We want to expand our family permanently and feel that adoption is the best way for our family to achieve that. We are open to adopting a child of any gender, race, or ethnicity. We
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Kim and Justin's Adoption Diary
