This is the question we keep getting recently. Everyone wants to know
how things are going and if we are surviving. I am happy to answer that
question, but first I want to say something. If you want to ask a
foster parent how things are going, please do not ask them in front of
the children. Ask in private later on, keeping in mind that we may not be
able to answer some questions. I have had too many people make comments
right in front of the girls and I wish people would think before they
speak. I even had someone say, "I can't believe they gave you THREE!!"
My girls were standing right behind me when she said that. These types
of comments can be damaging to the children. I do not want them to feel
like they are a burden that I am just trying to survive. We wanted to do
this and we welcome whomever the Lord wants to send here. We are happy
to be a part of their lives. I know there are several who think we're
nuts for taking in three when we already have four (but those people
thought we were nuts for considering more than we already had in the
first place). So to answer the question... we're doing really well. This
is going better than I could have hoped for and I can see the hand of
God all over this situation. We have not had any major issues and
everyone appears to be adjusting well. We are not overwhelmed or about
to stress out. We are not second guessing whether or not we should have
done this. We know this is what we are to be doing. There is definitely
extra work now, and I do feel the weight of that, but I cast that weight
on Christ and I receive his strength and his peace.
The
girls have been here for four weeks now. We have all had time to get to
know each other and start adjusting to a new normal. It's been an
adjustment to get used to having a toddler around again. I keep doing
things like forgetting to bring the diaper bag or a sippie cup along or
forgetting to check her diaper often enough. It's been 5 years since I
had a 1 year old around! We have gone back to living our lives around
afternoon naptime because you don't want to mess with the nap! Naptime
is when I am able to get a few things done, like garden work or dinner
prep. In the beginning, I was forgetting to allot time for getting her
ready to leave the house. I'm used to telling everyone to get ready and
they all get themselves ready. So we were really late for things the
first week. Those who know us well know that we struggle with
punctuality to begin with, so this did not help! But we are starting to
get a new "groove" and I am able to get out of the house on time again
(most of the time).
The kids all get along really
well with each other most of the time. We have issues, of course, but
they are ones that I would consider common to all children and are
issues we were already dealing with in our children prior to starting
foster care. My daughter is overjoyed to finally have girls around the
house. For the first time in our family, the girls are outnumbering the
boys. Of course, with girls come some emotions that we have not been
used to dealing with. Those have been an adjustment. I'm not used to so
many people crying over every little thing or the world needing to end
when someone gets a scrape. I've gotten into the habit of offering an
ice pack more often than is needed. It's a nice little placebo for
people who are wanting me to do something about their perceived life
threatening injury. *eye roll* The boys are also getting along well with
the girls and all my children are glad we opened our home to them.
There
have been many ministry opportunities in this situation. Both girls are
hungry for the truth and love our morning devotions and often want me
to read extra Bible stories. They are also enjoying our nightly family
prayer time and have already grown in the way they pray. Both of the
older girls expressed a desire to become Christians, so I was able to
talk to them more about what that really meant and then I was able to
pray with them to surrender their lives to Christ. They are enjoying
learning about God's way of living and have been very open to doing
things differently than they have before. Our house is more strict than
what they are used to, and I had been worried about that, but they have
been surprisingly ok with that. I cherish this opportunity that I have
to mentor and shape some additional little lives for the kingdom of God.
Prayerfully, future generations of their family will grow up
differently than what has been going on in the family lines. I do not
know how long I will have with these girls, but I am trying to make the
most of every opportunity that I have with them. What has been a
pleasant surprise is how many opportunities I have had with their mom to
speak truth and life to her. She is listening and I see God pursuing
her (and I told her so). We have spent literally hours talking and she
has been so open. Pray for me every time I speak that I speak God's
words to her and not my own.
Now that we are settling
into a routine, we are starting to get back into life. We kind of
dropped off the planet for a bit. We are going more places and enrolling
the girls into activities. The oldest one has started taking piano
lessons and I am about to put them into swim lessons with Hannah as
well. Yes, I am still teaching Zumba. I had five classes a week when
they came here, but thankfully that has been scaled back. My wonderful
babysitter has offered to help me when I need help, as part of her own
desire to minister to others. She went with us to the zoo a couple of
days ago and it was much easier having a second person there to help
with the children. (The girls had been asking to go.) She has also
offered to come help if I need to go grocery shopping. God has been
providing for my needs like this in many ways and it's been really cool
for me to watch Him at work.
Please keep praying for the girls, their mom, and our family. The baby and the oldest sister are currently sick and the baby is miserable at night. She was up every hour last night. Please pray for their healing and that I stay healthy (most of the other kids have already had the bug). We appreciate the prayers!
