The boys had their annual Christmas piano recital this afternoon. Micah struggled a bit today, but I think he still did well. I started taking photos of him and forgot that I meant to be filming him until his first song was almost over. So that song is missing. Nathanael had a piece that was a bit of a challenge for him, but that's good for him. We still can't get him to keep his fingers curved....one day hopefully! He did really well on his hard song. His teacher had to switch songs on him last minute, so he only had a week and a half to work on his second song, but he got it. Luke actually joined in on the recital this year. He does not take piano lessons; he still takes guitar from John. However, our piano teacher has a version of We Three Kings that is a piano trio and she thought it would be fun if all three boys did it together. Luke was game, so they learned that. It warms my heart to see all my boys on the bench playing together. I am very proud of all my little musicians. I'm hoping to get Hannah started on something this coming year. Here is the recital footage. :) (Note- These embedded videos don't seem to play on many smartphones and some tablets. If you are having trouble viewing, please go to the website on a desktop computer or laptop.)
Joy to the World (duet with his teacher) he's playing the melody most of the time and the higher stuff)
Christmas Ballade (This was the challenging one. It is a combination of a Christmas song and a popular classical piece. Look for his sigh of relief at the end..lol)
Santa Claus is Coming to Town (duet with his teacher- he's playing the melody most of the time and anything high you hear)
We Three Kings (Nathanael on the low notes, Luke playing a harmony line, and Micah on the melody)
Monday, December 19, 2016
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
The story behind round 2
I mentioned there was a story behind our second placement. The children are no longer with us. They actually only wound up staying with us for a couple weeks. We don't have a placement of our own right now, but are currently providing respite care for another family. If you are not familiar with respite, it is when one foster parents agrees to care for another foster parent's foster children. Caring for some foster children can be a really hard job and sometimes a foster parent needs a break to avoid burnout. There are also times when you want to go out of state for a vacation or to visit people, but are told the children need to remain in the state due to their situation. At times like these, many people would call grandma to watch the kids or see if they could trade care with some trusted friends. But you can't do that in foster care. The children have to be with another licensed foster parent (and if you can't find one, you don't get that break.) So that is where respite comes in. We took an emergency respite placement last month that was just for a weekend. The foster parents had experienced the death of a parent and needed to attend the funeral and be able to grieve. So we cared for their 2,1, and 8 week old foster children. Everything went well, so they asked us if we would watch the kids again for a week in December so they could go out of state and visit family. We agreed and the kids are here right now. It's been fun to have little ones this time, even though it's been very busy here! We are really enjoying have a baby to snuggle and all my kids like to entertain the toddlers and make them laugh. My kids have been so helpful, and I don't know if things would be going as smoothly without their help. And somehow we are still managing to do our schoolwork too!
So now for the story. We had a several week break after our first girls left. For two of those weeks, we asked not to be called, but after that we felt like we were ready to accept more children. Three weeks went by with no phone calls for kids we could take. We had previously scheduled a visit for the second week of October with some missionary friends of ours. They are in the US itinerating for a year and were planning to come this way and wanted to see us. We wanted to see them, but we also wanted to see if there would be local churches and friends who might want to be involved in their ministry. We had originally thought our first set of sisters would still be here when our friends visited, so we had made arrangements for them to able to stay elsewhere. John's grandparents have a house called the Blessing House. It's purpose is to be a place available to God's use and to be a place that is so filled with the presence of God that you are blessed just to step foot on the property. So one of the things they thought it might be used for was to be a place for missionaries and pastors to stay in when they needed rest. Since our friends are doing the work of the Lord, we asked John's grandparetns if they might be able to stay there and they said yes. It was nice for my friends to be able to have some private space, as they have been staying with family and in hotels (they have four kids too). So even though we didn't have a placement, we went ahead with the plan of them staying in the Blessing House while they were were. That turned out to be God's hand. The day before my friends were scheduled to leave, we got a call. It was for a group of 4 kids who needed a home. We are licensed for up to three, so we can't take four. However, I did offer to take the 3,4, and 5 year olds if no one could take all four. They told me they were going to keep my name on the list and see if they could find someone who would take all the kids. I received a call a couple hours later thanking me for being available but notifying me that they had found someone else. I was glad that the kids would be able to stay together, and we carried on with our plans for the evening. A local church was hosting a dinner for my friends and my friends were going to share about their ministry while people ate. We all went and started eating dinner, but then I got a frantic call. The voice on the other end said that family that had planned to take the four kids was no longer able to do so and asked if I was still available to take the little three. I said that I could and mentally planned to leave immediately so I could go home and get the house set up. But then I was asked another question. Could I please take the 10 year old too, just for the night? The social worker had actually been en route to the foster home with the children when that home fell through. They had driven a couple hours and she was in tears because now she had nowhere to take the kids. (It was 6:30pm by this time.) I told them I wasn't allowed to take 4 because I didn't have the bed space that was required by the state, but that one of my boys would be happy to sleep on the floor and let the 10 year old have a bed if that would be ok. The lady I spoke with did not know if that was allowed, so said she'd check and call back. (DHS is very particular about beds.) Meanwhile, I let my friends know what was going on and told them that I needed to leave right away. Because they were not staying with me, I was free to take this placement last minute. I told them the situation with the 4th child and they both offered to take one of my kids to spend the night with them at the Blessing House if that would help. When DHS called me back, they started asking me if there was anyway I could not have any children on the floor because they really couldn't do that. I interrupted and let them know that my oldest was going to leave and spend the night with my friends so I had beds for all four kids now. The supervisor yelled, "Hallelujah!" They said they would send them all over tonight and try to find a home for either both of the boys or just the 10 year old the next day. So I left my oldest with my friends and my other three kids and I ran home to prepare. One of the girls that would be staying with me arrived with a freshly stitched lip, as she had fallen at school that afternoon and busted her lip open. During the night, she pulled out all the stitches. In the morning, I let her social worker know and I was told to take her back to the ER. My friend was not allowed to stay with my foster children, but she did offer to come to my house and watch my kids. That way I could take 4 kids with me instead of 8. My friend and her husband delayed their departure just to help me and I was so grateful. So I took the four children to the ER while my children stayed with my friend and then my friends left town after I got back. Later that afternoon, a home for the two boys was found that was only ten minutes from me. I was glad for this, as it meant the other foster mom and I would be able to get the kids together to play often. The boys left around 6 and then we settled into life with the 5 and 3 year old. We had been told they would likely stay 3-6 months, but as I mentioned, they actually wound up leaving after only 16 days. This was a surprise to us, but we are learning that nothing is a concrete in foster care until it actually happens.
Looking back, I was once again amazed at the hand of the Lord over this placement. He brought friends that normally live halfway around the world into my little town just when I would need some help. They weren't staying at my house, as they have previously, but God placed them in a private home. This would not only be a blessing to them, it would also allow me to take this placement and help these kids so that they didn't wind up in the shelter. I would not have been able to say yes had my friend's family of 6 been staying at my house. There just would not have been space. I was also able to send my son with them for the night. I am extremely careful about who has my children overnight and there are not very many people I would let my kids spend the night with. However, I have known this couple for over ten years and I trust them completely. I have a depth of friendship with them that I have not yet had time to build with people here. So not only did they take my son for the night, but then my friend also provided childcare for me while I was at the ER with the other children. What a blessing that was! God is showing me that when I say yes to those in need, even when it's outside of what I planned to do, He's got my back. He will help me to care for these children, even if he has to bring in people from another continent to help!
So now for the story. We had a several week break after our first girls left. For two of those weeks, we asked not to be called, but after that we felt like we were ready to accept more children. Three weeks went by with no phone calls for kids we could take. We had previously scheduled a visit for the second week of October with some missionary friends of ours. They are in the US itinerating for a year and were planning to come this way and wanted to see us. We wanted to see them, but we also wanted to see if there would be local churches and friends who might want to be involved in their ministry. We had originally thought our first set of sisters would still be here when our friends visited, so we had made arrangements for them to able to stay elsewhere. John's grandparents have a house called the Blessing House. It's purpose is to be a place available to God's use and to be a place that is so filled with the presence of God that you are blessed just to step foot on the property. So one of the things they thought it might be used for was to be a place for missionaries and pastors to stay in when they needed rest. Since our friends are doing the work of the Lord, we asked John's grandparetns if they might be able to stay there and they said yes. It was nice for my friends to be able to have some private space, as they have been staying with family and in hotels (they have four kids too). So even though we didn't have a placement, we went ahead with the plan of them staying in the Blessing House while they were were. That turned out to be God's hand. The day before my friends were scheduled to leave, we got a call. It was for a group of 4 kids who needed a home. We are licensed for up to three, so we can't take four. However, I did offer to take the 3,4, and 5 year olds if no one could take all four. They told me they were going to keep my name on the list and see if they could find someone who would take all the kids. I received a call a couple hours later thanking me for being available but notifying me that they had found someone else. I was glad that the kids would be able to stay together, and we carried on with our plans for the evening. A local church was hosting a dinner for my friends and my friends were going to share about their ministry while people ate. We all went and started eating dinner, but then I got a frantic call. The voice on the other end said that family that had planned to take the four kids was no longer able to do so and asked if I was still available to take the little three. I said that I could and mentally planned to leave immediately so I could go home and get the house set up. But then I was asked another question. Could I please take the 10 year old too, just for the night? The social worker had actually been en route to the foster home with the children when that home fell through. They had driven a couple hours and she was in tears because now she had nowhere to take the kids. (It was 6:30pm by this time.) I told them I wasn't allowed to take 4 because I didn't have the bed space that was required by the state, but that one of my boys would be happy to sleep on the floor and let the 10 year old have a bed if that would be ok. The lady I spoke with did not know if that was allowed, so said she'd check and call back. (DHS is very particular about beds.) Meanwhile, I let my friends know what was going on and told them that I needed to leave right away. Because they were not staying with me, I was free to take this placement last minute. I told them the situation with the 4th child and they both offered to take one of my kids to spend the night with them at the Blessing House if that would help. When DHS called me back, they started asking me if there was anyway I could not have any children on the floor because they really couldn't do that. I interrupted and let them know that my oldest was going to leave and spend the night with my friends so I had beds for all four kids now. The supervisor yelled, "Hallelujah!" They said they would send them all over tonight and try to find a home for either both of the boys or just the 10 year old the next day. So I left my oldest with my friends and my other three kids and I ran home to prepare. One of the girls that would be staying with me arrived with a freshly stitched lip, as she had fallen at school that afternoon and busted her lip open. During the night, she pulled out all the stitches. In the morning, I let her social worker know and I was told to take her back to the ER. My friend was not allowed to stay with my foster children, but she did offer to come to my house and watch my kids. That way I could take 4 kids with me instead of 8. My friend and her husband delayed their departure just to help me and I was so grateful. So I took the four children to the ER while my children stayed with my friend and then my friends left town after I got back. Later that afternoon, a home for the two boys was found that was only ten minutes from me. I was glad for this, as it meant the other foster mom and I would be able to get the kids together to play often. The boys left around 6 and then we settled into life with the 5 and 3 year old. We had been told they would likely stay 3-6 months, but as I mentioned, they actually wound up leaving after only 16 days. This was a surprise to us, but we are learning that nothing is a concrete in foster care until it actually happens.
Looking back, I was once again amazed at the hand of the Lord over this placement. He brought friends that normally live halfway around the world into my little town just when I would need some help. They weren't staying at my house, as they have previously, but God placed them in a private home. This would not only be a blessing to them, it would also allow me to take this placement and help these kids so that they didn't wind up in the shelter. I would not have been able to say yes had my friend's family of 6 been staying at my house. There just would not have been space. I was also able to send my son with them for the night. I am extremely careful about who has my children overnight and there are not very many people I would let my kids spend the night with. However, I have known this couple for over ten years and I trust them completely. I have a depth of friendship with them that I have not yet had time to build with people here. So not only did they take my son for the night, but then my friend also provided childcare for me while I was at the ER with the other children. What a blessing that was! God is showing me that when I say yes to those in need, even when it's outside of what I planned to do, He's got my back. He will help me to care for these children, even if he has to bring in people from another continent to help!
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