Baby makes 6

On Tuesday when I was picking up little man from his weekly visit, the social worker told me that mom was not at the visit. I asked him why mom didn't show up and he said that it was because mom just had a baby on Monday night. I was shocked and asked what was going to happen to the baby. I had no idea she was pregnant to begin with and now I was in shock!!

The social worker said that he didn't know if the baby was going to be removed yet and he said I was at the top of the list to get baby if she was removed.  He told me not to get my hopes up and he said he knows I want a baby girl. I laughed at him and said I would be willing to take baby and then reminded him that I already have a baby girl and she is only eight months old.

I left that visit and said to my mom and sister that I was in shock and could I even do this??

The next morning I dropped little man off at daycare and off I went to run some work errands. I was talking with a fellow foster mom and I got another call and saw that it was from social services, but didn't recognize the phone number.  I answered the phone and the social worker introduced herself and apologized that my worker was not able to be the one to call me but he was out in the field and they didn't have much time. She asked me when I could come to the office to sign placement paperwork because baby was being released and I needed placement paperwork when I went to the hospital to pick her up!!!

OMG I was flabbergasted and told her I could come now. She told me to take my time because they still had to get the paperwork done. I left and dropped off my car that I use for work to have new tires and a state inspection done.  While I was dropping the car off, my social worker called and asked me what time I would be able to come to the office. I told him I could be there in less than half an hour. He said another worker was going to go to the hospital to get her because things had gotten ugly with dad.

I rushed to get the car dropped off and on my way to the office I texted my worker and asked if I had a few minutes to stop at a store to get a few outfits for her and some diapers. He said I had to be there within an hour, so I rushed into Babies R Us and spent $250 in 10 minutes!!!

It took a little bit longer to get the baby released than expected and I didn't get her until 3:30 that afternoon. When they placed this beautiful little girl into my arms, my heart melted! She looks so much like her brothers and yet, not! She does not have the same dad and I'm sure that's where the dark hair comes from.

It is now two days later and we are falling into a routine and I am sitting on the couch with this beautiful, tiny bundle on my chest sleeping peacefully while enjoying her one on one attention.

So, baby makes 6 children for me.  5 are in the home and my oldest moved out a few years ago.  I can't believe I have 5 children in my home and the best part, we all fit into this house with a place for everyone.

The one weird thing......it looks like a baby store threw up all over my house!!! The stuff that comes with three small children is unbelievable and takes up a whole lot of space!!!

Learning each other and loving each other

We are now almost two weeks into our placement of the most beautiful 2 year old.  He is so tiny and so sweet and so naughty and so hyper and so loving and so traumatized and so special and so mine.  

I learned this week that this is going to be long term and not to expect him to go home anytime soon. I am okay with that and excited about planning our life with him in it, for now. We went on our first road trip on Monday and he did wonderful. He will be going out of town with us for Father's day weekend too and hopefully that will go just as well. 

I am looking to change his daycare as soon as possible due to his current daycare being reeeeeeeeally far away and not the best fit for him.  I have had a few issues with them in the last week and a half and it didn't take long to realize that he is not in the right place.  This daycare was perfect for his older brother due to their training with special needs children but with baby boy, I feel like he is picking up behaviors from other children and he is the youngest child there, which is not a good thing. Today he came home all scratched up after another child and that is not okay with me. 

Last week I got custody of my goddaughter who is 8 months old. We are now a family of five with four children and one mamma in the house. It is really weird to go from having two kids, with the youngest being 9.5 years old, to having two little ones that need to be carried, need a double stroller, and require mamma's attention and loving a whole lot more than the older two boys.  I am loving every moment of this with and will admit that I have never been as exhausted as I am at this very moment. I count down the hours till I get to go to sleep.  I have struggled with insomnia for years and have had to take melatonin to fall asleep. This past month I have fallen asleep more than once without the melatonin.

If you are just starting out as a foster parent, I have a few things that I want to suggest to you.

-Have as much money put to the side as possible before your first placement. I have had to buy a car seat, double stroller, a whole new wardrobe, shoes, diapers, wipes, (I had a crib for each child, thank goodness), baby gates galore (I have bought 4 of them), and so much more.  I would say that I have spent about $1,000.00 in the last month on these placements and I didn't have to buy much for my goddaughter.

-Be prepared for lack of sleep and try to have someone who can help with your placements if you are single. I had my cousin and then my mamma here and I don't know how I would have done this without them.  I had a few days where I didn't know how I would shower and if it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have showered!

-Try to have some meals ready in your freezer to pop in the oven. I wish I would have done this prior to getting licensed. If you don't cook, have some money put to the side to order food (it's hard enough to get baths, etc. without having to figure out dinner for the first few days).

I can't think of anything else off of the top of my head because it is so late and my brain is tapping out for the day.

Naive

My first placement has come and gone.  He was an amazing kid who was also the hardest child I have ever met in my life.  He has a lot of trauma.....a lot!!  I got him straight from residential, not knowing anything about what I was taking on.  I was so naive and had no idea what questions to ask.  

This little guy was admitted for his aggressive behavior and I learned all about that my first weekend when I got to experience two of his tantrums for myself that "only" lasted three hours each time.  He is very violent and hits, kicks, bites, scratches, pinches, and head butts during these tantrums.  It was so hard to deal with and it was so heartbreaking to deal with.

This little boy has a diagnosis of RAD and ODD. We got to experience both, numerous times.  He was supposed to be with me for two weeks but ended up staying for two and a half weeks and then he was admitted again and will be going back to residential once they find him a bed.  Poor little munchkin is having such a hard time with controlling his outbursts.  I pray he is able to get the help he needs to get better.

The home he was in has decided to disrupt the placement of his brothers as well and now his brothers have been separated and the youngest brother is sleeping upstairs in his crib, in the same room his brother was sleeping in just a few nights ago.  My friend is also a foster parent and she is going to take the other brother so they will get to spend lots of time together aside from daycare (we are going to keep them in the same one so they get to see each other during the week).  

I hope and pray we are able to help this baby boy get past his hurt and pain that he has experienced in his short two years of life.  

Next time I know what to ask and will not be so naive.

First Placement

Well, the three year old that I mentioned in my last post didn't end up coming to my home and the same day I was told he was not coming, I was asked to take another respite. I told them I could take them but have family coming the same time the respite kids would be coming and my social worker told me it is okay to say no and to go enjoy my family instead.  

Today I got a placement call and this time I said yes!  

We now have a five year old little boy in our home. He could potentially go to a relative in two weeks but from what his worker said, she doesn't think that is going to happen.  Either way, we are going to love him and enjoy our time with him and not make any plans past those two weeks until we know what is going on.  

My youngest son is loving every moment of being a big brother and even let little man sleep in the room with him (we put a mattress on the floor and will eventually move little man to his own room when he is a little bit more comfortable in our home).  This is exciting, exhausting, scary. and fun, all wrapped into one. After only having him for eight hours, I am so completely exhausted that I am laying in bed counting down the moments till I can close my eyes (waiting for my cousin to come home from a friends house before I go to sleep).  

I'm looking forward to getting to know little man better and getting into a routine where he is comfortable and feels at home here.  It was weird when I picked him up from social services, the first thing he said when he met me was, "are you my new foster mom?"  It broke my heart to think that this little five year old boy is so grown up and understands so much more than his little mind should have to comprehend.  We went to the store to get some clothing for him since he came with pajamas on and a little paper bag with some dirty clothes in it and he was more than happy to pick out some Batman clothes and Minecraft clothes. When we were driving home after picking up my son, little man asked if he could just call me mom because that would make it easier.  I told him he could call me mom if that is what he wants to do or he can call me by my nickname or first name if he wants to do that. He said no thank you, I will just call you mom for now. So, mom it is.

This mom is going to sleep so I can be bright eyed and bushy tailed in the morning when the kids wake up.

It's official

I am officially a licensed foster parent!!!

I have gotten a few calls for respite two for placements and despite having said yes to all of the respite calls, I have only had one respite. We took in two little boys this past weekend. The boys are 7 & 8 years old and despite the warnings that came with these two brothers, they were amazing and had so much fun with us. My youngest son is 9 years old, so the ages fit perfectly for a weekend full of playing and having fun.

I didn't have the foster room ready because I didn't want to out all kinds of effort into getting the room ready when we had no idea who was going to be coming to us. I had a twin size bed in the room and a crib.  Well, we pushed the crib out of the way and got a twin size air mattress (after getting agency approval for an air mattress) and I bought two boy bed in a bag sets. The boys loved the bed sets that I got and we stuck a laundry basket in between them full of stuffed animals and the boys split the stuffed animals between them before bed each night and loved it.

We were asked to take the boys again in about 2 weeks for another weekend and I think we will be taking them.  The agency said we can do a slumber party type of sleepover and I think that will make it do-able because my mom is coming to visit and we got a placement call yesterday that is putting everything in limbo at the moment.

The placement call I received yesterday is for a 3 year old boy. I have no further information and wont know anything more till tomorrow.  I accepted the placement and we shall see what happens when I find out more from my social worker tomorrow.  Prayers for this little boy and his family, I can't imagine what they are going through right now. 

I can't believe we are really at the point where we are getting calls (I have gotten 4-5 calls already).

Waiting game

I feel like it's been forever since I posted, but it was just last month! So much has happened and so much has changed since then.

First, I have finished my PRIDE training and all three of my home visits. All of my background paperwork, fingerprints, etc has been turned in and is back with no issues.  The last home visit was this past Monday and that is when the social worker came to meet my sons and it went really well. I am so comfortable with this office and all of the social workers that I have been involved with and I love that! I was a nervous wreck before and was always on edge before home visits and this time I have been totally chill. I even told him the second time that I didn't have time to clean for him and he was just going to have to accept us for who we are and he laughed and said his house is a whole lot worse than mine is.  Feels good to be on that comfort level because I know it is not realistic that my house is always perfect and spotless.

When I started the process to becoming a foster parent, I only wanted baby girls between the ages of newborn and 2 years old. This time we will be licensed for up to three children between the ages of newborn and nine years old. We prefer to only take in two children but are willing to take a third if it is a sibling group or if one of the bios has a baby while we have her other child/children in our home. The only way we will take an older child (school aged) is if the child is a boy (to share a room with my bio son) and it has to be a pretty significant need since we are not in the same city as the social services office and they do not like to move children that are already in school to a different city.

For the last part, I accepted a new job.  I will still be working as a Realtor but I also accepted a position that is a work from home Mon-Fri 9-5. This way I have more flexibility and I have a steady income for those slow months that occur mostly around the winter months (like right now).  Taking on this new positions allows me to take newborns without having to worry about daycare for the first six weeks as I will be able to have the baby here at home with me. I will be putting my fosters in daycare after the six week mark because I do have to work obviously but this allows for a whole lot more flexibility if one of the children is sick or has appointments (new job is really great about allowing for time off for appointments).

I am really excited to get started and according to the social worker, I should be licensed in January unless a situation comes up where I would be the perfect fit for a foster or fosters. If that is the case, they will rush my license to get the child/children placed immediately.

Wish me luck!!

Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow!!

Here we go again

This past week I went to an orientation with a co-worker for a foster agency in our area.  I have been to an orientation with this agency before due to the baby girl I had last summer. Her sisters were placed with the same agency and when she was born, she was placed with the same foster mamma. I went to the orientation with the agency at that time knowing the baby was placed with them and when I got custody of her, I decided not to move forward with getting licensed with them.

The reason why I went to the orientation last week was because one of the girls I work with wants to be a foster parent too and she ha signed up to go to the orientation. I told her I would go with her to this orientation if she was willing to go with me to my orientation next week. She happily agreed knowing she didn't have to go alone. It became clear very quickly that this agency is not for us because they do not get children in the age groups we are looking for. I want to get babies and my co-worker is wanting children under the age of three years old.

I am really excited about going into this with a co-worker who has become a friend. I had no idea she was wanting to get into fostering and this makes going to PRIDE classes so much more exciting knowing I am not going to be alone! We have talked about being back ups for each other and her daughter is going to be my second back up because she lives in the next street over from me and is a stay at home mom.

I am beyond excited to get started with PRIDE classes and getting my license again. The classes will be done by the beginning of November and that means I have less than a month to get the nursery ready to go.  My little sister is coming to visit me this week and maybe, just maybe, I can get her to help me put the nursery together.

Guess who's back?

Mamma's back!! 

I haven't posted on here in a really long time, so I thought it was time to give a little bit of an update.

Let's start with summer of 2015.....yes, 2015!

My oldest son is going to be turning 20 next year and of course has friends that are just as grown if not a little bit older.  June 2015 one of the guys he knows came to him and told him that social services took custody of his newborn baby at the hospital. Come to find out, the mom had two other children that were taken from her and for this reason, this little baby was not allowed to go home with her either. Dad had to do a DNA test and social services wanted to do some background checks on dad and his parents (dad lived with his parents). Until that was all competed, the baby would stay in foster care with her two older sisters. My son told dad about me and my desire to be a foster parent and told dad to come talk to me to find out what I can do to help.

Long story short, I ended up with custody of this beautiful little girl when she was 3 weeks old and I had her until she was 8 weeks old and went on to be with her new adoptive family (the uncle and his wife ended up agreeing to adopt her). My five weeks with this little beautiful girl made me realize just how much I want to be a foster parent.  I loved her something fierce and never in a million years thought I could love someone else's baby the way that I loved her. It hurt to my very core when she left to move to her new adoptive home and I cried like my heart had been ripped out of my chest and taken to someone else's house.  But.....as much as it hurt, she is in a good place and when I saw her a few weeks later, I could see how much her family loved her and she was happy there. I knew I had made the right move by being there for her during those five weeks of her life when she needed me. I needed her just as much as she needed me.

Now, on to the next part of my journey....

I graduated from college in May 2015 and finished my very last course just around the same time that little mamma came to live with me. I started my career in March of 2015 and have a stable good life. I decided to move to a bigger and better place and am now living in a house with an extra bedroom, the bedroom we refer to as the nursery.  I plan to set up the nursery with two cribs and am open to taking in one or two babies.  

Tonight I am going to an orientation for the city next to mine and in September I will be going to the orientation for another city on the other side of mine. I have decided that I do not want to be licensed in my city because they are not supportive of single parents and do not allow babies under the age of 18 months to be placed with single parents. I want to have infants and that is not going to work if I decide to stick with my city.  I have decided to check out the orientations to a few different cities (I live in an area that has 7 cities all really close together and within a 30 min drive I can get to any of these cities) and see which city best suits my needs. I want to be able to find the agency that offers the best support and the agency that is supportive of single parents and don't use that against me.  

I am really excited to start my journey all over again and looking forward sharing the journey with all of you. 

The End...for now!

This last year has been a very busy year foster care wise.  I began my classes in January and was so ready to be a foster parent.  I got licensed with my agency officially in March but in reality, it didn't actually happen till the end of April.  Then I found out my agency doesn't get babies, at all!!!  They only get teenagers and someone must have forgotten to mention that when I started my process (insert sarcasm here).

I was so frustrated and even angry when I found out that I had wasted over six months on this agency for nothing.  All of the time and money I spent to get licensed was for nothing.  When I asked the agency, they continued to tell me they get babies, sometimes...but then the placement coordinator told me that she hasn't had a single baby this year and she told me herself that they do not get babies.  It was then that I decided to switch over to the city foster agency.

I went through the process of getting licensed with them.  I had to take two of the PRIDE classes again because they thought it would be good for me to have more trauma experience.  I didn't mind and actually agreed that it would be better to get some extra training in regards to trauma.  I decided to change my age group and gender once I went with the city.  I decided I would take newborn to two year old children and if there was an older brother up to the age of seven, I was going to put that sibling in the room with my seven year old.

As you all know that have been reading and following my blog, I had bought everything needed for a foster child.  My home was ready and our hearts were ready.  I did need to buy a new bed for my sons room but for now I had a trundle bed under his that was good enough till I got a bed for a foster child in his room.

After going through the process with the city for almost four months, I got the call I was waiting for on Halloween at about 5:30 pm.  I had been approved as a respite and emergency provider only due to my student loans.  Because my income is not guaranteed, they couldn't approve me as a full time foster parent.  I was so disappointed but decided that I could be a respite and emergency provider until I was able to prove myself (according to the agency).

I was trying to get used to the idea that this was worth it and respite providers are needed and so important to the process, etc. etc. etc. Then, about a week after my first call letting me know I was not approved as a full time foster parent, I got the call that broke my heart.  The supervisor had gone to the state to talk to them about my case and they decided that I was too high of a risk and they were not willing to license me at all.  I was not even able to be a respite provider, my foster care journey while I was in school and receiving school loans was over.

I was so broken hearted!!!  One year (almost to the day) of starting my journey and I had been shot down and denied.  They told me there was nothing other than my school loans stopping me and when I finished school and started working to give them a call.  The only disappointing thing about that is, when I start working I can't take infants.  I can not have a child under the age of 18 months if I am not a stay at home mom.

I graduate from school on May 8, 2015 and I have decided not to pursue my Masters degree full time (I had planned on it if I would have become a foster parent because it would have allowed me at least two more years at home).  Now I am going to get a job and take a little break from school to be able to start our new life as a single working mom of three.  My oldest has moved out of the house and it is only the three of us left here with plenty of space for a little one but for now, that is on hold too.  I might try going through a different city to get licensed as a working parent and see if they allow me to have infants, but that wont be until I am stable in a new job and maybe even have a different home.

For now though, this journey has come to an end and all of the baby stuff has been removed from my home and put in storage or given away.  It breaks my heart but it just wasn't meant to be. This is The End....for now!

The Call

I have been licensed now for over two months and have been waiting on my first call. Every time the phone rings and I don't recognize the number, my heart skips a beat thinking this is it....of course it hasn't been it any of those times. I have had this feeling for the last two days like there is a call coming and when my house phone just rang, my heart again skipped a beat. Then the caller id said it was my agency and I held my breath and had to calm myself down thinking....oh wow, this really is it!!!


I answered the phone all calm and collected and the lady on the other end was so pleasant and nice. Then she asked me if I was going to be attending the training next weekend? Ugh the disappointment that I just experienced. I know that my time will come when the time is right and I know that not getting a call is a good thing because it means that there are no babies needing to be taken from their parents. But I am really excited to get that first call and this was such a disappointment. Oh well....one day that phone will ring and there will be a child needing to be placed and I will be able to say yes to the right one.

Diaper deal

I have decided to cloth diaper my foster children not only to save me money in the long run but also because I am thinking of my carbon footprint on the world and I want to do my part.  Another reason to cloth diaper is because of how cute they are.....hello, have you seen the cloth diapers you can get??  I am going to write a post about cloth diapering another day but this post is about why I still have to buy regular diapers and the deal I got last night!!

I have been thinking about the use of cloth diapers and visits with bios.  Will the bios support the cloth diaper decision and will they be okay with changing cloth diapers during visits?  I don't want to the bios throwing away a cloth diaper (they are not cheap!!!) so I have decided that I am going to have disposable diapers to use during visits with bios.  I had not planned on buying any diapers till I have a baby in the house and know what size diapers I need....until yesterday!!

I was on facebook yesterday and saw that there were a few people posting about the great diaper deal they got with Pampers diapers.  I didn't really think much of it until a friend of mine posted the details.  Dollar General had a sale where they were offering any size package of Pampers diapers for $9.  In the ad it specifically states that it is any count and any size.  Well, a bunch of mama's went to Walmart and Target because they price match.  I had just been at Target yesterday and saw that they had a Pampers deal that if you buy two boxes of diapers for $24.95 each, they give you a $15 Target gift card.  Well I called my Target store and asked if they would price match and they said yes.  Then I get to the store and they agreed to let me buy 4 boxes of diapers so I could get two of the gift cards.  I spent $9 each on four boxes of diapers and paid $36.36.  Then I got $30 in Target gift cards!!  Total, I paid $1.59 each box of diapers!!!  That's a deal I couldn't pass up!!!  

I decided to buy the diapers in sizes 2 and 3 and figured if I need different sizes, I can just exchange them.  

Now I am all set on diapers for the baby for the whole time the baby is in diapers.....or the whole time a few babies are with me!!!  432 diapers and about 50 cloth diapers.....yeah, I'm all set :)

So you use cloth or disposables on your foster children?  Why or why not?  How did the bios react?

Patients

I have been MIA for awhile now and there is a reason for it.....I was sitting here waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting for my background check to come back.  I was getting really frustrated waiting so long and everyone around me kept telling me to be patient.  The patients has finally paid off and yesterday when I called my agency, I found out my background check has finally come through and I am now on the list!!  Holy talidos people.....I could get a phone call at anytime for a placement!!

I got really frustrated and took all of the baby stuff that was sitting all over the house and put it in storage and in closets.  I still have the crib up of course but I just got tired of seeing the baby swing and bassinet sitting around waiting for a baby to use them.  Secretly I thought that if I would put the stuff away, I would get the call I have been waiting for but....nope...didn't work!!!

I am going to leave the stuff where it is until I actually get a phone call and when that call comes, I will bring out the baby stuff that is hidden in every closet and stuffed into my storage.  I have been making baby stuff and buying cloth diapers and my mamma made a beautiful blanket for me.  I need to take a picture of the blanket to show you all....it is gorgeous!!!  I also need to show you guys the bibs I made, I am so happy with how they turned out.

So now the wait for THE phone call begins.  I am finishing a semester in school and have a lot going on right now so I don't mind if I have to wait a little bit but hopefully we will get a little munchkin into our home soon.

Please send some good baby vibes my way :)

Oh wait...

According to my agency, I was supposed to be licensed and ready to go last week on Wednesday.  On Sunday I got a call from the woman who did my home study and she had some additional questions for me.  I answered her questions which left her with a question she had to call the state for and she said she would call me late Monday afternoon and let me know what was going on.

Monday morning came and I got a call from my PRIDE instructor telling me there was a paper that I had not signed and she said there was a problem with my physical paperwork.  I went to the agency and signed the paper that I had signed during my first week and got my PRIDE certificate which includes foster and adoption training (yay).  My instructor showed me a part of my physical where the doctor had forgotten to write some information and she told me I would have to take the paperwork back to the doctors.

I asked her if there was any word on what the other lady had been asking about but was told that they hadn't gotten any information as of then.  I asked her about my last back ground check and she said she didn't know if it was back yet but she said that she would check and let me know when I talked to her about my physical paperwork.

I went on Tuesday to get my physical paperwork fixed and had to go to the DMV for some information on my license.  As soon as I was done, I went straight to the agency with all of my stuff and turned it into the instructor.  I asked her again if my background check was in and she said she had not been able to get in touch with the woman that handles that part.  She did tell me that I should be done now and as soon as the background check comes in, I am ready to go.

It is now Thursday night (Friday morning since it is after 1 am) and I have not heard anything from them since Tuesday when I was there.  I think I am going to either call them tomorrow or stop in and see if my background check has come back.  I want to get licensed or at least know if and when I am licensed.

How are you doing?  My bloggy friends have been slacking on the blogging lately and I miss you guys!!

Foster Care timeline

I guess I am learning that when someone tells you something will take a week....expect it to take a lot longer than that.  I was supposed to be licensed as of yesterday but the weather Gods don't seem to like me very much and they keep sending snow our way (it hasn't ever snowed as much here as it has this year).  The snow closed down our city both Monday and Tuesday and therefor, I never got my phone call on Monday to finish my home study.

Tonight at a little after 8 pm, I got the call I have been waiting for all week.  I was told that one of my three background checks hasn't come back yet and I won't have my license until the background check comes in.  I did spend a little over an hour on the phone and finished answering all of the questions the woman from the agency had for me.  She said she is going to write up the last little bit of my home study and then I am done and ready to go as soon as my background check comes in.

I really hope this happens soon.  It's funny because I had to have a background check done in three different states and it is only my state that hasn't come back yet.  They are supposedly really backed up and this weather is not helping at all.

Until then, this home is ready and so are our hearts.  We are just enjoying our days and looking forward to bringing another little munchkin into our lives (one at a time at least because I am sure there will be plenty of little munchkins that will come into my home).

How long did it take you to get your background checks done?

Last home study visit

My third and final home study was scheduled for yesterday morning around 10:30 am.  I hadn't heard anything so I called the lady yesterday morning a little after nine to confirm the appointment.  She said that something had come up that week and she was trying to play catch up yesterday and wasn't sure she would be able to make it out.  I was disappointed but tried not to let her hear it.  She told me she would call me and let me know if she would come.

My friend was going to do my hair yesterday and she called me at noon and asked if she could come a little after one and I told her that was fine because it didn't sound like I was going to be finishing my home study that day.  My friend came over with her two children and started to put foil highlights in my hair.  My house was spotless but within a matter of minutes, the kids had all the toys pulled out in the living room and were having a blast.

At about three in the afternoon, when I had a head full of foil and my house was a mess, the lady called and said she was around the corner.  She asked if she could come stop by for a few minutes and I told her of course but warned her that I had friends there and my house was a mess.  She said she didn't mind at all and would only be there for a few minutes.

She showed up and we laughed at the fact that I was so much more comfortable with her and she said that is how she wants it to be.  She checked to make sure me freezer was locked, the meds were locked up, the cabinet doors were baby proofed, and she checked my fire extinguisher and first aid kit.  She asked me who my child care partner is and I told her it was my friend who was there and then she explained a few last things to me and said she would call me Monday afternoon to finish the last few things.

At that point, I asked her how long it would be until I am able to take a placement and she said that as of Wednesday March 5, I am able to take a placement.  I can't believe I am done!!!  It seems to unreal to me!  I could have a child in my home in three days!!  Now I really need to get as far ahead this week on homework as possible so I can devote as much time as possible to the baby when it gets here.  I figured I can have all my homework done by Wednesday for this week if I bust my tail in the next two days.  I have a tutoring appointment on Wednesday but that is only for an hour and then I will be all done.

Please send me some good pink foster vibes this week.  I would love to get a placement this week or the beginning of next since Spring Break starts for me next week and it would give me some down time from school to spend getting all of us used to each other.

Dotting my i's and crossing my t's

I have my final home study scheduled for Saturday morning and then it is all just a waiting game after that.  I found out yesterday that my school is out for a week starting March 10th and it would be fabulous to get a placement during that time.  I figured even if I don't get a placement, it gives me a week to get ahead with my schoolwork as well as get this house in even better order.  

I was also thinking that maybe during that time I can cook some meals and throw them into my deep freezer for when I do get our first placement.  It would be so nice to not have to think of cooking dinner the first week or so.  I figured if I make some meals that can be thrown into the Crockpot, that would be even easier for me.  

I was also thinking about making some cinnamon rolls from The Pioneer Woman and freeze most of them so the boys have some sort of yummy snacks after school.  I was thinking I could also make some muffins or something to freeze.  

I ordered the car seat on Saturday, it is supposed to be here on Friday.  I decided to clean out my van this past weekend and rearranged the seating in the car to make space for the new car seat.  I am going to place the car seat behind my seat and I put my six year olds high back booster in the center in the very back of the car.  He loves it because now he is facing the TV directly and has the car blankets on the seat next to him and I am going to make a toy/activity box to place in the seat on the other side of him.  

I found an awesome organizer on Pinterest and am going to make one if not two for our van to help with getting it organized and fun.  If you click on the link above, it shows you how this can be made into a toy/activity box and placed in the seat next to the kids and it even has a buckle so it doesn't budge if you have to brake hard.

Such a great idea to have in the car so you don't have all kinds of things all over.  And this makes it all within reach of the driver as well as the front seat passenger.  I swear there are endless things to make if you have the time to search Pinterest and have the skills, time, and resources to make them.  I think I am now adding to my list of things to do during spring break!!!

I was trying to decide what to do in regards to a car seat.  I have been going back and forth endlessly on wether or not I should buy an infant car seat or just a convertible one.  I finally decided that I would save myself the money and just buy a convertible car seat.  I was only able to get about 4 months worth of use out of my infant car seat with my youngest one because he hit 22 lbs at 4 months old and it was such a waste to me to spend a hundred dollars on a car seat that I barely got any use out of.  I am not a fan of using car seats on strollers and I honestly think infant car seats are just really HEAVY when lugging in and out of the car.

Now that the decision has been made lol  I so badly want to show you guys the car seat that I ended up purchasing.  I had to go pink and wanted something that we can use for many babies of any size and age.  I chose to go with the Grace MyRide 65 LX Convertible Car Seat.  A child can use it rear facing until 40 lbs and can use it forward facing until 65 lbs.  

Isn't it cute!?!  I can't wait to put it in the car and of course we got a cute mirror to put on the head rest so I can see the baby from the drivers seat.  This mirror is so cool, it has lights and plays music....best part, it has a remote so I can control it from the front seat!!  Where was this stuff when my boys were little??  I love the things that are available for babies and children now a days!!  

                                       

Ok, enough of me going on and on and on and on....I can get so carried away when it comes to Foster Care!  

Do you have any recipes or ideas about make ahead meals?

Lamb mobile

I bet you wouldn't have ever guessed but I love lambs!!  Crazy huh ;)  They remind me of home and give me a warm and comfy feeling....can't beat that!  

I have been wanting to find a cute mobile for the crib and I wanted it to be lambs.  I looked ALL OVER and couldn't find any that I liked until I found this totally cute ETSY store.  It is amazing and she makes these mobiles herself.  I went back and forth trying to figure out which one I wanted and/or which one I liked the best.  After lots of back and forth and sending my mom and sister the choices, I finally narrowed it down to this one....

I love it and I think it is perfect for this room, this crib, this home, and hopefully to all the beautiful babies that sleep in that crib and look at those little lambs floating up above them.  

I hung the mobile from the ceiling and am able to move it up if I get an older baby or adjust it in any way if need be.  I think it looks so sweet and have caught myself looking at it many times as I am laying in my own bed.  I can't wait to look over and see a sweet baby laying in that bed.  

By the way...that pillow will not be in the bed when a baby comes.  The pillow is from my own bed but I throw it in there at night when I am turning the bed down.  I do babysit a little boy who sleeps in the crib when he is here and he likes to use a pillow but he hasn't slept in there in a couple of weeks.

The saying that is above the crib says Happiness Dwells in the Soul.  I love that saying...it makes my heart so happy!!  

What do you think of the lamb mobile?  Does it make your heart flutter the way it makes mine?  How can it not ;)

Light at the end of the tunnel

On Friday night, I got a phone call asking me to bring the boys in to the agency for Home Study number two.  I slept maybe a total of 2.5 hours Friday night, my nerves were all over the place.  I woke up at 5:30 that morning and couldn't go back to sleep.  The boys and I got to the agency right about 10 am and had to wait a little bit for the lady to get there.

When she did get there, she introduced herself to the boys and told them that she was going to talk to them one at a time.  My middle son went first and said afterwards that she had been really nice and asked him questions like, how is he doing at school, what does he do on a normal day, she asked what he likes to do for fun, etc.

My oldest son went second and he said that she just asked questions like, how he's doing in school, how does he get along with his brothers, she asked if my youngest son was a mamma's boy (he was sitting in my lap waiting for the interview) and my oldest told her yes.  Then she asked if he was a mamma's boy and he said that he laughed and told her that they are all mamma's boys :)

My youngest went last and he is SUPER shy.  He opened up real quick to her and told her that he is excited about getting a baby and she asked if he would be jealous and he told her no.  He also told her that I am his favorite person.  He then went on to tell her that his brothers hit him and are mean to him and when he tells his mamma, she yells at his brothers.  I overheard this part and wanted to crawl into a hole....he was eating up the attention she gave him and kept going!!!  She said to me after she finished interviewing the boys that she thought they were great boys and told me how great I was doing.

She never mentioned the comment my baby boy made and I didn't say anything to him about it either.  His brothers do hit him and they tease him but that is what big brothers do.  He taunts them and annoys them till they are ready to scream (and sometimes do).

She talked to me alone and I sent the boys to the car.  During this time she told me that my middle son told her about his sister whom we just met for the first time a year ago (it's a long story and I will tell you guys about it some other time).  My son told her how I reached out to the sister and how she has become a huge part of our life.  She told me that speaks volumes about the kind of person I am (blush) and she said that it looks like I am doing the right thing by becoming a foster parent.  She then told me that she is going to come by this week for a short visit, 15-20 min and then I am all done.  She is going to try to finish my home study by the end of next week and I should be licensed and ready to accept children in the next two to four weeks!!!

I can't believe this is coming to an end!!  There is actually a light at then end of the tunnel!  I made the decision to become a foster parent in the beginning of November but with Christmas there were no PRIDE classes coming up.  I started PRIDE classes on January 10th and it is now the end of February (most of the delay was due to bad weather in the area) and I am finishing up!!  I can't believe how fast this process is!

I ordered a convertible car seat yesterday and now all I have left to buy is a stroller.  My home is ready and so is my heart.  I am so excited right now!!

Home Study number two is now scheduled

I got a call this evening about 7ish from the woman who came out to do my first home study.  She wanted to know if I was able to bring the boys and come to the agency in the morning so she could do her interview with the boys.  I told her that would be no problem and we would see her then.

Now it is 1:30 in the morning and I can't sleep....I am a nervous wreck!!!  What if my boys so something that is wrong or going to make her question if we can do this??  What if she doesn't like my boys?  What if?  What if?  What if?

I have all these thoughts going through my head and all I keep thinking is....it is what it is and if tomorrow doesn't go well, then that is what was meant to be.  I just feel like so much stuff has fallen into place perfectly as if me becoming a foster parent is meant to happen and I hope and pray that is the case.

I got a beautiful mobile in the mail today.  I found it on ETSY and had to have it.  It has lambs (swoon) and we put it up tonight and it looks adorable above the crib.  I will have to take pictures and share it on here,  Maybe I will do that tomorrow when I write to report on how the home study goes.

Wish me luck!!  Have you had to have your children interview for a home study?  If so, how did it go? What are they looking for when interviewing children...good and bad?  Say a little prayer for us in the morning, we need it!!

All of my training is now finished

Last night I went to CPI training, otherwise known as Nonviolent crisis intervention.  The class was very informative and teaches us all kinds of awesome things that all parents need to know.  They talk about the way we talk to children, the tone of our voice and the choice of words we use.  I have to say that I learned a lot of usual information and will be using some of this on my own children.

I am so excited to be able to say that all of my training is finished and now all I have left to do before getting my license is finish the two home studies.  I have no idea when she is going to come out for the second and third home study though.  I asked one of the couples last night who had their first home study done on Thursday, if she had mentioned when she is going to come out again and they said that she had just told them that she would be in touch.

I have to say the one thing that annoys me is that I was the first one in the class to turn in all of my paper work and there are still people who are not finished turning in their paperwork and they are getting home studies done.  The couple on Thursday don't have some paper work in and they are still able to proceed.  I busted my tail getting everything done in the first week and I thought by doing that, I would be able to finish faster.....I was wrong :/  Sorry, I don't mean to whine on here....just frustrating to know that rushing and busting my tail the first week....it didn't get me anywhere.

Anyway...I am now free to take care of my own boys and get caught up on my school work and spend some time with these little monsters of mine :)  My six year old told me today how happy he is that I am done with my training because now I can be home with him at night and play games with him.  So on that note....I am going to play the board game LIFE.

Have a great Tuesday!