Wow...so it's been a while. We have had so much going on since my last entry. Life has certainly changed in a hurry. After we made the decision to stop infertility treatments, we weren't necessarily sure which direction God was leading us in. We celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary in June and I have to say, we never thought we would be celebrating this particular anniversary and not have at least a couple of kids running around. We were at Jazz in the Woods and my sister sent me a text of a little boy who goes to their church who is foster kid. She'd told us about him before, but we just weren't there yet. The night of our anniversary something changed. Andy and I were both like 'let's do this'. I believe it was God stirring our hearts. So on Monday I signed us up for foster care classes. We had no idea where it was going to lead, but we knew God was leading us in that direction. So without having any idea of what to expect, we started class. And what a ride it's been since then. We met some amazing people, and it's no coincidence that God put them in our lives. It's a 10 week class which seems like forever when you sign up, but it completely flew by. By the last week we couldn't believe it was already over. And it all moves very quickly after that. The state is so desperate for foster homes. We filled out all of our paperwork and got a letter in the mail saying it would be a month or so before we received our temporary license. The next night I got a call stating our temporary license had been approved and they had 2 year old twin boys who needed an adoptive home and wanted to know if we were interested. I was literally speechless (which rarely happens to me). So we thought we had a month, but turns out you want to know if we're possibly interested in adopting 2 boys we've never met, and this is our very first ever placement call? We're going to have to pass on that one. Which is a really horrible feeling. You feel like you want to take every placement and feel so guilty when it's not a good fit or the right timing. Our end goal as a family is to adopt since we can't have kids of our own. It is crazy how many calls you get as a foster parent; crazy and heartbreaking. The amount of kids who need homes is staggering. I was getting multiple calls a day asking for placement. We accepted a placement of 2 and 3 year old boys, but in the end there was a grandma who was most likely going to get them, so we ended up passing on that. And then we got the call for the kiddos we have now. A 2 year old boy and a 6 year old boy (they're brothers). We knew our calling when we got into foster care was to be able to offer a home to sibling sets so they wouldn't have to be separated. So we literally jumped in with both feet, hands, head, you name it. And most days it feels like we're drowning. It is a huge adjustment to go from 0 to 2 overnight. It's an adjustment for us, it's an adjustment for them.
So we're navigating the waters, sometimes below the surface needing air, other times we get to come up to catch our breath, even if it's just for a moment. I have so many stories to share and Biblical principals I'm learning along the way. There's no doubt in our minds this is exactly where God wants us. And it is HARD. But our pastor just said tonight that it's the things in life that we have to work at, that are the most worth it. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24
Until next time...
