It is very hard for foster children coming into your home that have been in the provider or parental role. They come into a strange new home were they have no control and loss their responsibilities. Their responsibilities is a big part of their life and part of who they are.

My belief is that the children should have childhoods with some limited responsibilities. I have learned that this is harder for some foster children to accept. Being a child and not having adult responsibilities is something that does take some time and some children always feel the... more

Foster children growing up fast is a part of their reality. The life that most of these children have been forced to live has placed them into the adult role and a lot of cases the care giver to siblings and at times, biological parents. It is hard to imagine living day in and day out with the pain and hardship that these children have lived most of their lives with.

There is no choice when your are the oldest and there is no food in the house for your younger siblings. The child then becomes the provider by stealing food or any other means to care for their... more

Should Biological and Foster Children Be Parented Together?

Where will the line been draw at? Who is to say what is believed to be acceptable parenting or even how families are made up? A lot of foster children that are adopted do go on to have problems some severe and others not so intense. There are situations where these children may act out against other adopted children in the home. Does this mean that parents should only adopt one child at a time?

A... more

There are several comments and emails that I will be answering or addressing in the next few days. One dialogue has been going on that I need to address, there are a number of different points that I will be replying to on a few different post, so please bear with me.

I will address the first statement below read more of the comment here:

I question the ability of any parent, while currently raising biological children–to bring foster children... more

I will be following up on comments left by Bob, here. Most states if not all are geared towards family reunification which is a good primary option on the table for foster children. The problem and concern is that in some cases, the family reunification overrides the rights of a child and may not be best for them. No one is against family reunification when it is right for all family members including the children.

The problem is that family reunification becomes... more

This is a response to a comment left on the post “What Happens if Biological Parents Don’t Work Their Plan?” I will share my experiences, and others that are also involved in foster care that I know. Granted, I do realize that every case is very different.

Deb Donatti’s comment was “I am wondering how often the parents get the kids back, only to have them land back in foster care quickly again, and do they start that count/ allowed time to work... more

What Happens When a Kinship Placement Doesn't Adopt?

If the kinship placement is unable to provide the foster children a permanent placement and no other family members step forward, then the child will be placed into the main stream foster care system. The goal will then become seeking an adoptive placement for these foster children.

No one can say what a foster child’s chances of finding an adoptive placement are. There are so many things that have... more

I have been asked a rather difficult question, or maybe it is has more to do with the fact that I know the possible outcomes. Below is one of the questions, and I will continue answering the other questions in posts:

In a kinship placement, if the biological mother does not work the plan and the family member providing foster care does not want, or unable to adopt the child what happens? Do foster children really get adopted or do they live in the system?

One of the reasons this is a little hard for me to write is that I fostered... more

Closing the Door to 2007 – "The Good" I started talking about the good things that happened in 2007 that involved foster care, now I am moving to the not so good area.

The foster care system has been stretched to its limit this year. In Texas, foster children were left to sleep in Child Welfare offices, and later, to hotels rooms. Most states... more

Man did this year fly by and oh, what a year it has been. I have been writing here for a year now and what a great experience that continues to be. This short but busy year a lot has happened that involves foster care and also for me personally.

We will start with the good happenings and changes first. This country is slowly starting to realize when children are removed from their homes and become foster children that the responsibility should last past their 18th birthday. There are so many foster children that are aging... more