Sorry I have been a little slow with posting since November. When you have computer issues things come to a complete standstill and then to top it off that we can only get dial up. My computer has some major problems so I will be sending it out to be repaired that will leave me posting when I can. Oh how I miss digital instead of dial up…..hmmm….what would I give to be up running at high speed. A girl can dream.

To celebrate National Adoption Month I had a give away for the... more

This is something that I looked forward to when I was a child, and have wonderful memories of every Christmas baking cookies in our kitchen. This is a tradition that I have carried over to my children and also my foster children. My children look forward to it every year. My foster children are a little reserved in the beginning, but quickly become involved.

This is a great activity to get foster children involved in without great difficulty. Really this is something in my experience they involve themselves in without much need of encouragement. They do not have to... more

The Christmas tree is up and fully decorated with all the ornaments that have meaning from the past years. The stockings are hung and the house is all decorated for Christmas along with the festivals and excitement of Christmas. While for most of us, our Christmas is built around tradition. Some foster children however, do not have this.

I have yet to have a foster child that has experienced what most people consider a normal Christmas with the Christmas tree, decorations, baking cookies, singing Christmas carols, making crafts, etc. with their biological or birth... more

Weathering the stress of an adoption with Child Welfare can take a lot out of you. We did enjoy adopting our baby daughter on National Adoption Day with all the festivities and fun excitement of the day. There was a lot more stress and drama because of choosing this date.

Up until Friday evening after 5 o’clock we were unsure whether it would really happen. Waiting to the last minute, no, last second to do paperwork is not my idea of being prepared. Add to that, we live four hours away. This... more

The decision to stay at home with your foster children and have a few relatives over for the holidays is your first option. Spending the holidays at a family member’s home is another option. I really think it has a lot to do with the foster children you have in your home at the time and your family members.

Taking a foster child that has major behavior issues to your Aunt Martha’s house for the holiday may need some extra consideration. How does she feel about children, especially with behavior issues? How is she going to react if the child has a melt down and the... more

The Big Day in a Foster Child's Life

This year for the adoption on National Adoption Day, our area decided to allow each family to have an individual adoption time in the courtroom instead of the mass or group adoption thing. I was not crazy about the idea of the mass adoption so I was quite happy for our own personal time which makes it special.

My sister, dad, my caseworker (which has become a friend) joined my husband, myself and our children in the court room.... more

In my personal experience involving foster children, preparing for Thanksgiving can be a great benefit for everyone. It helps boost their self esteem, while truly making them feel part of things instead of an outsider. Also, I found that keeping them involved with chores (good ones – all chores are not bad) and preparing for the holiday helps keep their behaviors for the most part controlled. Better to have them busy and involved than sulking around or acting out.

We have made placemats before for everyone. I’ve got one to do with the kiddos that helps given the idea... more

Yesterday, on National Adoption Day, we adopted our beautiful two year old baby girl. We have been her foster parents since she was two months old. Up until Friday evening we were not completely sure that all the paperwork would come together for us to be able to adopt on National Adoption Day. I will share in another post about the issues, problems and concerns that we struggled with.

There were over eighty families adopting from the foster care system at the courthouse so it was a very busy place. Each family had a volunteer to guide them through the process which... more

Understanding that they may not necessarily feel very thankful even through they are safe and not being sexually abused, beaten, burned with cigarettes and just completely neglected. These foster children still have their own strong feelings about things and what is happening in their lives. While it may be hard to understand how a child would miss being in an abuse situation, it is still an emotion that they are feeling. Feelings that anyone has are not wrong, we all have the right to our own feelings.

We have a tradition in our family that when we sit down for Thanksgiving... more

This time of the year I always find myself thinking of the children that I have parented through foster care that have gone on to another placements or with family members. It does not matter if I only parented them for a short period of time or a long one. My family talks about different children time to time when something reminds us of them and we find ourselves traveling down memory lane.

These children were a part of my family for time and I truly care about what happens to them. Most of the foster children that have come into my home I have had the chance to... more