It's been 5 days with CJ in our home. Here some initial thoughts about how it's going.

• There is nothing easy about foster parenting! Finding answers to any of our questions requires going through a number of case workers who claim that they'll need "to get back with you on that."
• Kids are basically the same whether they are 3, 7 or 9. Although their issues (like selfishness or anger) might show up in various forms, they are still the same issues. CJ struggles with controlling himself - the same thing we've been working with my 3 year old on ("don't hit; use your hands to be kind") and my 7 year old ("don't throw something when you get mad; use your words to explain how you feel").
• The foster care system is a crazy system. You just don't have many answers at the beginning. CJ could be with us for a few weeks or it could be a few months. We're not sure where he will be going when he leaves our house or who will have custody of him (there is a mom, a dad, and a grandma in the picture), which makes it hard to prepare him for what comes next.
  
• Foster parenting is hard! Adding another child to any home changes the family dynamics and everyone has to adjust to "the new normal." The last 5 days have been days of adjustment for all of us. It feels like all the plates were tossed in the air in our juggling act and we have to learn how to juggle and spin them again - trying to find steps that work for all 5 of us, that meet the needs all of us have and are at least somewhat normal or natural to us. It's been hard... though the days are getting slightly easier as we settle into some routines and learn more about life together.
  
• God is faithful! I truly believe that God has met us at our point of need this week. We have needed added strength for this task. He has faithfully provided. We have needed extra measures of patience and wisdom. We have asked these of Him and He has faithfully provided. Foster parenting has put me in a place of desperation for the Lord... and that's a good place to be!
  

As of yesterday at 5:30 pm, we have our first foster placement!

He's a 9-year-old boy that we'll refer to on this blog as CJ. I can't share much about his story, due to confidentiality.

When I'm able, I'll post more. For now, know that we appreciate your prayers for us and for CJ and his family's situation.

My husband is Mr. Handyman... and I love that fact about him!

Last Saturday he decided to do a little wood project. It involved the following steps:
1) look online at Christmas clip art and pick a simple design that could be cut out of wood.
2) draw design on paper to the scale he wanted it
3) cut design out of plywood with saw
4) sand plywood
5) paint plywood (with green tree color and then white "sprizzles" for the snow)
6) hang 24 mini ball ornaments on the new tree
7) delight the entire family with your new 2-foot Christmas tree decoration!

Our most recent read-aloud book was Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH. I had never heard of this book until a few months ago when a teacher friend, Mrs. Conrad, was cleaning out her classroom and offered us some of the extra books. She mentioned this book as a classic that she just loved. Now we now why! It is a great book.

I read the book myself before reading it with my daughter. I noticed the theme of compassion running throughout this book. I asked my daughter to look for examples of compassion as we read and we found at least six different instances where one or more of the animals were showing compassion on others.

The author - Robert C. O'Brien - does a masterful job at drawing the reader into the story and giving a sense that you are right there with the animals throughout their drama. And with unexpected plot twists, the book is a real page-turner that was hard to put down.

Two thumbs up for Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH!

I had never read Sarah, Plain and Tall before but knew it is a popular "classic" book. So I ordered this one from Paperback Swap and we picked it off the shelf a week ago to read. It's a surprisingly short book, so we finished it in just one evening. At the end of the book, my daughter declared it was her new favorite book (this happens at the end of almost every book we read :-)).

I was pleased that my daughter saw numerous parallels between the situation described in the book (children with no mother; a mail-order bride/mom shows up) and what foster children must be dealing with. Having not read the book in advance, I didn't expect that, so it was a surprising conversation starter that opened our eyes to more of the feelings foster kids experience.

Another great book. Two thumbs up. Glad to have this one on the bookshelf to read again!

11/3/2010

The start of November is significant at our house. We have a November tradition - making our Thankful Tree.

October 31st or November 1st, we make a thankful tree out of construction paper. We mount it in our dining room where we see it throughout the day.

It's a simple tree trunk with 30 colorful leaves. We write one blessing on each leaf and put it on the tree. Everyone helps with ideas to put on the leaves, but snow and toys and church and food are some things that always are included.

As each day of November goes by, we take down 1 leaf and thank God that day for that blessing.

This is a simple way to make "thanksgiving" last throughout the whole month rather than just 1 day in late November. And the official Thanksgiving Day is much more meaningful when you've been cultivated a spirit of thankfulness for weeks.

It works for me!

11/2/2010

Ever since reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory a few weeks back, we have picked up two other books by Roald Dahl. Next in line was Charlie and the Glass Elevator, which is intended to be a sequel. Then this week we read James and the Giant Peach.

My daughter claims this is her "new favorite" book. It's a typical Roald Dahl book full of fun and imagination. There were a few simple pictures, but most of the fantasy story is left up to the listener's imagination to run wild... as the giant peach takes off down the hill, with James and other travelers inside!

Two thumbs up from this mama and my 7-year-old for James and the Giant Peach!