Foster Mom Adventures

Last Sunday afternoon, when Samuel visited his sister, she gave him some Christmas gifts and two one dollar bills.  Ever since, that $2 has been burning a hole in his pocket.  He carried it with him everywhere we went.  In all the stores we walked through for four days, he would debate about how he [...]

A new Christmas special aired this year that I loved called “Prep and Landing.”  The concept was that Santa has such a big job that he needs a special advance team of elves to go help prep each home before he visits to deliver the gifts.  I now know just how much extra help Santa [...]

In my family, Saint Nicolas fills the stockings on Christmas Eve.  When you wake up on the 24th, your stocking is full of all kinds of goodies.  It’s like an appetizer to the main course of Christmas morning.  As a child, I assumed St. Nick filled everyone’s stockings the same night and they awoke on [...]

In Samuel’s case, it’s complicated. He has lots of family, and it is quite possible that one or more family members may pass a CPS home study and be deemed qualified to care for him. That could happen in the next 1-2 months. It’s also possible that won’t happen and he will be with me as he becomes eligible for adoption.

The sermon at church this morning was about joy.  Joy is so much bigger than happiness or pleasure—which are both temporary and fleeting.  Out of an abundance of love, comes joy.  One of the best things about being around Samuel is that he makes me smile—a lot.  He is certainly not shy—in fact, he volunteered [...]

Samuel woke up this morning and made his bed—without being asked.  Then he asked if he could take a shower (again, since he already took one last night).  Who is this kid? Want to know his favorite food?  Broccoli (with cheese sauce). And his second favorite food? Greens.  Seriously?  This kid eats more vegetables than [...]

What a first day.  Samuel is an absolute joy.  What a sweet kid.  He is very talkative and not at all shy, so we hit it off immediately.  Especially when he told me he loves to watch football!  He loves the Longhorns and several NFL teams, including…wait for it…the Tennessee Titans!  He unpacked a Dallas [...]

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, and there are two stockings hanging on my mantel now.  I was able to find one with Samuel’s first initial on it, so he would know it is his as soon as he walks in the door.  I also secured some items to stuff in his stocking [...]

The 18th of December is my grandmother’s birthday. It is exactly one week before Christmas. That date is also the day I graduated from Baylor University (yes, a semester late, but for very justifiable reasons).

And now the 18th of December is the day I will meet Samuel.

I got the call today.  My agency called to say that the pre-placement conference with the boy’s older sister went really well and therefore I had been given the green light.  The boy’s caseworker will call me tomorrow to discuss arrangements and timing. Needless to say, I am pretty freaked out right now.  I’m thankful [...]