Great job! You kept your kids alive today!

Can someone please tell me why parents are not constantly walking up to each other and congratulating each other on simply keeping their children alive for one more day???

As I watched a mother struggle to make her way through the Target aisles with a 2 and 4 year old in tow, I realized just how hard this job is. 

Keep another human alive. 

That's pretty much it. 

Make sure they don't choke, or get run over, or break a bone, or a vase, and bleed out. 

Honestly, I used to be pretty judgemental of parents when their kids were "out of line," or "noisy," or dare I say it, annoying, disrespectful, or misbehaved. (Don't judge! I know I'm not alone!)

But now I have felt it. The days when it feels like an almost impossible job and it feels like you'll never make it to bed time. Like the day will never end. Like I've done everything wrong and nothing right.

Can we just agree that this is a tough job and that no one has completely figured it out? Can we offer more smiles, and support, and "I-know-what-you're-going-through" head nods than judgemental stares and negative comments under our breath?

What would it be like if we truly raised our children as a community and we supported each other, asked more questions, and offered more hugs? 

For now, great job on keeping your kids alive for one more day! 

LL's quotes:

- (Looking at exercise clothes) "This is SO me, but in exercise ways!"

- "Can we buy some wants?" Translation...I told her we needed to go shopping to buy her some more shorts, so she wanted to buy some things she "wanted," too. :)

- LL asked the Target lady, "Can I get a job here when I'm 8?"

Breakfast for dinner. 

Eating on Mr. Brian's 25 year old plates.

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About Us: 

We began our foster journey in mid-August 2013. We finished our classes in October, had our home study in early January, and we were licensed on February 7, 2014. After seven calls from CPS, we received our first placement, a 7-year-old girl (our Little Lady, or LL for short) on April 3, 2014. Thank you so much for taking the time to read about our journey through the craziness that is foster care. Most importantly, thanks for your prayers, love, and support. We hope to encourage fellow foster/adoptive parents as we document our ups and downs each day. 

Key Posts:

We are Facebook-Official!

Saying goodbye to someone I've never met

Will you get a white one?

Yup, it's gonna hurt.

Day 1 with our Little Lady

Oasis 

What we tried to build