Hey, y'all! Crazily enough, my Foster Friday series seem to be some of my most read posts. Quite frankly, when I wrote last weeks post, I thought that it would be my last...at least until February. Over the last week, I've received a few emails and private messages checking in to see how I've been doing. Words cannot begin to describe how appreciative I am that some of you care enough to check in.
After I shared last weeks post, I texted the kids mom to ask if we could stop by and drop off some of the kid's belongings and say our goodbyes, since we weren't able to do so before. Without hesitation, she said yes and we made plans to meet them on Sunday. Our visit was short, but it was much needed. We gave the kids some of their things that we found while packing up our house. We also gave Little Boy a photo album with pictures that we took during their stay with us. Ashley and Little Boy went through each of the pictures, reminiscing over the great times we had as a little family. The kid's mom balled her eyes out, it was a really sweet moment.
Little Boy is also completely obsessed with the book character Pete the Cat. We gifted him his favorite Pete the Cat bedtime story and included a little note in the inside cover. After we said our goodbyes we received a text message from dad saying how sweet the note was and thanking us for loving his kids like they are our own. It's great to know how appreciative the mom and dad are. We made plans to go to the zoo soon and to have them over for dinner once we're fully settled in our new house. I can only hope that we follow through and make these arrangements so we can see the little ones, and their parents, again. It's so easy to say "see you soon" and not have that actually happen. I think that, perhaps, that is one of my biggest fears.
As we were getting the thank you text messages from the kid's parents, I knew that we made the right decision to continue our journey as foster parents. It is a stressful and incredibly emotional journey but it is so rewarding.
We have met so many wonderful people since we began this endeavor. We've become friends with other people who are on the same journey as us and they have been so helpful over the last couple of weeks. Although our parents and family can be supportive, they don't really understand the feeling of raising a child (or children) as your own and then dealing with the emotions of having them return to their biological family, knowing that you may never see them again.
I'll continue to keep you all posted on our journey. Again, I appreciate your interest, concern, and support.
xx,
Elle