WE HAVE A SCHOOL!!

I am having a HUGE panic attack right now. Please pray that I can relax….I literally feel like I am going to throw up!

Definitely a go for tomorrow!!

Older Boys’s paperwork arrived at School District today and he should have an assigned school by tomorrow!! A meeting is set up with Younger Boy’s teacher for Monday and she sounds AMAZING!!

The Agency is meeting with an ombudsman today to discuss the case.

I pray we will all be able to contain our excitement, because for the boys this will be a low emotionally.

This the day… All morning I have had that song going through my mind…

I am praying for safe travel for everyone today.

Mom and Dad were here last night, because the weather was too bad for them to travel the rest of the way home. It was nice to have them there, because it really helped with my anxiety level. They helped me wrap everything up around the house.

So for weeks I have been waiting for two boys to move in with me...two foster boys.  Tomorrow it is a go.  I'm scared out of my mind.  I don't know how to be a parent. I've never been a parent.  These boys have some special needs...needs I am not sure how to meet.  The funny thing is that I have waited for you for my whole life. I love you already.

I just keep thinking...here we are...for the long haul. I don't know where this road is going to take the three of us. Will our family stay this size? Will it get bigger? What will happen? Will we be a forever family or are you just simply passing through? I hope we can figure all of this out together...with God's help.

Seriously…I think I live in crazy town.

I just got a call from Elementary School wondering why Younger Boy didn’t start school today, because Caseworker told them he was going to.

Before I start I have to admit I am having a VERY woe is me type of day. I could use prayers I could see all things are working together for good in this situation. I am just having one of those days where nothing is going right and I just want to scream….GIVE ME A BREAK.

It’s then I realize I am human and I don’t have to be and can’t be perfect.

Father…you know the things I need and I am going to give all things to you. Please help me to find peace in the upcoming days. I know you will not give me things I cannot handle nor will you forsake me. You will open the doors that need to be opened. Please open my eyes to the things I should be thankful for today. Amen.

Hopefully this will be the week the boys move into my home.

Pray we are able to obtain Older Boy’s medical records to determine his physical limitations. Otherwise it will require some possibly unnecessary tests for him.

Older Boy’s school still hasn’t been selected by School System. We will need five days to get transportation set up so pray things fall into place this week.

The agency had a “full case” meeting yesterday and the requirements coming out of it for the boys are mostly “non-issues”. One of the items coming out of the meeting is the boys have regular visitation with Bio Siblings. They haven’t had visitation for 18 months or more. We will need prayers these visitations will go smoothly and they are helpful to all of the kiddos.

For the first time in the last couple of weeks all is quiet in regard to the boys moving in.

Today the safety of all foster kiddos is on my heart. May each of them feel God’s protection around them and know that He loves them.

I am also praying for wisdom for the workers at the Agency on how to handle the situation with Existing Foster Parents. I also pray for wisdom for the School staff that it might be abundantly clear which school will be the best for Older Boy.

I continue to pray for wisdom and understanding for each of us as we meet these boys and learn to interact with them and that I may be a living example of God’s mercy and grace.

I continue my praises that God has a heart for these kiddos and He knows what the right timing is. I am reminded of the quote “Faith in God includes faith in His timing.”

Notes from friends:

“Praying, trusting God really is the One in charge. Knowing He cares and fights for them far more than we ever could.”

“On this day, God wants you to know that all is well. All is going according to His plan. Trust that there is a bigger picture and trust that life is unfolding as it should.”

These notes meant more to me than my words could ever say.

Email from Service Coordinator:

“For legal purposes we have to wait until the 25th to relocate the boys!! Since so much is going on with this particular case the State Attorney is now involved. Everyone agrees the children will be moving to Denise’s house however they are saying that we have to do everything to a T. This may be a good thing….it gives us one more week to get everything in order. I am sorry guys, this stinks!”

All authorizations have been sent to the school district and the daycares from the State. What a productive day!!

The special needs daycare accepted Older Boy. What an amazing place it is! I hope he loves it there, because their program is set up to meet his needs. I met some of the kids who will be in his class as well as his teachers and everyone is so nice. If Younger Boy sees it he might be jealous.

One of the nice things about the center is they have therapists and nurses on staff so he can also go there if needed in an emergency condition.
Service Coordinator is at the Superintendant’s Office now enrolling the boys. We should know soon where Older Boy is going to attend school.

Today was all about services for Older Boy. Tomorrow the focus turns to doctors and dentists, because both boys need to go to both within 10 days of arriving at my house.

Today I have a lot of prayers and praises.

We are meeting with the special needs daycare for Older Boy this morning to see if it is a good fit for him. They won’t enroll him without meeting him first, but the intake meeting is the first step. Pray Service Coordinator will be able to answer all of their questions and Foster Care Specialist and I will learn a lot more about Older Boy and what to expect. Praises everyone who needed to attend was able to clear their schedule since 11am was the only time available at the center.
Pray Middle School will have a good fit for Older Boy and his Individual Educational Plan (IEP). Praises that since Older Boy has an IEP, School will bus him everywhere he needs to go. As a result it isn’t such a concern which school he lands at. Just that is it the “right” school for him. Praises both boys are being registered in school today. Both boys will also be able to meet their teachers before school starts, since Tuesday is a teacher work day.

Continue to prayer the boy’s current environment stays positive and healthy for them.

Pray I would quickly learn the boy’s triggers for Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) and I will learn to react in situations when the disorders are present. In doing research on these topics I found a great blog written by a single woman parenting a now young adult with RAD and ODD, but also a number of other diagnoses. Her attitude and observations make me smile.

We found appropriate daycare for Younger Boy where there is an APPROPRIATE room for his homework and they will provide transportation to and from school. It is about a block from our house so there won’t be a lot of extra car time for any of us.

Both boys have AMAZING role models for their mentors.

Praises my job is flexible enough for me to take the right days and times off to make this transition as smooth as possible.

I am so thankful for the amazing people in my life who have been supportive of this endeavor and continue to lift me up and pray for me.

Mom and Dad worked tirelessly to get the boy’s room painted, rearranged and ready for them. I can’t say thank you enough.

My prayer request today is for Service Coordinator. She has a lot to do with this week with the transition of the boys.

Pray the transition of school records and counselors goes smoothly for her and she is able to contact all of the people she needs to contact. Her days are very stressful and she will need peace and patience to guide her as she works toward Friday.

Also, pray for her safety as she rides to Small Town to pick up the boys and for the pick up to be as smooth as possible. She is anticipating it to be difficult. Pray the boys can be shielded from the difficulty of it as much as possible.

I am hoping you will be willing to pray alongside me as we near the days when the boys move into my home. Each day I am finding things needing to be done, coordinated, discussed, and prayed about. I believe in the power of prayer and I know God has a plan for this placement and this season in each of our lives.

Today please pray for appropriate before and after school care for the boys. We are pursuing special needs care for Older Boy and we are on a wait list for that care. They have agreed to do an intake meeting with us to assess his needs, but we won’t know until next week. Pray we are able to find an appropriate placement for him which will best suit his unique challenges.

Pray for care for Younger Boy. The school he is attending has a waiting list of 50 kiddos for before and after school care. Pray there will be appropriate transportation to and from school and he will make friends at daycare.

This afternoon there is a meeting with Agency and Foster Mom at which time Agency is going to issue the seven-day plan for removal. If there is strong resistance to the removal from Foster Parent, Agency is already working with Judge to get a court order to have them removed. Concurrently there will be a hearing for protests for their removal. This is a formality for The State just in case Foster Parent files a lawsuit. Foster Parent cannot object to removal.

God is in control of this and I know that HE will be watching over the meeting and over the boys. My heart is breaking for them and their situation.

I can’t believe how much I already care about them and they don’t even live with me yet.

I just got a note that the boys will be moving in on Friday, February 18, because of a glitch in the court order Foster Mom is hanging her hat on.

This is just a preview of what life is going to be like. At least this gives me a little more time to get ready for them.

It is a long story, but the transfer of Older Boy and Younger Boy is a big mess right now. They are still coming to my home, but when is now the question.

The complications have to do with Service Coordinator and their current schools.

Pray Older Boy and Younger Boy are safe this week and if they end up staying another week it isn’t taken out on them.

Foster Care Specialist is pushing Service Coordinator because they seem to be at a standstill in terms of getting services coordinated for the boys. I love Foster Care Specialist. She told Service Coordinator if they don’t have the services set up by the end of the day Thursday we will need to wait another week. Pressure is on Service Coordinator now.

The Older Boy and Younger Boy are officially moving in Friday afternoon.

I can’t wait to introduce people to them, but I have a feeling the first couple of weeks/months will be a little bit crazy!

I am thankful for all of the prayers up to this point. I can’t believe how blessed I have been along this journey!

Today I accepted a placement for kiddos. I have known them for three years from camp. I am nervous/excited/scared out of my mind. They will be coming to my house from out of town so they won't be joining me until Friday, February, 11th, or Saturday, February 12th. Because they will be coming from out of town tehy will be going to the schools right by my home.

The placements is two boys. Older Boy is 14 years old and in the seventh grade and Younger Boy is 10 years old and in the fifth grade.

Of course all of this could change if things don't work out in the system, but this is the plan for now.