It’s Mother’s Day, FWIW

It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of Mother’s Day. I always struggled with it as a younger adult because I didn’t have kids, didn’t want biological kids, and felt inherently that Mother’s Day was the world’s way to point out that I wasn’t the “ideal woman.” Ideal women prioritize reproduction. Once I becameContinue reading “It’s Mother’s Day, FWIW”

Heartache

I just got a call from the agency that I deeply appreciate having gotten. Years ago we told our homefinder (basically our case worker) that if ever a child we’ve fostered comes back into foster care, we want to be called first. It’s happened twice now. The first time I got a call it wasContinue reading “Heartache”

Time on Hold

We’re all on the struggle bus right now. For one thing, we are waiting for good weather eagerly, and being thwarted. So far NY has offered us an earthquake and an eclipse for April, and today there’s a bit of sun, but we are all feeling cooped up and are wanting SUN and WARMTH enoughContinue reading “Time on Hold”

Struggling to Parent Sunny

I’ve written before about how Sunny is a difficult kid to parent. I’m not sure I’ve really emphasized that enough, though. Folks, I’m struggling with parenting her fairly. Sunny has learned, through no fault of her own, to be manipulative and pushy. Those were attributes that got her needs met when she was home withContinue reading “Struggling to Parent Sunny”

Food Insecurity Fallout

Sunny has taken to complaining that we have too much food in the house. It’s making me think about childhood food insecurity and how much it messes with people. Sunny grew up food insecure for her first 8 years. Her pantry was always absolutely bare except for bulk bags of rice. Everything else was purchasedContinue reading “Food Insecurity Fallout”

Acting up in public

Last weekend my husband was working, but I fearlessly plowed ahead and took Sunny and Sprout to the Finger Lakes Chapter of Little People of America’s holiday party. Let me start this by praising this organization. I’ve written about them before regarding a baseball game we took the girls to during the summer. Being surroundedContinue reading “Acting up in public”

Life Carries On

It’s funny. I’d been longing to adopt Sprout for so long, and so worried it would not happen, that when it did actually happen I was a bit gobsmacked for a day or two. Could it really have taken place?! Finally?! But then, life just carried on, as it has a way of doing! NothingContinue reading “Life Carries On”

Fireworks in Court

We’ve been in contentious foster care related court hearings before when Gronckle was returned home. In that instance, the child’s attorney disagreed vehemently with the agency and judge, but the appearance was brief and everyone managed to avoid taking things personally. I left and cried, but the attorneys shook hands afterward and all was okContinue reading “Fireworks in Court”

Sunny’s Need to Belong

The subject of belonging came up for me recently when I listened to a We Can Do Hard Things podcast called “Being Left Out: Navigating that Lifelong Ache.” In the episode, Glennon, Abby, and Amanda talk about the need for feeling like we belong, and how fundamental that feeling is to our survival. In essence,Continue reading “Sunny’s Need to Belong”

We have a date! (maybe)

Sprout’s parents’ rights have been “terminated.” Her mother surrendered her rights, and her father’s rights were terminated recently and he didn’t appeal the decision. That means Sprout gets a new adoption case worker. In this case, it’s a worker we know and love. She was Miss Kicks’s case worker, and while that situation ended inContinue reading “We have a date! (maybe)”