Foster Care Support Group
Foster care is a system by which a certified, stand-in parent(s) cares for minor children or young peoples who have been removed from their birth parents or other custodial adults by state authority. Responsibility for the young person is assumed by the relevant governmental authority and a placement with another family found.
I've lurked for a while, but just created my account today, so I figured I should introduce myself. My husband and I are both in our early 30s. I teach and coach and he is a biologist. We have one biological daughter who is five, a dog, a cat who thinks she's a dog, and several fish.
We aren't officially foster parents yet, but our home study passed, so we are just waiting for all the paperwork to be completed on their end, supposedly by the end of the month. We're licensed for boys and girls, ages 7-18, so it's anybody's guess what we'll get. It also means that things like toiletries really can't be gotten until we have a placement. A 7 year-old girl needs different types of shampoos, for instance, than a high school boy.
We're looking forward to this, but are a little nervous too. We have worked toward this for so long and have sunk so much money into remodeling our house that it will be a definite blow if this turns out to be a bad idea after all. Neither of us are all that concerned, but still the worry of the unknown is there.
Anyway, that's my story. Hi!
We aren't officially foster parents yet, but our home study passed, so we are just waiting for all the paperwork to be completed on their end, supposedly by the end of the month. We're licensed for boys and girls, ages 7-18, so it's anybody's guess what we'll get. It also means that things like toiletries really can't be gotten until we have a placement. A 7 year-old girl needs different types of shampoos, for instance, than a high school boy.
We're looking forward to this, but are a little nervous too. We have worked toward this for so long and have sunk so much money into remodeling our house that it will be a definite blow if this turns out to be a bad idea after all. Neither of us are all that concerned, but still the worry of the unknown is there.
Anyway, that's my story. Hi!
deleted_user
No, he was not separated from his sister ever. We had to worry that he might harm another foster child, and CPS would sweep it under the rug by blaming us for inadequate supervision and pull our license. Sadly after nineteen months they were returned to their parents, both of whom blamed the other for the abuse, leaving the state without sufficient proof. Sad case, beautiful kids.
dryadteacher
Apparently our licensor hadn't really passed on the second half of the paperwork like she had implied. That just happened a few days ago. Got to love the red tape!
deleted_user
Hi, nice to hear that you are willing to be foster parents. I am currently a foster mother for 3 teenage boys. This is my second round as a foster mother. I have 6 adopted now adult children who all came as foster kids quite a while ago. I live in illinois. My experience with the state agency left something to be desired-caseworkers were overloaded and hard to reach. My current agency is a private one, much smaller with well trained workers and therapists. At one point, I swore I would never have teenagers again! But my 3 boys are squirrely but nice guys. Never say never.
dryadteacher
What made you decide to do foster care again? Was your house finally empty enough, or was it something else?
deleted_user
Hi, good question. My adopted children were out on their own, some more functional than others, I had been teaching for quite a while and was set in that area, and I was looking for something to do. I could go back to school, get a job, or become a foster parent again and use the spare bedroom in my home. Being a foster parent seemed to be the most spiritual of the 3 choices and the best way to spend my time. So, I went for hours of training and became licensed again. It's been quite a journey. The first set of boys who came, half brothers, ages 6 and 10 were a handful. The 10 year old was sadly, a very disturbed little boy, who stayed a year and a half. The 6 year old was a neat kid who stayed 5 years until he went home to live with his dad. I couldn't have managed without a ton of excellent help from the agency. 2 of the 3 current kids will have been with me 5 years in October and the 3rd- 6 months in a week or so. I've learned alot!! to say the least.. Amazingly enough, I've enjoyed having these teenagers after I swore to anyone who would listen that I would NEVER, NEVER have teenagers again after raising my adopted sons. Ugh. I should have listened to my own maxim of never say never.
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