Spinning

Matt and I were alone last night after the girls had gone to sleep.  Nothing really reminded me of Baby.  He’s just always in my thoughts.  In the quiet of house, I told Matt that I missed that precious little boy.  I wasn’t expecting a response.  Matt’s very good at letting me vent or share without needing to fix things.  So when he told me that he missed him too, I was surprised.  They were the perfect words and I needed to hear them.  I’m not alone.

This morning, I walked into Baby’s room for the first time since he left.  His little clothes were on the dresser.  His crib just like I left it when I woke him up Tuesday afternoon to put him in a car seat on his way away.  I felt the emotion like a physical blow and it took my breath.  I’m not sure this is something everyone can understand.  I feel almost silly describing it.  He was never my child, how can I love him so much?  But, whether I can explain it or not, I just do.

Matt and I had decided to wait a month or so to heal up a bit before we took in another child.  But, when I received that call from our licensing agent today that there was a newborn girl that needed a placement, I didn’t have to think about it too long.  Of course we’d take her. 

By then end of the day, the case managers had found a home for her with a sibling.  I wasn’t only walking in the dark today, I was spinning.  But, I’m so grateful for many things.  I know that I’m getting stronger in the disappointments, I’m immediately giving my hurt to God and telling Him with a smile “Your will be done.”, and I’m following Him at a closer distance.  But, what I’m most grateful for is that even though I felt guilty to think of bringing another child into our home, as irrational as that is, I know that I can.  And we will.   

Maybe even tomorrow.

  

Heartbroken

Hearts can be shredded and shattered, and still there is peace.  I know, I’m there.  Baby is gone, and for as difficult as it is to even speak, I have peace.

I think of how he effected our family.  Rhyan seems to have aged three years.  At times, her maturity has taken me by surprise.  She was the first to want to hold him and watch him while I made dinner or cleaned.  She was the one that was in his little face the most, smiling and talking with him.  She kept her mind on God’s will and prayed over him always.

Evynn probably shocked me the most.  She loved Baby and wanted to play with him often, but her main focus was on helping me.  She was the queen organizer and was first to want to set the table or clean the house.  She had a mama’s heart, but cared about her own mama’s heart, as well. 

Matt became attached, for as hard as he tried to distance himself.  Over the last weeks, he would come into the room and kiss Baby’s head.  He loved to make him smile and had his fair share of holding time. 

This child helped me see my family differently.  I don’t love them any more than I did.  But, I love them better.  I appreciate the little things and I’m so grateful the countless blessings that make up my life. 

We are going to miss Baby more than I can express.  I can’t trust myself around anyone right now, even to talk to anyone, because I keep breaking down.  I’ve put all of his things out of sight and closed the door to his room.  The pain is coming in waves.  One second I’m functioning and living, the next I’m fully overwhelmed.  Thankfully, I’m content to know that he is going to his family and that they will love and protect him.  I know that because that has been my consistent prayer all these weeks. 

So, I will take some time to let my heart heal.  I will clean my house, get back into my work-out routine, focus on some writing projects, eat regular meals.  I will not clean bottles, wash burp rags, change diapers, or haul car seats.  My life is, once again, going to be easy. 

And one day I might just find myself being happy about ‘easy‘. 

But, today is not that day.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed.  Psalm 34:18

Peace

My favorite time of the day is early in the morning.  It’s when Baby is the biggest cuddle bug.  He rests his tiny head on my shoulder and nuzzles, completely calm. 

Evynn comes down soon after and we put him in his bouncer.  We have a contest to see who can make him give us the biggest smile.  Rhyan eventually makes her way downstairs and joins us.  She’s the best at getting him to ‘talk‘.  He gets sleepy about the time we’re ready to begin school.  The rest of the day rushes forward, but in those few special moments, there is perfect peace.

Peace.  I have it.  I don’t understand it, and in some strange way I don’t know if I want it.  Baby is, again, scheduled to leave.  Monday’s court date is to put him in a relative’s home.  Again, I’m preparing my heart to say ‘good-bye’.  Again, I’m getting his things together and making all there is with our time together.  Peace almost feels like a betrayal to how much I care for him.  How can I feel peace if my heart’s on the edge, ready to shatter? 

I know the answer.  It’s in His word.  And He is His word.  Peace.  It surpasses my understanding and keeps me hoping for all that He’s promised - to keep this child safe, to love him completely because He formed him in his mother’s womb; to guard him and keep him safe in the shadow of His wings.  In my peace I find hope, because I continue to search for His will and lean on the knowledge that He’s known this baby boy before the foundation of the earth and He knows him through eternity. 

Peace.  I have it.  I don’t understand it.  And whether I feel like I want it or not, I’m so, so very grateful for this PEACE.


Isaiah 26:3 You will guard him and keep him in perfect and
constant peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he commits himself to You, leans on You, and hopes confidently in You.

A Different Kind of Mother's Day

There will be another court date tomorrow.  Baby is going to another foster family who is already caring for his sibling.  We wanted to keep him and bring his sibling into our home, but crazy, bizarre circumstances are preventing it.  As of this moment, there is absolutely no chance we will keep him.  But, I’ve seen God do the impossible and I know that He is bigger than this situation.  He can move this mountain.  And if He chooses not to, what I can be sure of is that we’re all exactly where we belong.

I’ve spent the last days, so grateful for this time to prepare my heart to say ‘good-bye‘.  I’ve stared at him and studied his face.  I’ve memorized the rolls on his little arms, the color of his eyes, the way he smiles and looks away like he understands shy.  I’ve sung to him and prayed over him and whispered the name of Jesus again and again, hoping some day it will echo into his future and rest on his heart.  I watch as he looks for me when I enter the room, and I talk to him when he talks to me and give his cheeks kiss after kiss.  For one Mother’s Day, I had a son.  It’s been a day of gratitude and cherished memories, tears and heartache. 

It doesn’t look like I will be the one to raise him up to know and love Jesus.  So, when I hold him one last time before placing him in another’s arms, I will give him a Bible verse to take with him.  And a song that is my prayer for him his whole life long.

I pray the Lord will hold you close and keep you through the night,
That you will wake up smiling in the early morning light,
That He will always comfort you and make you brave and strong,
I pray that you will follow Him your whole life long.

I pray that you will grow up to be wise and good and true,
I pray that you will please the Lord in everything you do,
I pray that you will hear His voice and learn to sing His song,
I pray that you will follow Him your whole life long.

I pray that you will follow Him,
I pray that you will follow Him,
I pray that you will follow Him your whole life long.

I pray the Lord will bless you with His presence every day,
I pray he will protect you every step along the way,
Help you love what's right and lead you far away from wrong,
I pray that you will follow Him your whole life long.

I pray that you will follow Him,
I pray that you will follow Him,
I pray that you will follow Him your whole life long.

Twila Paris, Your Whole Life Long.


Psalm 121:5-8
5  The Lord watches over you.
The Lord is like a shade tree at your right hand.
6  The sun won’t harm you during the day.
The moon won’t harm you during the night.

7  The Lord will keep you from every kind of harm.
He will watch over your life.
8  The Lord will watch over your life no matter where you go,
Both now and forevermore.

Amen.

Kristi

My sister is my best friend in the whole world.  As of six weeks ago, we talked every day, several times a day.  My routine was to put the girls in the car, head to the gym and hit my speed dial on the way out of our neighborhood. 

We talked about everything.  She was pregnant and I was going through licensing for foster parenting.  Our conversations hinged around our major life events.  We talked paint colors for bedrooms, kids, sports, school, husbands, weekends.  We vented when we were angry or frustrated.  I liked to make her laugh because her laugh was contagious and to make her laugh was to make me laugh. 

And then I got her email…

“Having contractions.  Going to hospital.  Pray.”

I called her phone repeatedly, until her mother-in-law finally answered.  “She’s in the labor room, having the baby… Oh wait.  She just had her.  I’ll call you back.”

She was only 27 weeks.  Three months early.  I didn’t know if the baby was alive.  Kristi went through natural birth after two C-sections and I wasn’t sure if she was okay.  I stared at the phone, willing it to ring.  Finally, her mother-in-law called back.  Lilly Sue was 2 pounds, 12 ounces and being transferred to the NICU. 

Days later, we were licensed and we got our first placement.  An infant boy that we fell instantly in love with. 

Both of our lives have been completely altered and our phone conversations are much less frequent.  She tries to call me on her way to the hospital every morning, but I’m usually feeding the baby and starting school by the time I notice the missed call.  I immediately call her back, knowing that she’s already in the NICU, staring at the monitors, watching Lilly take a breath.  A breath.  A breath. 

We connected the other day and I told her that our sweet boy was leaving.  Our difficulties are very different, but revolve around two beloved babies.  She told me how tired she was of crying in front of strangers and her kid’s friends.  I told her I was tired of crying during my runs and in the baby section of Walmart.  We’re both such messes. 

But, we’re God’s messes.  We send each other scripture and songs that speak to us.  We’ve grown in our faith like nothing I’ve seen and we still have each other.  We still talk and vent and discuss life.  The laughter’s missing, but it will come back when it’s time.

She told me the other day that she was tired of being so weak in all of this.  Me, too.  But, someday, when this passes and we’re looking back on it, our strength is going to take us by surprise.

Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

Walking in the Darkness

Psalm 119:105  Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.


Feeding the baby in the middle of the night can be treacherous.  Once he's been fed and I place him gently in his crib, I turn off his light and make my way back to our bedroom.  It’s pitch black.  My thick-lens, emergency glasses are of no use.  I put my hands out in front of me, feeling my way back to bed.  But, my feet get tangled in a shirt on the floor and my shoulder pounds into the wall. 

That is foster parenting.  All is going according to plan around us - hearings are scheduled, family is located,  kids are assigned to new homes.  But, we’re left in the dark, arms flailing while trying desperately to find our way.  We trip and are bruised, waiting for someone shed some light on what’s happening. 

We don’t know what’s going to happen with this beloved child.  From what we’ve been told, family is no longer an option, but things change quickly and we’re left to wonder.  Will they come get him this morning?  Will I have to say ‘good-bye’ with only a moment’s notice?  Will he be here a few days or a few months? 

It’s not a problem with the system, it just is, and no one’s at fault.  But with so little light, all we can do is take one step at a time in the darkness. 

La’akov.

Blessed Be His Name

We sang this in church yesterday. 

Blessed Be Your Name
In the land that is plentiful
Where Your streams of abundance flow
Blessed be Your name

Blessed Be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed Be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name

Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say


Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Lord, blessed be Your name

He's leaving.

He’s leaving.

Our foster parenting trainer said our first child would be the hardest to lose. I can’t imagine it being any worse. We told the girls we'd have to say 'good-bye' to him last night after we found out that he’d be going home with a relative sometime next week. Rhyan, with wisdom greater than mine, said that he needed to be with his family. That’s what she would want. But, I don’t know his family. I know ours.

Matt told me last night that if I didn’t hurt, then I wasn’t doing this right. My sweet friend said that if I had never known this precious infant, I wouldn’t have ever known to cover him in prayers for forever.

So, I’ll hurt and I’ll pray. And somewhere, after some time, I’ll pick myself up and wipe the tears from my face.  And find the strength to do this again.

Facing the Hurt

I couldn’t bring a child into our home without loving him with all my heart.  I had to give him all of me.  It’s not the best way to be as a foster mother.  But, even in the pain, I believe it’s the only way to be.

I’ve prayed for a year and a half that God would put a child in our lives that we would adopt.  I prayed that we wouldn’t have to hurt, we wouldn’t have to face challenges or trials.  I believed that He would be powerful enough to do what everyone said couldn’t be done.  And He is.  Even if His answer is ‘no’.

I know He can move mountains and Baby could stay with us. But, if the best place for him is with another family, then I trust my God.  He is faithful, He is just, and thankfully, He is all-knowing.  He’s known this child since before he was conceived and He knows him into eternity.  He makes no mistakes. 

So, I am preparing myself.  I stare into Baby’s eyes and think of all that the other care-givers don’t know.  They don’t know his cries.  They don’t know when he’s tired and when he just wants to look at something different.  They don’t know how to rock him when he’s ready for sleep or that he needs to be bundled with one arm out.  They don’t know that he loves the fan and car rides and walks and baths.  Or how he looks for me when he hears my voice and he smiles at the girls and quiets down when he sees them.  He’s a part of our family.

And then he won’t be. 

I’m facing this heartache to care for this child, to give him a safe place and a loving home.  But beyond that, my first and always my first, purpose is to glorify and honor God in every situation.  I hope I’m doing just that, because He is worthy.  I trust Him completely to guard, love, cherish and protect this baby so that one day he will know His name and love Him to change the world.  I trust Him to give him what I won’t be able to.

“I will cover you with my hands and protect you.”  Isaiah 51:16

Guardian

We have a very strict ‘no phone calls at the table’ policy.  Dinner is a special time when we focus on each other and talk about our days.We were just placing dinner on the table when Rhyan asked, “If we get a call for our foster baby, will you answer it.” 

The phone rang.

Just like that. Matt and I looked at each other and laughed.  No way.  I looked at the number and didn’t recognize it.  The voice on the other end changed our lives forever.  She said she had an infant that needed a place to stay.  She was removing him from his home that evening. 

We told her we’d have to call her back while we prayed about it.  I already had peace in my heart about this little boy, but we got down on our knees as a family and prayed for guidance and direction.  He guided us to say ‘yes’. 

We knew his approximate age, that he was a boy, but we knew nothing else about him.  We didn’t know his race, his circumstances, his name, date of birth.  Nothing. 

We waited a very long time.  I stayed by the phone.  Dinner was completely forgotten. By 8:30, we put the girls to bed and promised to wake them when he arrived.  At about 9:30, we received the call that the case manager was on her way.  The extraction had been violent and she was frazzled.  I was beside myself.

I waited out at the end our driveway and flagged her down.  She was still visibly upset when she walked around to the baby.  Seeing him for the first time was surreal.  Without information, I had no idea who to envision.  Now I was seeing him and he was beautiful.  And sleeping. 

I feel in love with him that night.  I know it doesn’t seem possible, but I also know that through God all things ARE possible.  I pray for his little life every second I think of him, look at him, feed him, change him.  He is cherished and treasured while he’s in our home.  I pray for God’s will in his life, that he will go to the home that God chooses.  But my heart is screaming, “Please, Lord, let it be ours.” 

What I am sure of is that God loves him.  God loves me.  He loves my husband, He loves my children.  And I WILL trust Him.

To this baby in our care, from God,  “I am with you and will protect you wherever you go.”  Genesis 28:15