The Past Twelve Hours

Hi. It’s me.

Life looks a bit different for us lately, in a way that’s hard to summarize succinctly, so here’s a glance at what the past twelve hours have been like:

10pm: get an email and a text about a possible placement of two; discuss it and pray

10:30pm: send an email expressing our interest and a few follow-up questions; send quick text to prayer warriors

6am: let the dogs outside, and pass by the bedrooms, wondering if today is the day they’ll be filled; get email response from caseworker; call my mama and talk through some of the details and what to expect

6:30am: make breakfast while praying for wisdom; wait for Andrew to get back from the gym to discuss; unload the dishwasher because I can’t sit still

8am: think about the kiddos, wondering what their personalities will be like; start dusting the rooms and the fans, in case today is the day

9am: Andrew talks with our caseworker, then jumps in a work meeting; she calls me shortly after and we talk for a bit

9:30am: Andrew talks about a safety question with a friend; we officially say yes to accepting the placement

11am: we hear back from our caseworker, and lets us know that DCS would prefer a home closer to where visits will take place (we’re 1.5 hours away), and will keep us in mind

11:15am: receive the sweetest email from our wraparound team, confirming that this foster life we lead isn’t one we’re alone in, and so we wait, and we pray, and we keep holding space in our hearts for the kiddos that may or may not come live with us.

We may go to sleep tonight with those beds still empty, we’re not yet sure. We remind ourselves that the Lord will bring the children He determines us to be a good fit for, that we’re not in control, and that, in a perfect world, there wouldn’t even be a need for foster parents.

But the names of each possible placement referral we receive? These kids whose faces we’ve never seen, and who will most likely never sleep in the rooms we’ve prepared?

They live in our hearts.