That incredible feeling when you finally get that callback and they say “You got the child.” It’s comparable to “it’s a boy!”, or “I now pronounce you husband and wife”, or “I’m pregnant”, or any other precious moments in your life. I immediately started realizing how unprepared I was.
- Do we have a car seat?
- Where are they going to sleep?
- Do we have a baby monitor? Do we need one?
- Am I going to take off work? Do I need to take off work?
- What are they going to eat?
- Do we have diapers?
- Do we have clothes?
Luckily I have an amazing wife that had already thought about all of this and had already prepared everything in advance.
Every placement is different and none of them ever go as planned (at least that’s what our CPS case worker told us). And ours was definitely not an exception. If you ever get the chance, ask me about it and I’ll gladly share it. Unfortunately, I’m not going to share it in this post.
Here’s what to expect:
- A very quick recap of the training that you just spent the last X months going through.
- Some paperwork that will need signing confirming you understand all of the training.
- An introduction with the CPS case worker that you will work with over the next couple of weeks.
- An update on the parent or other potential legal guardians.
Once all of that was out of the way, we were standing outside of a room and the CPS worker asked “Are you ready?” I paused for a moment. It had been a whirlwind of a year. What led us down the path of fostering was now overshadowed by my wife being pregnant again. Fear of the unknown started to play a dominant role in my thoughts. Could we really have three kids under three? What if my wife has another miscarriage? What if the foster child has serious medical conditions? How long will we have them? Can I really love and care for another child as my own? What if our current child doesn’t get along with them? What if we fail an inspection and the child is taken away?
As all of these thoughts began racing through my mind, the CPS agent opened the door. I don’t really know what I was expecting on the other side. Maybe I was thinking there would be a large group of people applauding us for our great service. There wasn’t. Maybe I was thinking that my entire family would come visit us to help welcome this new child into our family. They didn’t. Maybe I was thinking of how God has blessed me and my family so much and I couldn’t wait to pay it forward. I wasn’t, but I wish I was.
When that door swung open and I got the chance to see that child, the price-less terrified look on my wife’s face hiding behind the pure enjoyment of knowing we are actually doing something that we both felt God had called us to do, made all those thoughts and fears disappear. Joy was all that remained.