3 + 3 = 0

No, this is not my home educator skills falling apart at the seams. This is the equation of my last few weeks.
You see in 3 weeks we've had 3 calls for possible placements, that have resulted in ZERO children.
Week 1 - call for newborn. An hour later said newborn was placed with family that came forward. I am totally cool with that. Would have loved to find out in that hour and not the next day after I bought baby clothes and such, but hey, such is the life of a foster parent.
Week 2 - call for 2 possible kiddos. Set to arrive late the following week. Waiting, waiting, and more waiting. That following week... court continued. More waiting.
Week 3 - call for 6 month old. Said yes right away and started packing diaper bag while waiting on the case worker to call back. But wait we are going out of town in an hour... no problem one of us will stay home. Case worker tried, but supervisor said to place elsewhere and not inconvenience us. Ok, I can live with that, but seriously would have jumped through hoops for a kiddo that needed some lovin'.
Week 4 - Back to the kids from week 2 and that continued court hearing. Heard absolutely nothing. Guess they don't need us.

So this is just a picture of the whirlwind that we live every day. Being ready at a moments notice. Moving beds, rearranging rooms, clothing on hand for any kid in every size. And most of all waiting. I really don't like waiting. I'm a doer. When I see a problem, and believe me I hear and see it on the news every day, I want to jump in up to my elbows and get dirty.

Right now I still have Baby Bubba, as Ryan so affectionately calls him, here to keep my focus. And believe me there is plenty there to keep me on my toes.

Avery of course is full tilt into new school year chaos mode. That is enough to send me to a padded room.

Things are leveling out though and I think we are ready for more chaos in our world. We just aren't quite sure what to do without it.

The Highs and Lows

Since Ryan and I started trying to build our family all too long ago it has been a series of highs and lows. It seems this phase of life is no exception. Foster care seems to be the pinnacle of the emotional rollercoaster.
In the last few months we've had the possible arrival of 2 children that didn't come. We've said goodbye to a little one whom we had in our home for over 5 months. And now we have yet another possibility of 2 more children's arrival in the coming week.
It's a lot to process. As an adult I often get caught up in the emotion. For my child, well it can be rough. Really rough.
This past week one of our former foster kiddos celebrated a birthday. She was at the forefront of our minds and she along with her siblings have been the topic of our conversations a lot this week. It's hard to miss them. It's hard to know your place once they move on. To stay involved and yet not overstep. To let them heal with their new family, but to let them know they still hold a place in your heart. Tricky stuff.
So this week we wait, we prepare, we pray, and we hope for what might be. In the next breath we mourn the loss, we grieve for the hurt and pain that brings children to our home, and we pray that we will be equipped to handle it all.

2nd Grade is F-U-N

A lot has happened over the last couple weeks. J went home to his mom. C's case has been all over the map and back again (don't ask what's going on cuz even I don't have a clue how this one will end), we got a call for a newborn who didn't end up coming and in the midst of it all... my girl became an official 2nd grader.

We always start official school the Tuesday after Labor Day, but yesterday as I was finalizing some lesson plans Miss A asked if she could "please, please start school now". So being the flexible home educator that I am (note intended sarcasm by totally rigid over-planner) how could I not answer the request.
So yes, today we began our new school year. I have made a promise to myself to make this year more engaging and creative. This does not come naturally to me in an educational setting or at least not one where I am responsible to see that she is up to snuff with her peers and meeting required milestones. Ahh the pressure! Albeit self induced pressure. But yes, I have devised a plan... and it's FUN! She didn't complain one single second of school today. In fast she completed more subjects than I had on schedule and even requested to take her Russian lesson in the car. Could it be that I have found the key? Or maybe I'm kidding myself and this is just first day excitement. Either way I am going to bask in the glory of one fabulous day and milk it for everything I can.
We are doing some fun geography this year. Every 2 weeks we are immersing ourselves in a different country. From cuisine, historical leaders and fashion trends to map skills and govornmental structure. I'm so excited.
Every Monday we are kicking off the week with a science experiment and she's learning about the body and will have to draw a picture of herself with properly placed internal organs by the end of the year.
Phonics, Math, Handwriting and Spelling still not that fun. But I've finally found a plan to assist her creative writing skills and that excites me. It terrifies her, but I'm excited and that's what really matters, right??
Who'da thunk it? I'd actually enjoy homeschooling. But I really think this year might be a winner!