Day 1

We were excited and nervous on Thursday morning as we prepared for our son's arrival. We knew that this would be one of the most exciting days of our lives and one of the more difficult days of his. He had been living in the same home for the past year and a half, so saying goodbye was difficult for both he and his foster mother. Unfortunately, none of them were expecting him to be moved from their home, adding shock and suprise to the already difficult transition.

He arrived at our home wearing red and navy plaid shorts and a gray muscle tee. He had a purple dragon in one hand and a Whataburger milkshake in the other. (The Bible was a gift from his biological mother that he brought with him when he was removed from her home). As I opened the door, my heart leapt. This was him! This was the child that I had been praying for, preparing for and dreaming of for the last seven months! He stood there at the doorway, quietly staring at us and not wanting to come in. After a few minutes he agreed to see what toys we had to offer and even allowed me to hold his dragon. Will and I began to play with him, though he remained cautious as he observed us.

Amazingly, our foster care consultant and his CPS worker stayed about 15 minutes, exchanged some paperwork and left. That was it. With one quick drop off, we were now parents!

I had purchased a small backpack for him. Once he found it,he immediately began trying to put all of his new toys, snacks and clothes into it to "take home" with him. He would not go anywhere without his backpack. I kept trying to explain to him that all of his new things were his to keep forever, but for a child who has just been plucked from all of toys, clothes and relationships, this was hard to believe. (He came to us with one small suitcase containing only a few items of clothing and no toys). We spent the rest of the day playing at the park, drawing with sidewalk chalk and exploring his new surroundings. I know it must've been confusing for him, because I too found it hard to believe that he was actually in our home to stay!

He mentioned his (foster) mommy, daddy, and home frequently the first few days. Once he said, "My mommy is crying right now." It was difficult not to question if moving him from their home was the best thing for him. But I knew that it was. I knew that, though they were familair to him, there were so many issues and concerns that he was certainly better off with us. I would just have to wait for him to figure that out, too.