I should post more often. When so much time has passed it’s difficult to summarize all that has transpired. I don’t even know where to begin.

I’ll start with a little context for the current situation.

Back in early 2017, Ashley and I had been among the eligible and waiting adoptive families at a local agency for almost three years. We had been waiting for a lot longer than we had expected to and eventually decided to explore the idea of foster care. We looked into it and started the process but before we completed it, we were chosen by a birth mother and adopted Abigail.

Abigail turns three next month and we’ve once again been waiting to be chosen for an adoption for a while. Earlier this year we started the process of opening our home to foster care and have been working on it for the past six months. We just completed the process this week.

Before we could even finish the final paperwork (there’s so much paperwork!) we were contacted by our case worker about a possible placement. It was a little girl who was temporarily living with her elderly grandparents. We were told she’d gradually be introduced to us in a few weeks and then, if things went well, start living with us soon after. We agreed and started mentally preparing for this new addition.

Less than a week passed before our case worker called us up and said the previously offered placement was no longer going to happen…but she had a new one for us if we were ready. It was two boys, ages two and three who needed an immediate place to stay. If we said yes, we’d have just a few hours to prepare before they’d be dropped off. Very little was known about their situation other than that CPS had removed them that day.

We agreed to welcome the two boys and since that call, our lives have been dramatically different.

These boys are amazing. They’re very well behaved and have adjusted so well. It’s shocking how naturally they have adapted and how much it already feels like they’ve always lived here. We definitely didn’t know what to expect but had been through enough training in preparation for this to know that anything is possible.

We were mentally and emotionally prepared for all kinds of worst-case scenarios. Speaking for myself, I’m not sure I was prepared for what actually has happened. The boys have adjusted, they’re playing with us, they get along with Abigail, they sleep through the night, they eat reasonably well, they behave themselves, and they call us mommy and daddy. It’s incredibly sweet but also very surprising. We did not tell them to call us anything specific; they have insisted on it. Our case worker has encouraged us to allow them to call us whatever they like and focus on making them feel safe and comfortable.

We’re currently focusing on establishing a “normal” for all of us. We’re trying to stay home and keep change to a minimum while everyone adjusts.

This week has been chaotic. It has been intense. It has been overwhelming. But it has also been wonderful. We feel blessed and thankful. Nothing ever seems to go according to plan and so far, that’s been for the best.