Category Archives: Blog Posts

Rather than a (late) blog post for this week, I thought I would share what I’ve been working on the past two weeks. This last Sunday, I had the amazing opportunity to preach at my church, The Church We Hope For. I preached on Becoming Familia, which is one of our church values, but seemsContinue reading “Becoming Familia”

I’m used to being the in between placement for my babies. I’m after their first family, but before they’re reunified or sent to live with a family member or a foster family. A lot about being an ESH home is about waiting in between. It’s about starting up medical referrals that I probably won’t beContinue reading “Stuck In the In Between”

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than one-fifth of adults in the United States has a mental health disorder or mental illness. Approximately 23% of adults reported having a mental illness. When it comes to parenting, the stress and prevalence of mental illness is even higher. The Surgeon General published an advisoryContinue reading “Mental Health and Fostering”

“Every child deserves a champion — an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best they can possibly be.” – Rita F. Pierson This week, I had court for the baby I’m currently caring for. I expected a lot of things, butContinue reading “Be the Champion”

It’s an odd concept to most people – fostering babies, and then giving them to their forever family. No longer having any say in their life, and in many cases, no longer having an idea what is going on in their life. I always love it when I get to stay in touch with myContinue reading “When You Don’t See the Fruit of Your Labor”

I wrote my last blog post on community comments that hit me wrong, that I dislike hearing from others when it comes to my fostering journey. So it just makes sense that I would follow that up with my favorite comments (or hoped-for comments) about fostering. “How can I support you?” I know that notContinue reading “Community Comments – Part 2”

I recently read Through Adopted Hearts, a book of memoirs by birth and adoptive parents. One of the questions they were asked were, “What are some of the worst comments you’ve received as a parent?” It made me think of my journey as a foster parent and some of the comments I have heard fromContinue reading “Community Comments”

I get told all the time that I’m so selfless for becoming a foster parent, and while there is some selflessness in signing up to take care of so many babies with so many needs, I get far more out of it than I put into it. I was challenged today by my therapist toContinue reading “Fulfillment in Foster Care”

I tend to have a scarcity mindset – always thinking about if I’ll have enough money, enough time, enough patience, enough of me to go around. And being a foster mom, it always seems like there’s never enough. There’s always more babies who need a home. There’s always more time I could spend with myContinue reading “Abundance in Scarcity”

It’s now been almost three years since I’ve posted anything on this blog. I’ve finished a PhD program (that’s right – I’m Dr. Alicia now), taken in `10 more babies, and started a new job. The little boy I thought I would adopt ending up going with another family, and that’s okay. It was whatContinue reading “Back with a Vengeance”