We are open!

Our case worker called me the week before I was suppose to go to Little Rock for The CALL training to set up our final walk through. I told him I didn't want to do the walk through until I got back from Little Rock because we didn't want to be open while I was in Little Rock and Davin was trying to do the fashion show thing with Alea as a single parent. He said we could go ahead and have our walk through and he would just open us when we were ready. We set up our final walk through for the Wednesday before I went to Little Rock. The walk through went well. It only took about 15 minutes. Chris, our worker, said he would put our paperwork in on Friday but the paperwork probably wouldn't get processed until Monday and that we would be open on Monday, October 7th...the date I gave him as the date we wanted to open.

While I was in Little Rock on Friday I got a call on my phone from on unknown number. I didn't listen to the message until about 4 hours later but it was Chris saying he knew we didn't want to open until Monday but that they needed a place for twin 5 or 6 month old boys. WOW! Not only was I not expecting to be open but I wasn't expecting a call and certainly not a call about twins. I called Chris back to see if he still needed someone for the boys (not sure if we would take them or not still) but he didn't answer and I figured (and later found out) they were already placed so that was great!

So as of Friday, October 4th we were an open foster home.

This week kind of went slowly because I was always wondering when the phone was going to ring wanting us to take a child. It never rang. The end of the week was very busy for us so I am glad we didn't get a call. We still haven't had a call this weekend so I am just wondering when it will happen. I am not dreading it or looking forward to it. It just is. We are just in the holding pattern.

After we got that call on Friday about the twins I think Davin and I were both freaked out about what we had done and what we were getting ready to do. After our 24 hour freak out I think we are both doing much better. Everyday when Davin and Alea get home they both ask me if we have gotten any calls. Davin knows I would tell him before he got home but they both like to ask. Alea gets bummed every time I tell her we didn't get a call. It is good to not get called though because hopefully that means a child is not in a situation that requires they need protecting.

Davin and I have decided that I will make the yes/no call about who to take unless I think it is a situation that we need to discuss first (which will probably be the case most of the time).

Haley texted me on Friday and said that we got in just under the wire. DHS at the state level has told their counties and workers they are not to do any more recruitment, in home consultations (the very first visit), or final walk throughs. They are suppose to focus on their open homes because more layoffs are coming down the pipe this week due to the government shut down.

The November training is still going to go on because the head worker, Rasheda, is going to try to do what she can to get these homes open or close to opening. If all recruitment and training stops there will be a big hole in a few months with no open beds because all the current homes will be full.

I don't imagine we will be without a child for very long.

PRIDE Training of Trainers in Little Rock

The weekend of Alea's fashion show I left for Little Rock on Thursday afternoon for the PRIDE training of trainers for The CALL. We started at 5 pm on Thursday evening and worked until 8. Friday we worked form 8 am until 6:30 and then we had to do homework for the next day. Saturday we worked from 8 am until 4:30. We did not get official breaks at all. Learning about child abuse for three days without breaks was rough! They fed us every meal so they would send us to the back of the room to make our plates and when everyone had taken about 2 bites they would start teaching again. It was a LONG weekend. My partner, Jennifer, had been through the PRIDE training already like I had. Actually, Jennifer and I attended the same training in July so we already knew each other somewhat. Anyway, we had already seen all of the videos and heard everything so we both did really well and didn't cry. The other ladies at the training were hearing it all for the first time so it was a lot harder for them. We were learning how to teach the material but we also had to go through it as learners of the material at the same time. The girls in the class were all great. I just needed breaks.

We have to observe another round of PRIDE training before we can become trainers. I am currently set up to observe the November training. I am actually going to co-teach one session. There are 8 sessions with the 9th session being a panel of current and former foster and adoptive families. The 10th session is a info session presented by DCFS. I am glad I am going to get to co-teach at least one session. That will help break the weekends up.

The hotel we stayed at was also where the training was so that was nice. The hotel was new and very nice. They had a Starbucks right outside of our meeting room. Some of the other girls were just about double fisting it with the coffee. On the last day I broke down and bought some hot cocoa (the room we were in was COLD). This is a picture I took during the training.

The CALL is founded on the principals of James 1:27...
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after widows and orphans in their distress..."

Fashion Show

Alea had a great time at the American Girl Fashion Show! Davin volunteered to help at the fashion show all weekend so he sat at a booth at the entrance and sold raffle tickets. He also helped blow up balloons for decorations before the doors opened each day. He loved all the attention he got from the other moms about being such a great dad. He even wore a pink shirt on the second day to match the color scheme. He really got the comments then.

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After 4 shows this girl was tired.