Love and Thanks

Tonight I was reading through some posts on one of the foster/adopt support group pages I frequent and was appalled and saddened to read about a member who is struggling this Christmas because her family has said she and her family were not invited to family Christmas if they brought along their foster son.  Other member shared that they were invited to go up north for a holiday weekend but were told not to bring along their foster children, only their biological children.

I am speechless.

As I was reflecting, and re-reading my own blog from last week, and talking about it with my mom, I realized how much my own family is invested - and has been - invested in my foster children.

This calling on my life is from the Lord. 
Of that I have no doubt.
I live 2000 miles away from my immediate family
But they have been supportive
Beyond words
Of my calling.

They meet Miss M and Ms. O last year
And loved on them like their own
Grandchildren
Nieces
Cousins

They meet Miz N in July
When we came home for the 4th
And in the last six months
They have all made special visits out here
To meet
And love on
The Littles
And all desiring to be out here again
Afraid they might not see them again.

Every picture they take
They include them in
Even in creative ways with back of heads
Or willing to star out faces

Every conversation we have
Rolls back to them.
 
Every birthday is celebrated.
Every milestone is praised.
Every day they are covered in prayers.
Their text messages
And inbox-es
Are full of pictures
And videos
Of my crew
And they love them like I do.
And I can't express
Ever
How much that means to.

My family.
My mom.
My dad.
My sister.
My other sister.
My niece.
They are 2000 miles away
In Michigan
But they love my foster kids.
They want to get to know them.
They want to spend time with them.
They want to spoil them.
They want to love on them.
And they do.

And I cannot imagine what I would do
If they weren't really to risk
The hurt that comes with the love for these
Dear foster children the Lord lends me for a time
For a moment.
For a lifetime - in the heart.

(And my family is learning first-hand
Why I came home to Michigan every
9-12 weeks
When my niece was a Little herself.
They are just too much fun
And they just change way too fast!)

Also
I have dear friends here in the valley
Who have stayed close to me throughout this process
And shown me
And my kiddos
Love
And support in ways I cannot express.
Dear friends who accept my new life the way it is
And make our relationships work out 
Despite three kids running around every conversation.

There have been other relationships,
Friendships,
That have been strained because my new life is not convenient
Or doesn't fit into the mold it used to
But the Lord has filled
With overflowing
Those holes
With new relationships
With new support structures
With new friends
And they are my rocks.

Despite my ability to talk to just about anyone
I actually am quite an introvert
Who likes to stay close at home
And with that comes
A lot of
Internalization.
Self-doubt.
Stress.
Worry.
But it means the world to me that I have these
Friends in Arizona
Friends in Michigan
Friends scattered around the US
And my amazing family
To turn to
For prayer
For support
For a listening ear
For a lending hand.

Thank you, Mom.
Thank you, Dad.
Thank you, Kayleen.
Thank you, Janelle.
Thank you, Mikayla.
Thank you, Sarah.
Thank you, my PS MAPP peeps.
Thank you, my FB support pages.
Thank you, my FB and blog reading/praying friends.
(Those who comment and/or like and/or stalk.) :-)
Thank you, Sara.
Thank you, Mission Kids team.
Thank you, My Pueblo teaching team.
Thank you, Various valley-wide fostering support programs.
Thank you, Anonymous givers of gift cards and money from time to time.
Thank you, Anyone I forgot.
Thank you, God.