I am so incredilbly excited to share with everyone that the McMorris Family will be growing beginning tomorrow!!!
This means that as the school year kicks off we will be making it a priority to focus inward on our family and helping each and everyone of us transition into this new life successfully. Keep up the prayers! I swear that my life has been so blessed due to the countless people who are lifting me up in prayer daily. Let me tell you, when I am exhausted and impatient, I just think about all of the love and support that I have, and I get that second wind. You all are an amazing support system near and far!
Although we are still waiting on one piece of paperwork to be completed (we've been waiting for over a month as it has gotten misplaced by DCFS a few times), Brice (5) and Halie (4) will be moving in for good tomorrow morning. The paper that we are waiting on will allow us to also have Jasmine (3). Now that the paper has been located, it should be done before the week is over...fingers crossed.
(The reason that we need this waiver is due to the ages of the kids. We will have 5 children under the age of 6 in our home, and the typical number that DCFS allows is 4 children under the age of 6.)
For those of you to whom this is complete news, I will give a little background. In June we were asked to watch three children while their foster parents, from a different county, were on vacation. We agreed to watch them for a week, and in doing so, we found out that they would be available for adoption in August and that they would most likely be split up since they didn't know of a family in their area willing to take 3 young children. Well, in meeting them and hearing all of this, Dave and I prayed, talked with trusted friends and prayed some more. We made a pledge after our previous adoption attempt to live a "Year of No Crazy", and that year was not up until September. Still, we felt that God was giving us the green light, so we proceeded. Since the week-long visit in July we have been waiting on lots of DCFS red tape and paperwork, but have been able to talk to the kids on the phone several times per week. (Have any of you tried to have a conversation with a 3 year old on the phone? Not an easy task!!!) Last weekend we were able to have the kids visit for 2 days, and in that time I was able to introduce them to my family at the Swanson Family Picnic. We also were so blessed to attend my childhood church, Wildwood Presbyterian Church, where Halie and Jasmine ran around the coffee hour hugging everyone in sight. Too cute!
Although the kids came into DCFS care after some neglect in their early years, I am so happy to say, that they are the most sweet and loving kids. They have had a wonderful foster family for the past year who have nurtured them and provided all of the educational and developmental services that they needed. Only minor delays remain for some of the kids, and their progress indicates that they will all catch up and thrive in a stable, stimulating and loving environment. Yay!!!
August 31st the biological parents will have their rights' terminated. They can either sign them over willingly, or the courts will terminate their rights for them. At that time, we will begin the adoption process. The children need to be in our home for 6 months before they can legally be adopted by us.
So many people have commended Dave and I for "taking in" foster kids, and I wish I felt that selfless. The truth is, we were not done being parents. We knew we wanted to grow our family some more, and from very early on in my life, the thought of kids going to bed without a Mom and Dad to hug and kiss them just weighed on my heart. Did you know that there are 147 million orphans worldwide? Well, now there are 147 million minus 3. We are so blessed to be a part of this miracle.
With a grateful heart,
Cara
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