Today we were suppose to have our last interview with Buckner but the person doing our home study was having car problems so it has been rescheduled for next Monday. This is no big deal and kind of a relief since this week is going to be busy for us.
So, last Friday I spent the day looking at every baby store I could think of trying to figure out what are must needs and what are would like to haves. Buck and I also spent that night looking at bedding for both boys and girls. It can get a little overwhelming looking at crib bedding and toddler bedding for both boys and girls but mostly it was fun. My grandparents are coming this weekend and are wanting to go shopping with us and then I am hoping my mom will be here at the end of February to do some more shopping. Buck's mom has also graciously said she will come help us paint one weekend. Yay! :)
Though Buck and I were thinking that we were going to have elementary age children placed in our home the change to now open our home to even younger ones has been fun, exciting and is a gentle reminder of how God works. After several months of being unable to find a job and feeling a little defeated to then finding out that Buckner has a need for stay at home foster moms for non school age children it all made sense. I know that sometimes it's hard to understand what God wants from you or what move you are suppose to take next but we are grateful that we understand this step in our lives and we look forwrd to the journey and adventures it will bring.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Steps 456 and 457
For good reasons there are several steps to the foster care porcess and Buckner is doing a perfect job of reminding us about what is needed and where we are in the process. We are greatful to have such a great team on our side. Today Buck and I have to complete one more step and drive downtown to get our figerprinted. On Monday we will have the last part of our home study which is the longest step of them all.
Today I spent two hours cleaning used toys that we were given to us. My hands and my house now smells like bleach, however the toys are at least starting off clean. And again, we really appreciate those of you who have given us ideas of where to buy things or given to us. Thank you for your part you will be playing to help families heal or for families to grow.
Today I spent two hours cleaning used toys that we were given to us. My hands and my house now smells like bleach, however the toys are at least starting off clean. And again, we really appreciate those of you who have given us ideas of where to buy things or given to us. Thank you for your part you will be playing to help families heal or for families to grow.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
How Can I Help?
We have had several people over the last few weeks ask how they can help us in this process. Well the biggest thing you can do is pray. Prayer not only for us, but for the children, their birth families, the caseworkers involved and for Buckner.
Also there are a few things that we still need to properly care for children, so if you know of places of where to get great deals on cribs, car seats, baby monitor, etc please let us know. We will have to be ready for an age range of children (boy or girl) and there are somethings that will be stables. It can be overwhelming to think about but (thanks to my mom) we have a pretty good system figured out, we just need to get the things :)
If you are still wanting to do more but are not interested in becoming foster parents you can volunteer at your local CASA. Go here www.texascasa.org to learn more about them. They are a great organization and I have two close friends that work and volunteer for CASA. You can also call your local foster care agency and ask how you can help, we suggest Buckner but there are several other good ones in the area.
Thanks for the continued support
Also there are a few things that we still need to properly care for children, so if you know of places of where to get great deals on cribs, car seats, baby monitor, etc please let us know. We will have to be ready for an age range of children (boy or girl) and there are somethings that will be stables. It can be overwhelming to think about but (thanks to my mom) we have a pretty good system figured out, we just need to get the things :)
If you are still wanting to do more but are not interested in becoming foster parents you can volunteer at your local CASA. Go here www.texascasa.org to learn more about them. They are a great organization and I have two close friends that work and volunteer for CASA. You can also call your local foster care agency and ask how you can help, we suggest Buckner but there are several other good ones in the area.
Thanks for the continued support
Monday, January 24, 2011
Buckner and the Baskin's
I have had several request from friends to start blogging about our journey as we prepare to become foster parents. Since we are now done with our classes and are currently in the process of our home study I decided that now is as good as time as any to begin. So for those of you who have asked...here we go.
It's hard to even know where to begin, so I will start with the most asked questions throughout this process.
Why? This one is easy, I fell in love with population of people about 7 years ago when I first began grad school and have been working with foster children ever since. I have felt that this is something that God has wanted me to do for a while and everywhere I go things point towards it. I am not sure if any of you saw Freedom Writers where the teacher talks about being blessed with a burden, well this is us. We are blessed with a burden and know that we are suppose to do our part. We want to help families become whole again and give children the opportunity to grow and flourish into beautiful young people.
Don't you want your own children? Yes, no, maybe so. I can't really answer this right now. We sway back and forth on it almost daily.
What does your family think? We are both pretty lucky and for the most part we have a very supportive family who is praying for us, helping us along the process and eager to be apart. However as with all families we do have some who are concerned and wonder why we would bring other peoples children into our home when we could have our own or they are worried about the trouble it may cause. I understand their concerns, but that's all they are, their concerns not ours. We are not nieve, but we aren't scared either.
Won't you get upset when they leave? Yes, of course I will. I think if you don't then you aren't doing it correctly. We do have to remember that it's our goal that families become whole again and we must hope that every family can be restored! People can change. It will be hard and I am sure their will be tears. Plus we are open to the idea that we may adopt, we aren't sure, we just aren't closing that door ever!
Why Buckner? In the several years I have worked within the foster care system I have never been less than impressed with Buckner. Their staff, policies, and love for children is evident in everything they do. Plus, I have some personal connections with Buckner along with there being a Buckner campus in our home town which will make traveling home to visit people a little easier.
And last, what age group? As of know we are thinking birth to 8th grade. We struggled with this for a long time but decided this was best for us at this time. We were told in class there is a high need for 0-3 families (lots of families want children already potty trained) so we are praying through and discussing me staying at home and focusing on the infants.
So what's the process from here...I will not bore you with the many many things we have had to do but I will tell you were are almost done. Buckner's policy is that you have to be married for two years before they can place a child with you, so for us this means we have 5 months to get ready...like you can ever be ready...
So to our friends and family who have supported us so far, we thank you. We are looking forward to this and are honestly we are a little scared too. There will be more responsibility on our end and we also realize it means we may lose some friends, see less of some family and friends, and have to make some tough choices. But we are thrilled to have most of you guys along for the journey. We ask for your continued support, listening ear, and at times a babysitter (haha).
It's hard to even know where to begin, so I will start with the most asked questions throughout this process.
Why? This one is easy, I fell in love with population of people about 7 years ago when I first began grad school and have been working with foster children ever since. I have felt that this is something that God has wanted me to do for a while and everywhere I go things point towards it. I am not sure if any of you saw Freedom Writers where the teacher talks about being blessed with a burden, well this is us. We are blessed with a burden and know that we are suppose to do our part. We want to help families become whole again and give children the opportunity to grow and flourish into beautiful young people.
Don't you want your own children? Yes, no, maybe so. I can't really answer this right now. We sway back and forth on it almost daily.
What does your family think? We are both pretty lucky and for the most part we have a very supportive family who is praying for us, helping us along the process and eager to be apart. However as with all families we do have some who are concerned and wonder why we would bring other peoples children into our home when we could have our own or they are worried about the trouble it may cause. I understand their concerns, but that's all they are, their concerns not ours. We are not nieve, but we aren't scared either.
Won't you get upset when they leave? Yes, of course I will. I think if you don't then you aren't doing it correctly. We do have to remember that it's our goal that families become whole again and we must hope that every family can be restored! People can change. It will be hard and I am sure their will be tears. Plus we are open to the idea that we may adopt, we aren't sure, we just aren't closing that door ever!
Why Buckner? In the several years I have worked within the foster care system I have never been less than impressed with Buckner. Their staff, policies, and love for children is evident in everything they do. Plus, I have some personal connections with Buckner along with there being a Buckner campus in our home town which will make traveling home to visit people a little easier.
And last, what age group? As of know we are thinking birth to 8th grade. We struggled with this for a long time but decided this was best for us at this time. We were told in class there is a high need for 0-3 families (lots of families want children already potty trained) so we are praying through and discussing me staying at home and focusing on the infants.
So what's the process from here...I will not bore you with the many many things we have had to do but I will tell you were are almost done. Buckner's policy is that you have to be married for two years before they can place a child with you, so for us this means we have 5 months to get ready...like you can ever be ready...
So to our friends and family who have supported us so far, we thank you. We are looking forward to this and are honestly we are a little scared too. There will be more responsibility on our end and we also realize it means we may lose some friends, see less of some family and friends, and have to make some tough choices. But we are thrilled to have most of you guys along for the journey. We ask for your continued support, listening ear, and at times a babysitter (haha).
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