One then None... then THREE...

We had lunch with three case workers that were involved with the case… the birth mothers case worker, her husband’s case worker, and the agency case worker that was certifying us as foster parents. They asked us if we would be willing to take all three of the children. I jumped at the question, “Without a doubt, would we take all three!” Nate had to internalize it a moment but knew that he wanted to as well.
The father had been caught using drugs and the children were being taken from him as well. So what started out as one child had now become three.
The Father’s mother had custody of the children and had us go to her house to meet her and the two young children. They were amazing. So beautiful! So Innocent! So resilient! I was in love. Nate’s face lighted up as the youngest climbed into his lap. They played, they laughed, and they even read books with us. The grandmother asked us if they could come visit us. We were thrilled that she would want them to come to our home. So we set up a date and they came over to our house and had dinner. Once again, it was confirmed to us that we could love these children as our own and that we would do whatever necessary to make to comfortable, happy, and loved.
A week went by and we had not heard anything (all the while I pumping and still producing milk). So we called the birth mother’s case worker and asked if she would come with us to the jail to talk to the birth mother.
The visit went well in the fact that the birth mother said she wanted us to have all three and that she understood she was not able to take care of them. She told us she had a pre-trial scheduled on the 6th and that is when she would tell them that is what she wanted. She is now facing up to another year in jail.
We were sad for her but happy to know that we could help in raising the children in a loving home. They would know that she loved them but was unable to take care of them.
I called the mother-in-law to talk to her about our meeting. When she answered she didn’t seem too happy. She asked me if I would testify that we just wanted to the baby not the other two. Her daughter in Texas was willing to take the two older babies but not the newborn. She told me that she didn’t consider the baby a sibling to the other two because they hadn’t met and they didn’t have the same father… This broke my heart because I have two sisters that don’t have the same biological father but they are every bit a sister to me. I love them unconditionally and could not imagine my life without them. Nate and I want what is best for the children as a whole.