“She was so full of life. She watched me graduate high school, rebel, graduate college, have a baby, move, and get married. Then, one day, her energy dimmed. Her face turned white. And when the time came, I stepped up and gave back to her what she had given me all of her life. I held her until the last breath.”
“I thought I was being so progressive when I ‘allowed’ my son to dress ‘like a boy’ when he began voicing his opinions. Now, I laugh at that notion. I’ve transformed into a completely different person.”
“My 11-year-old self ran to my bedroom, fighting back tears. I didn’t know when I would see them again or even where they were. My husband blurted out, ‘We should look into that.’ ‘Into being foster parents?’ They were only 5 and 3 years old. They would be so scared. I wanted to be the nice foster mom.”
“‘Well, schools wouldn’t be opening if they didn’t think they could keep the kids safe, right?’ But then I see these counties in Georgia with hundreds of cases after schools opened. I think about my 72-year-old mother currently living with me and wonder if I’m making the right decision.”
“I felt completely overwhelmed and exhausted. Enter Steven.”
“You’re pushing your baby bird from the nest amidst a pandemic. You’re swallowing the fears setting sail in your mothering heart. Dropping your person off at college must feel like a bittersweet victory.”
“I’m not ready for you to go.”
“I’m struggling to make choices that seem unpredictable and scary. I’m struggling with the ‘what if’s’ and the unknowns surrounding the future.”
“I nearly fell right out of my seat when I saw my very first picture of Axel. A cherub, round face of a gorgeous 6-month-old, with the biggest blue eyes, stared right into my soul from the computer screen in that social worker’s office. I was floating on cloud 9, but she reminded me there are always risks involved with adopting from foster care.”
“Single and adopting. Those two words, when said together, shock people. ‘Wouldn’t it just be easier to get married and have kids?’ I woke up Thursday at 3 a.m. with an email. They asked if I would be interested. I VERY quickly responded with an absolute, ‘YES’. Adoption always was in my story.”
