“This woman, who I’d never met before, inserted herself where she didn’t belong, asking questions about the 2-week-old baby in the car seat. I stared into her judging eyes. She couldn’t possibly begin to understand.”

‘His mom is a crackhead, isn’t she?’ The woman in line was relentless. She just didn’t get it.’: Mom reflects on complexities of foster care, ‘We are merely called to love’

‘They had better things to do than feed him.’ He was blue and resembled an alien. ‘OF COURSE, we’ll take him!’: Foster parents adopt shaken baby survivor
“’We have a 2-month-old baby boy, failure to thrive.’ I had never seen anything like him. My husband had tears in his eyes as the caseworker filled us in. They didn’t expect him to do much. That sweet baby boy had given up, but we were not giving up on him.”

‘You can only adopt if you have a relationship with the birth parents.’ I got months of abusive texts. Dad was loud and rude.’: Couple adopt foster son after roller coaster, ‘I’d do it all again’
“NOTHING prepared me for family visits. I didn’t know how to deal with the abuse. I felt betrayed and manipulated. But I’d do it all again.”

‘I think it’s best to move them into a 2-parent home.’ I had failed. They were concerned I wasn’t committed to their care.’: Single mom of 5 shares adoption journey, ‘These girls are my world’
“I got the call. ‘Can you take in your adopted daughter’s biological sister who has just been born?’ I hid in the bathroom and just cried. I sobbed to the CPS worker: ‘I know what my answer needs to be, but it’s going to be so hard!'”

‘We’ve dealt with lice, super lice, lies, fighting, suspension, sexting, smoking, vaping, and drugs. It wasn’t our plan, but God had other plans.’: After infertility, mom fosters 10 kids
“I remember yelling at God in my minivan after another depressing doctor’s appointment. This wasn’t our plan. ‘Are you going to take me?’ His room was concrete blocks, no outlets, and a window so high you couldn’t see out.”

‘We ‘couldn’t handle’ being foster parents. We had just packed up our house and were moving in a week. ‘Do you have room for a placement?’: Family seeking adoption welcomes foster baby, ‘There is never a perfect time’
“We found out we were pregnant with our 4th child. We were very surprised! So many people tried to talk us out of renewing our license. I felt like I ‘couldn’t handle it.’ Then, we got a call. ‘Can you take him?’ I am willing to risk a broken heart.”

‘I got the call. ‘She has no name and no parents.’ This tiny baby was detoxing so bad she couldn’t eat.’: Mom adopts and fosters 16 kids after pregnancy loss, ‘I gave them my all’
“I got the call. The one I never in a million years thought I would receive. She had no prenatal care, she was not born in the hospital, and she was detoxing from multiple narcotics. ‘You have 2 minutes to choose a name.’ We went from one child to 4 in the span of 5 months.”

‘You’re meant to have a daughter.’ If I heard I’d have another son, I’d move on. We had a decision to make.’: Family fosters to adopt brother/sister pair, ‘They are ours forever’
“We saw signs everywhere. ‘What if I told you coming home to your boys was only PART of your purpose?’ We knew she was coming. It was a shock, but we were going to move forward.”

‘I choked back tears when Travon told me, ‘You’re my big sister now!’ My earth shattered. These 3 brothers were home. It was all in front of me.’
“We got a call for three boys – ages 1, 3, and 4. They were brothers, and had been separated. ‘I’m glad you are not mean and never get mad. I was scared of foster parents, but not you. You never scream or cuss,’ the oldest said as my mom tucked him in. In their eyes, they were already a part of our family.”