An Interesting Week

I try to post updates twice a week but sometimes it doesn't happen. This week was one of those weeks. I began taking classes to become licensed as a foster parent. That means beginning another time of transition. The biggest difference between transitioning for this child and transitioning for Jacob is Jacob. I need to try to make the transition as easy as possible for him.

A new child come becoming anytime after I receive a foster care license. That should happen in about sixty days. In the meantime, I need to make some changes in our daily routines. The first major change is trying to convince Jacob to switch bedrooms. He likes his room but it is considerably smaller than the other spare room in the house. Someday, he will want the larger room. I also have the option of having him share a room with a foster brother (assuming it is safe) if they are in the larger room. I have begun to remove the wallpaper border in the other room and hope to have it repainted in the next couple of weeks. Jacob has chosen Thomas the train as his decorations of choice. I plan to do half the room in trains and the other half blank waiting for the new child. If the new child is a girl, Jacob can choose more trains or a different design for those walls. If the foster child is a boy, he will choose the decorations for that half of the room. That way, each child will have some part of the room that shows his interest. Now, I just need to convince Jacob that he wants to sleep in the "new room."

The other major change is in daycare. Jacob and I love his current sitter. The problem is that she is not licensed and the foster child will need licensed care. I am still waiting to hear if I will be moving to dayshift soon. I do not expect to move before April which means a different sitter for a couple of months at least. Since I don't want to be scrambling when the new child arrives, I have begun looking now. I don't plan to change until February and I receive my license. I can then try to decide if I want to move Jacob or just the new child.

I began foster care classes last week and have three classes to go. I left the first class very optimistic and excited about caring for a child (short term or long term). I began working on the above changes but got sick on Thursday. There is still a lot of time left but I will be busy. Major life changes are never easy but hopefully this one will be worth the effort and excitement.