https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 19 Apr 2026 23:11:33 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/foster-care-psa#post-2880990 Tue, 16 Apr 2019 14:54:18 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2880990@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm overwhelmed with the number of babies I've had to say no to lately, especially medically fragile babies, abused babies, starved babies. All in the last month. I can't post on Facebook because our community is too small and I'd be violating confidentiality, but I wanted to put it out there. If you've ever considered being a foster parent, even if it's just respite help or something, please keep thinking about it. Make that call, look into it in your area. We need more homes, and more importantly, more GOOD homes. We need parents who are on top of it, who already know how to advocate for these kids. Our agency alone has placed 18 kids in the last 4 weeks. Those are only the kids we've been able to say yes to, and we are in a VERY rural area. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-would-make-you-want-to-become-a-foster-parent-what-would-make-you-decide-to-foster-teens#post-2873963 Tue, 26 Feb 2019 15:21:53 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2873963@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm hoping no one minds me using this forum for a work related question. I work as a recruiter for my foster family agency. We are REALLY in need of more homes for teens. I've been tasked with doing some research and thinking of new ways to market and recruit to find families for teens.</p> <p>I'm hoping to get some ideas from the moms here. If you were considering foster parenting, what would make you consider taking teens? Would it be the support the agency could offer? Activities for the teens? Support groups? </p> <p>Similarly, if you went to an informational presentation about foster care at your church, school or place of work, what would you want to hear in the presentation? What questions would you definitely want answered? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/respite-dilemma#post-2831187 Thu, 28 Jun 2018 23:39:59 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2831187@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>This isn't exactly a question most of you can relate to, but since most of my frame of reference is other foster parents at this point, I'd like to hear from some "regular" parents. </p> <p>We have two road trips coming up. The first is next week Thursday-Sunday. We will be staying with friends/family in two cities, doing a 5 hour drive Thursday, 2 hours Friday and 5 hours again Sunday. The second trip is similar driving times but we are camping. The first trip I'm by myself, the second I have my wife coming. O is coming on both trips.</p> <p>We have the option of using respite care (placement with other foster families) for the baby for either or both trips. I had planned on using it for the camping trip because I don't know what the weather will be like and bugs and everything will make it uncomfortable for a 2 month old. This trip next week though I'm torn. The trip would be WAY easier and more fun for O without the baby, but I feel super guilty. We have great families lined up who will take great care of her on each trip. Really nurturing, she'll get a ton of attention and snuggles, etc. No worries there. I just feel bad. </p> <p>Am I a terrible person if we put her in respite for both trips? Our SW pointed out that it might be good for O to know that other people sometimes take care of her, assuming she won't be staying forever. So that's a thing too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/ted-talk-about-the-foster-system#post-2631679 Tue, 04 Oct 2016 12:20:04 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2631679@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p><a href="https://youtu.be/Uwj5XKzOadM" rel="nofollow">https://youtu.be/Uwj5XKzOadM</a></p> <p>I found this so incredibly inspiring and powerful, and deeply sad all at the same time, I felt it had to be shared. For anyone interested in fostering, I hope this inspires you to jump in and open your home to a child who needs to be loved. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/what-made-you-decide-to-foster#post-2397122 Wed, 23 Dec 2015 13:45:00 +0000 LuLu Mom 2397122@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The more and more I think about it, the more I really would like to foster when our children are older, maybe even out of the house. My aunt's family (through marriage) has fostered for 30+ years, and their family is this huge, extended loving household. It touches my heart to see how many lives they have touched! They had their struggles of course, and they say it is not easy (they usually did tween/teenagers) but they said the rewards out way the struggles. What was your deciding factor, did you always know? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/preparation-for-foster-parenting#post-2374727 Tue, 01 Dec 2015 17:58:42 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2374727@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Well, we are definitely taking the plunge. The further through the process we've gotten, the more sure we feel that this is what we should do. We have nearly all of our paperwork in, our home inspection done, and we just have a couple more meetings, CPR and a bit of training left to complete before we are licensed. </p> <p>So...we are starting to prepare our house. We have a spare room that was always going to be the "kids room." We have a twin bed and bedding for it, a bookshelf with tons of really old kids books, a few stuffed animals and toys, and a couple of clothing items. We are hoping to start with an infant, so we are in the process of looking for a crib. </p> <p>I'm trying to figure out how much gear and supplies we need. Not knowing the age makes it really hard. The agency said not to get a car seat yet because they will help us buy one when we get a placement. But then it's an emergency and I hate being rushed into buying things! Then there is so much else, bottles, formula, diapers (we are hoping to use cloth if we can find a reasonable stash of one size fits all to pick up used), and the list just keeps going. I think many foster parents already have kids so they have a lot of the supplies. </p> <p>If any of you have done this, what did you buy ahead of time? Did you have time to shop once you got the placement call? One problem is that we are very rural and the only store within 45 min is walmart, which we really try to avoid as much as possible. So it's not quite so easy just to run out to the store. It's so hard to not want to BUY ALL THE THINGS!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/home-inspection-tuesday-yikes#post-2366266 Sun, 22 Nov 2015 16:40:37 +0000 Mrs. Turtle 2366266@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Well, we have slowly been moving ahead with the foster to adopt process. We aren't close yet, but we have our initial home inspection on Tuesday afternoon and I'm terrified. I know it's just the initial one, but of course I want things to look decent and I just wish I knew specifically what kinds of things they're concerned about. We live on 3 acres with animals, so making the entire property childproof is a joke. Our fencing isn't perfect (but it keeps the animals in/out) and our property isn't by any means perfectly landscaped. I think it looks fine but it feels like they're just going to come over and judge everything and it's stressing me out. Do any of you have experience with this? Do they check things like the cars? Our cars are the only part of our lives where we are messy, so I guess I should work on cleaning those out today. Our house should be fine, I've been cleaning all week and reorganizing so it doesn't look cluttered or messy. It's all in good shape. It's mainly the property that I'm concerned about. And just having someone walk into our house and tell us if we're fit to have kids here or not. Ugh. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fostering-to-adopt#post-2269560 Fri, 21 Aug 2015 10:28:07 +0000 ShootingStar 2269560@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>DH and I want to add to our family and we are seriously considering foster to adopt. I sometimes check the waiting kids every once in a few months or so. A couple days ago I found a couple of girls (sibling group) that I can't stop thinking about. </p> <p>I filled out a form for more information, but it sounds like we'd be poor candidates because we have a young child already. I was a little annoyed, because unlike most of the other posts, this one didn't mention that requirement. And the more I think about adding to our family via foster to adopt vs TTC, the more appealing it is. But I'm worried because practically every single listing for kids under 10 is that they must be the youngest or the only kids.</p> <p>Does anyone have any experience with this? DH and I feel we have a ton to offer (lots of love to give, nice house, comfortable lifestyle) and that it could be a benefit for kids to come into a family that's working well and have some normalcy and stability. My son can be a lot of fun and loves playing with his slightly older cousins. But we're not social workers so maybe we just don't really comprehend the situation that well. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/foster-care-resources#post-2248048 Tue, 28 Jul 2015 13:21:45 +0000 Mrs. Lion 2248048@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Is anyone familiar with any blogs or websites that describe experiences with being a foster parent, specifically as a short term foster parent whose goal isn't necessarily to adopt? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/would-did-you-have-foster-or-biological-children-first#post-2215372 Mon, 22 Jun 2015 14:11:35 +0000 travelingnanny 2215372@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My BF and I have plans to foster and have biological children in the near-ish future. We were chatting about what we should do first and we both have different opinions on it. Most people I know have biological children and then decide to foster but there are a few who did foster care first. What is your opinion?</p> <p>I did come across this blog post about it-</p> <p><a href="http://theologista.blogspot.com/2013/09/should-you-adopt-or-have-biological.html" rel="nofollow">http://theologista.blogspot.com/2013/09/should-you-adopt-or-have-biological.html</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-did-you-get-involved-in-fostering#post-2072627 Thu, 19 Feb 2015 19:45:00 +0000 regberadaisy 2072627@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Just curious how some families decide to foster.</p> <p>Friends of ours shared that they were at fostering fair on Valentine's Day. I think they have been TTC for a while and have decided to adopt. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/anyone-looking-for-a-good-cry-this-morning-the-child-i-didnt-adopt-article-from-scary-mommy#post-1910438 Wed, 22 Oct 2014 08:30:53 +0000 keepcalmcarrie 1910438@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Not sure if this is the right place for it, but s friend of mine who is adopted shared this article recently, and it made me ugly cry in front of the movers this morning :( </p> <p><a href="http://www.scarymommy.com/the-child-i-didnt-adopt/" rel="nofollow">http://www.scarymommy.com/the-child-i-didnt-adopt/</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/foster-care-for-a-relative#post-663452 Sun, 24 Mar 2013 05:38:14 +0000 hellocupcake 663452@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm not sure if this is the right place for this but here it goes:</p> <p>Would you consider being a foster parent to the child of a relative? Pros and cons? </p> <p>So far I have this:<br /> Pro<br /> Baby will be with family : If mother doesn't get her life together we can adopt and ensure baby remains with family</p> <p>Con<br /> Stress of family input in our decisions<br /> Drama that birth mother might bring<br /> Problems baby might have growing up<br /> Balancing two babies (newborn and our own 3MO)</p> <p>I'm leaning towards yes because it's family but I'm not sure that's a strong enough reason in itself. We already planned on me being a SAHM which I think gives me an advantage to better handle the situation but I figured I could ask for advice/opinions. </p> <p>Thank you. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/any-one-have-questions-for-a-foster-care-blog-post#post-1204889 Fri, 08 Nov 2013 14:06:57 +0000 Mrs. Train 1204889@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I have been in touch with a woman who is a social worker for the foster care system. I am trying to get a post done for this month and she is helping me out. Are there any questions anyone might want answered in a blog post about foster care? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/do-you-know-any-foster-families#post-1670169 Sat, 31 May 2014 06:58:52 +0000 Mrs. Polish 1670169@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't know any besides ours and kind of wonder how people even handle doing it longterm. Do you? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/short-film-about-foster-care#post-1521016 Tue, 25 Mar 2014 19:00:36 +0000 Silva 1521016@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/20/video_5_n_4993932.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/20/video_5_n_4993932.html</a></p> <p>Only 10 minutes and worth watching.</p> <p>We are planning to foster when our biological children are a bit older. Both my husband and I have seen the need for quality foster homes in our professional lives, and feel its an important challenge for us to take on. I think we have the resources (emotional, financial, skill set, etc) to be a good home for someone, and so it feels like the necessary choice. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/anyone-foster-or-adopt-while-pregnant#post-1230900 Wed, 20 Nov 2013 18:55:09 +0000 anonysquire 1230900@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Why is this so hard? Especially in Utah where people have babies one right after another. To back it up we started our foster process in March, magically got pregnant in June and still want to foster while pregnant. Or even straight up adopt. But I guess that isn't an option so back to the fostering we will try. Just venting :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/one-simple-wish-for-foster-kids#post-1178523 Mon, 28 Oct 2013 10:13:15 +0000 BlueWolverine 1178523@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Did anyone see this charity featured on CNN? <a href="http://www.onesimplewish.org/" rel="nofollow">http://www.onesimplewish.org/</a> </p> <p>Foster kids register with one simple wish - from a pair of shoes to guitar lessons to blocks. The baby with asthma who needs a cool mist humidifier kind of killed me. Perhaps something to keep in mind with any holiday (or any other kind) giving coming up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/you-dont-have-to-be-perfect-are-such-sweet-words-to-hear#post-1148816 Mon, 14 Oct 2013 11:13:06 +0000 Costello 1148816@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Those were the words spoken to us by our licensing social worker on our final day of foster/adoption training classes this past Saturday. Not going to lie, I nearly cried. :0) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/puzzled-by-required-fosterfoster-to-adopt-classes#post-1082491 Thu, 12 Sep 2013 12:35:35 +0000 Costello 1082491@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I am curious if other people have gone through training for foster and foster/adopt parents. After several of these classes, DH and I are left scratching our heads at the obvious deficits in the program for foster/adopt parents. There is an undeniable bias towards foster parents and seemingly little regard for foster/adopt families. In reality, my wish is for every child to be reunified with his/her stabilized and functional biological family. That just isn't the case for many. This is why people like DH and I have to exist. Our journey into parenthood is something we both take seriously and are committed to educating ourselves in the areas untouched by training. But, I just can't help but think foster/adopt parents are being short-changed by the system and I wonder if it doesn't put these newly formed families behind from the start. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/happy-to-making-some-progress#post-1044813 Mon, 26 Aug 2013 17:24:35 +0000 Costello 1044813@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our meeting with the county went really well and it left us feeling hopeful and with a lot to think about. We are working our way through the paperwork and our foster/adopt classes start this week. Yay! Just a sweet coincidence, our meeting was held in the same room we were married in on the day before our 5th anniversary. Not sure I believe in this but it might appear as if the universe is speaking to us. :0) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/on-to-the-next-step-in-adopting-from-the-foster-system#post-941577 Thu, 18 Jul 2013 11:16:11 +0000 Costello 941577@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I wasn't sure if I should continue to update on our journey because it is a path I haven't really read much about on Hellobee. But, I am so very excited about the evolution of our family, I couldn't resist! DH and I have applied for an interview with our county to move forward with becoming an adopting family. We had some concerns about having pets in our home and the health status of each of us. Fortunately, our concerns are unfounded in the eyes of the agency. Our next step is to become licensed foster parents with a focus on adoption only. To obtain our license, we are required to attend 27 hours of parenting classes, become CPR certified, participate in a homestudy and submit to a thorough background check. The process takes between three to six months to complete. With a little luck, we will be called for an interview in the next few weeks. :0) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/foster-to-adopt-babies#post-712303 Fri, 12 Apr 2013 17:37:10 +0000 loveletter 712303@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Without going into it too much, we've hit a roadblock with our adoption process (we're pursuing private, domestic infant adoption) and our frustration level with our agency is through the roof. (I may post about our situation in another thread, if I can work up the courage). The past month has been filled with a lot of tears and we're questioning whether we should even continue down this path, or choose something else.</p> <p>We have an approved homestudy, and we are tossing around the idea of switching to foster care. What I am wondering is how realistic is it to think that we could become foster parents and adopt a baby? Can we just specify being placed with babies, or is that completely frowned upon in the foster care world? Is there even a need for people to foster infants? When we were initially exploring the idea of adoption, I called a foster care agency and they were only accepting families open to teenagers and sibling sets, so that turned me off. We really want a baby :( </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fostering-with-government-assistance#post-592534 Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:35:02 +0000 anonysquire 592534@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had no idea where to put this, so I chose money, sorry if it's inappropriate!</p> <p>Ok I'm not wanting to offend anyone, and I don't really know if anyone on here is also looking into fostering. Something I read today is really bugging me. I'm part of a future foster moms group and was asking whether I should buy carseats and strollers now or wait til right after I get a placement or when the timeline is. And so many people replied to go through wic and get a carseat. I might be wrong but in my state you have to show that you are not dependent on the government to get approved to be a foster parent, so why would I turn around and go on welfare?</p> <p>Everyone commented that if I have children 0-5 I qualify for wic. Well I wouldn't use it unless I truly used it, but my parents would help me out if I got to that point. </p> <p>Anyways am I wrong to think this is wrong? Signing up for welfare, getting $400-500 a mon from the state and then getting welfare on top of that? Like why would you take children into your home if you can't support them on your own? New mothers I know don't get monthly checks from the state, so why shouldn't 400-500 a month be enough to offset the costs of a child?</p> <p>Sorry if this comes across as jumbled, that's how I am :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/would-you-consider-being-a-foster-parent#post-383782 Wed, 07 Nov 2012 13:36:45 +0000 mediagirl 383782@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>One of our neighbors when I was a child was a foster parent. They always had so many kids at their house. Thinking back on it now, I am so amazed at the strength those parents had to have to have biological and foster children. I don't think I could do it.</p> <p>Could you be a foster parent? </p>