Foiled again!
Seriously?! This whole process of trying to adopt/foster has been three steps forward, two steps back. Sometimes three or four steps back. Or five. You would think I'd be used to it by now, but no... I'm an optimist, I'm afraid. Which means hope springs eternal, but is punctuated repeatedly with short periods of heartbreak when everything goes wrong.
I finally got hold of our licensing worker at DCFS, after months of not being able to reach her because she was on leave, in a conference, etc. And she basically told me that they were not going to be doing any new licensing for quite a while due to understaffing. She suggested transferring to a private agency. Square one. Or at least it feels that way.
After I had a little anxiety attack, I remembered that we had talked to one caseworker who had seemed quite helpful, and I called him. And bless his heart... he's advocating for us. (Something about how he was going to send some emails and irritate some people.) He's not sure what the response will be, but will let us know what comes up.
So the bottomline is... we're currently in limbo. Again. We may or may not have any shot at fostering this year.
Sometimes I feel like this whole process is turning me into a much stronger person. And other times I think it's just going to turn me into a quivering mass of jello. The jury's still out...
You would think with all the kids out there that need people like you, that DCFS would be throwing kids at you! Not telling you not now and we have no idea when! I'm sorry! It will all work out - there is a reason for everything. Unfortunately, you may not see it or know the reason until after this is all said and done.
Posted by: Toni Ott | 28 May 2010 at 08:28 AM
Oh crums! Hugs.
Posted by: Renae | 28 May 2010 at 09:26 AM
:(
Posted by: Karen | 28 May 2010 at 11:08 AM
darn it. I'm sorry this is so frustrating for you!
Posted by: kirsten | 29 May 2010 at 07:08 PM
I hate not being able to fix this for you. Hang in there! And, yes, you ARE strong. Unbelievably strong!
Posted by: Beth | 30 May 2010 at 04:13 PM
Me and the baby are making the sad face for you!
Posted by: Timpani | 06 June 2010 at 05:20 PM
With all the kids out there in need of living foster families the amount of red tape is just maddening. We tried adoption and after giving up part way through the process to try ivf (not many babies get put up for adoption now) I understand your frustration.
Posted by: Steph | 19 June 2010 at 12:07 AM