Downsizing is Hard

Off to church!

There is a lot said about the challenges of adding a child, or two, or three, to your family. The planning, the organizing, the adjustment for the entire family. There is little said about how hard it is to decrease your family size.

Going from 4 kids to 3 is a strange event. For a week or so at a time we live as a family of 6, then overnight, we're back to the 5 of us. One less place to be set at the table, one less set of clothes to lay out for the day, one less head of hair to fix, one less goodnight hug, one less of everything. Very weird!

This has been a great warm-up to doing foster care. (I think...) A very slow introduction to all of us to the ups and downs of brining a child into your home that's not been raised by you. That has a personality all of their own that you have to figure out. That has different tastes in food, music, and EVERYTHING. Thankfully, Miss. Emily is practically a dream child in most aspects.

Last night as I tucked my three in, Madison said how strange it is to have the extra bed in her room empty now that she's used to someone sleeping in it. I nodded in agreement. I looked at the bed in wonder of who God will place in it first. (Besides Emily.) So much unknown... so much to anticipate!

Today we set off for a two-hour "talk" with people that will see if we're fit to do this or not. (I guess that's the purpose.) They will dig into our lives, our home, our families. I'm sure they'll ask questions that I don't want to answer. One more step.. one more check off of the list. We are so close to being finished.. just a few more hurdles to leap over and we'll be at the finish line... the finish line that just begins a new starting point.