Catch up

We said good bye to our foster girl on Tuesday. She moved on to a better suited home (closer to school among other things) and we all feel a little off. It's crazy how just seven days can create a new normal. 

God blessed us with her, of that I'm sure. She came to us at a great time although it may not have seemed like it on the surface. We are in a rough season with hubby working out of town for an extended period of time, living in a new house (although fun, the novelty is wearing off and we are trying to just make it work while we figure out what needs to be done next), me having a foot injury (more on that in a bit) and the throes of toddler hood. On the surface, it doesn't look that tough, but it's just the right combo to make me feel a little off.

Then we get a call for a foster kid that is way over our age range (11, when we are licensed for 0-7) yet I felt totally at peace saying yes. And? It was great. She was helpful, sweet, talkative, and funny. We had some serious talks and a lot of good conversation, and we got to see things from her perspective, which was refreshing. 

We had prayed that God would show us if we should continue foster care with our next kid, and that he did. Now we are praying for direction with the age limitations. Should we be opening our home to older kids instead of younger kids? Do we just broaden it? Was this a once in a lifetime thing and all other preteens would be totally different? We know that all kids are different, which makes it so hard to "plan" anything with foster care. Then there is the fact that we really aren't that much older than them. I mean, if I would have had this girl myself, I would have only been 15. Possible, but unlikely. If we took an older kid, that gap would be even smaller. 

So for now we sit back, pray, and wait to see what happens. We aren't in control, so why pretend that we have decisions to make?

Jo's new shoes that actually kind of fit, after ordering a pair online that ended up too big (now in her closet just waiting for their shining moment...probably over a year from now).

It's been three weeks since I went to the doctor for my foot. I've been faithfully wearing a walking boot even though it's driving me crazy, and I was excited to see the improvement once I took it off. Instead, I was painfully aware that my foot still hurt just as much as before. Discouraged, I talked to a friend last night that is a physical therapist. Maybe there is scar tissue, maybe it isn't quite healed, and maybe I'm just feeling some pain from the muscles sitting unused for three weeks. For now, I'm applying a heating pad and wearing the brace off and on, depending on how I feel. 

Why didn't I go back to the doctor? When they did the Xray, the doctor couldn't see anything, so he was more or less guessing on what it was. I do think he was right, after all that is the conclusion that I had, my friend the PT had, and my chiropractor had. But what I gathered from our little discussion is that after I wore the walking boot, he would determine if it was healed by what I said, not by anything he could see or do. Our deductible is very high, so I chose to not go back to him until I have a better understanding of how it is doing. I didn't think it was worth it to go back, have him ask me how it felt, me tell him it still hurt, and him to tell me to keep wearing it for three more weeks. 

I'll probably go back if it doesn't improve, but for now I'm planning on waiting it out while being cautious and taking the precautions I listed above.

Our house is lovely. It's comfortable for us and we seem to fit it nicely. We are learning new things here and there about it (it really is like making a new friend) and sometimes the list of things to do seems completely overwhelming. Part of that is that with  hubby being gone, what I can do and what I need his help/opinion for gets muddy and the list gets long. Some things seem like they need to be done right!now! but in reality are not that important (I'm looking at you, towel rods and loops in the bathrooms). Some things are very important but not logistically possible (ah hem, fence in the backyard). Sitting back and doing nothing feels so wrong, but it's my only option as I hop around on one good foot and still manage to chase around two babies. There isn't a lot of time left over let alone ambition or skill (if I'm being honest, I'm no carpenter). It's a good lesson in patience.

Weight loss has basically plateaued. My head's not in it, like I said last week,and I've let another week slip by without doing anything to change it. Loneliness at night without hubby here leads to me ruining a good day. Every day. I end up eating something, whether it is healthy or not, that I just don't need. Old habits live on, and I'm definitely not taking the steps to change it. I need to stop making excuses because never will there be a perfect time to make the changes and see results. There are always obstacles and hurdles to overcome.

As down as I sound, I am loving this time of year. It's so beautiful outside, and while we are not enjoying it as much as I would like, the times we are out and about are wonderful. We had so much fun at the lake, fishing, swimming, playing outside, walking around (limited for me, but still wonderful). Family time was fun, the weather was pretty great (although it was pretty Fall-like for being the end of August). I'm so thankful for weekends like that. I love looking outside and seeing signs of Fall. I just get filled with excitement. One of these days I am going to decorate for Fall but the motivation is not quite there yet. Maybe if my foot starts feeling better, I'll start craving activity like that again. One can hope, right?

Hey, it's Thursday! That's good news. The weekend is almost here, we're just about through with this strange week. Anything big planned for this weekend?

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