Sickness
Youngest Son, Z and I were all sick this week. Both Youngest Son and I were at the doctor on Tuesday. Youngest Son missed a couple days of school with a sinus infection. I have some wacky throat virus that took my voice away Wednesday afternoon and it is still gone. Talking is a fairly crucial part of my job so working has been painful (literally.) Z has had a cold all week with the sniffles and a cough.
Logistics
Most days I am commuting to Fort Worth. Getting a 6 year old up and to school and me to Fort Worth requires careful sequencing. One morning as I was walking out with Z, I discovered Z had COMPLETELY missed the toilet and there was a huge puddle of urine on the bathroom floor. All I could do was throw down a towel and leave it for when I returned after work; just did not have time to stop. That took some mental maneuvering for me to leave without cleaning up. It was the FIRST thing I did when I got home.
Oh and I backed into our mechanical gate one morning as well and knocked it off the track. Just a bit distracted. Yikes!
Meltdowns
Week 2 of foster care is hard. A foster child has had the first weekly family visit. The child is more comfortable but also realizes they are in an alien land. Foster parents are trying to put together the puzzle of this child: behaviors, personality, likes, dislikes, triggers, the list is endless because so little is known. Everyday is a reveal. Clues arrive like education records, CPS provided information and comments from the child.
This was week 2 with Z. He had several meltdowns with some fairly major. Some nights he goes right to sleep and other nights he is out of control. One of our awesome foster babysitters took Z to McDonalds to eat and play and he did great until it was time to leave. It was so difficult for him to go that she had to call me to come help. I was able to talk him into a calm state and out the door. Each day I am learning and getting better at knowing how to prevent the meltdown and also how to defuse when he goes to a bad place.
Unclear if Z's life has included consistency, structure and discipline that comes from a stable home environment. I have no way to judge how he has been loved.
The Important Stuff
On Thursday, Z was picked up from school to drive over an hour to visit with his Bio Mom for an hour and then drive back home another hour. HE.IS.SIX. On the way back, he vomited in the CPS transporter's car. I think he was tired, had a cold, probably stressed and maybe car sick. I get a call from CPS and leave from Fort Worth immediately. Once home, we both put on our PJs. I turn on a kiddie show on amazon prime. I lit the fire. We snuggled on the coach and relaxed together. We both felt yucky and it was good to "be." We skipped bath and I had no voice to read to him. He went to bed easily and Z woke me up at 7:12am this morning announcing "I am not sick anymore." So I got this little boy off to school with a smile on his face.
Court
Today was the mandatory 14 day court date. Z will stay with us for now. The next court date is March 26th.
And on to the third week.
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| This says it all. |
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| Z is a fabulous eater. Here is PB&J, apples and Ovaltine! Tonight he had Thai food with us where he ate tofu even. |
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| Much appreciated booster seat and two books that Z loves! Especially Giraffes Can't Dance. Grateful to generous friends. |
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| We are responsible for cultural education and Z is biracial. Here is one way for us to help Z connect with his black culture and history. |
