Adoption/ Foster Care Pt 2

Today I will talk about the story of my boys. Just like yesterday, this has NOTHING to do with me...all about God!
The birth parents of my boys also had 4 children...3 boys and 1 girl. In August of 2008 we got the call for an emergency placement for two boys. When the social worker got here with these two boys we were floored! The older of the two (3 at the time) was nonverbal (almost) he could say dink (drink) and pee. He would not let people touch him, didn't know his own name, and didn't know how to play...seriously. He would sit alone on the couch and stare into the air at nothing for hours! It was so sad. He was potty trained, but had no hygiene at all in the area. The youngest one (10 months) was so gross! He was really fat...lots of huge rolls. He actually had mold growing in the rolls of fat! He had an awful skin rash and never smiled....EVER. He hated people and cried if you touched him. He couldn't sit up and had cows milk in his bottle. His mom sent only a few dirty clothes and no diapers. We knew nothing about what the living conditions were like for these kids. Come to find out they were removed from the birth parents because they (all 4) were left alone at night so the parents would go party. The oldest of those four was 5 years old. The would mess themselves and take off their clothes and walk around outside naked. They were not fed good food or watched. The children had no idea about how to eat healthy foods...and all they did was drink. the reason the 3 yr old we got couldn't talk was because nobody spoke to him! As soon as we started talking to him (the day he came we started...obviously)he started trying to speak. His first word was "bearplane" for "airplane"...he spoke V.E.R.Y. slowly and with GREAT effort. He still has speech issues that are serious due to him being ignored! The baby was the worst....his mom was selling his WIC checks for money for whatever reason she wanted. He was drinking cows milk and his system was not ready. We did not know this at first and the social worker didn't know it either as it was an emergency placement...we all thought she had just moved him to milk as you would an older baby...no big deal. Not so much. I was also feeding him table foods as I figured since she didn't send any baby food or even a note he must have been off baby food. Not so much. This poor baby got really sick because I was giving him milk and food! He hadn't even started cereal yet!!! I had to take him to the Dr. to find all this out, and he was lactose intolerant! She was giving him milk...that's why he was fat (he couldn't digest the milk) and he only drank! We got that all figured out. The boys were not used to any physical activity and would sleep all the time as they were so tired from playing :0) It didn't take long to get them adjusted. They have been very easy to care for and a joy. We have had MANY issues with the family of these boys, and their brother and sisters story is a sad one...I won't tell it...but it's sad even to this day they are not settled. We had to fight tooth and nail to get these kids. We are so blessed. The birth parents are still always in trouble, still having babies that they have to get taken away as their parental rights are revoked...and still in and out of jail...unemployed most of the time...it's sad.

This was a brief summary of the story of out journey with adoption through foster care. We encourage anyone who might have a heavy heart for this work to take the leap and get involved...there is much need. Feel free to send me an email or leave a comment with nay questions I might be able to answer concerning adoption/foster care...I would love to help in any way the Lord sees fit :0)