We have BIG news!
Many of you have watched Cheston and I's unplanned journey into parenthood on social media, or at least the pieces that we could share publicly. Some of you have even been blessed to meet our children. We would like to invite you into our journey a little further.
In April of 2015 we found out that two children I knew before Cheston and I married, through no fault of their own, had landed in foster care. We prayed and knew that we were supposed to be foster parents to them. We found out in that process that they had been separated from one another for a year or more and that they were not just in need of foster parents, but the state was searching for an adoptive resource for them at the time. The state asked us if we would adopt them together. Of course we said, "Yes."
On July 10, 2015, two scared and apprehensive little ones moved into our home. We began to learn daily of their journey and all of the times and ways the enemy tried to ruin their lives. We learned to listen and reassure them they were safe and loved. We began to walk the road to being an adoptive family, together. This was a rough road, with many turns and bumps along the way. Cheston and I often prayed and cried, how could we go on, this was too hard. Hospitalizations, disruptions at school, tantrums, tears, hugs and "I am sorries." We knew with every fiber of our beings that we had been, for some reason, called by God to parent these two children, no matter what. We knew we could never give up like everyone else had. We had to keep going, and just love. Change began to happen slowly, as both children learned they were safe and that we were not going to "send them back." A family was being birthed. In the aftermath of one of the tantrums I hugged our daughter and told her, "I love you, and I am going to call you my Little Mariposa, which is Spanish for butterfly. You will be transformed by love just like a butterfly is."
In March of 2017, we were notified by the state's case manager that there was a snag in the case. They would have to offer the birth mother another chance to get her children back, because documentation was missing. Termination and adoption could not move forward without this. Six months of tears, tantrums and nightmares culminated in a courtroom on September 15, as we were given the verdict. Separation. We were given temporary custody of our son, Michael and our Mariposa, was given back to her birth mother. The tears streamed down our faces as we drove away from court that day, with an empty seat in our vehicle. Life wouldn't be the same.
How do you move on from loss like this? The grief is much like loosing a child, only that you still hear their voice on the phone every week or so and the wounds are reopened again. We pulled closer as a family of 3 now. There were a few visits and phone calls between siblings; each time being told more of how unhappy she was and how much she wanted to come back home. We poured ourselves into Michael. Loving him and supporting him as he was also hurting at the loss of his sister. The three of us have loved one another through this, and continued to pray for Mariposa that God would continue to protect her and show His love to her.
Another phone call came in the beginning of this past August. It was her, it was Mariposa! There had been silence for two months, on the heels of her telling us how bad and dangerous things had gotten in her home. "Mommy and Daddy, I am back in foster care, can I come home?" Of course! We began to set the wheels in motion for her to be able to come back to us, finally our family can be put back together again. Find an apartment, since we just sold the house… make sure things are squared away for her to get back into the school …. begin the home evaluation process gain……call the case manager and ask to be placement for Mariposa… brick wall. Confusion… questions… separation remains. No clear answers given, maybe she could come back to live here after school gets out in May of next year, if she doesn't return to her birth mother first. No visits set up for the siblings, no plan to move her here, nothing.
I begin reaching out to my connections in the World of Social Work. Questions, and more confusion. Nothing adds up. I have never seen anything like this in 10 years of working in the field. We decided to consult an attorney to see if there are any options and it turns out there are options, but of course those options come with a nice sized price tag. This is where you enter the story. Cheston and I would like to invite you to come along side of us and help us to pull together the funds to fight for true permanency for both of these children. The funds would be used to cover the legal expenses needed to fight to get Mariposa out of the system and to terminate parental rights for both children so that we can adopt them. We would like to invite you to pray for us as we walk this road and consider giving any amount to help us bring Mariposa home and help to close this chapter for Michael.
We love each and everyone of you, and thank you in advance for all of your prayers and support.
