Stories of YES #47 - Real Life Foster Mom

If y'all don't know Chelsea, the "Real Life Foster Mom," you should. She shares from the heart, so transparently and REAL. Today she's sharing a piece of her story here with you, and it's a glimpse into domestic foster care and the needs of the "modern day orphans" here in the US who may not be orphaned by definition - but they are still vulnerable and need us too. ❤️

"I had been sitting in the emergency room for eight hours when I got the call for a six month old baby boy. “Of course we can take him tonight, I’m sure I’ll be out of here in a few hours” I explained. Our friends & family thought we had finally lost it. I mean, not everyone views hopping off of a hospital bed to pick up your sixth kid as sane; but this is what we do, we’re a foster family, we say yes, even when it’s not the most convenient.

I stopped on my way home for some diapers, wipes, formula & a playpen. I was now prepared to love this sweet baby boy just like all of my other children & that’s what I did. What I wasn’t prepared for, was just how far my love would spread. You see, I’ve watched kids come, some stayed forever & some I watched leave. I loved all of them hard & fought even harder for what was in their best interest; but my very first prayer when we started fostering was to walk alongside biological families & I never had that chance. In fact, it had been years since I even had the opportunity to take a child to a parent visit.

When I walked through the door to drop him off for their first visit, the feeling of nervousness quickly changed to complete contentment & love for his mom. I saw how much he looked like her, how much she missed him & how his face lit up when she kissed his chunky cheeks.

This right here is the side of foster care I needed to see. The side I didn’t know I was missing out on—to journey alongside biological families through healing & reunification.

We can’t ever expect saying ‘yes’ to be easy, but we can always expect it to change lives." 

- Chelsea Floro 

Find Chelsea as "Real Life Foster Mom" on Facebook