first off thanks for all your prayers. God really moved fast this week and there were times i didn't have the words to pray but i know y'all did. below is a brief synopsis of my week.
sunday morning - mark and i decide to call the lawyer and start the process to become freddie and moe's legal guardians. my fear....this will push my sister over the edge but it must be done so that we can properly care for the kids.
monday afternoon - we take freddie down to the dmv to pre-register for the drivers ed course she is starting the following monday. they won't let me sign her paperwork because i'm not her legal guardian. this is just one example of the many roadblocks we have hit in the last few months.
monday night - call my sister and ask if mark can come pick her up the next day so that she can sign freddie's paperwork. she lives 2 hours away and doesn't have a car. while we are on the phone she breaks down crying and asks if she can come live with us. this really catches me off guard, i've already told her months ago that she could NEVER live with us. i tell her that i couldn't give her an answer right then and that we would discuss it when she got here. after i hang up i break down in tears and tell my husband he would need to make all decisions concerning the kids because i can't deal with any of this. after a good cry i come back to my senses and we decide to proceed with our plans of obtaining legal guardianship.
tuesday morning - as mark is driving to pick up my sister he calls the lawyer. after they get some general info they inform him that the lawyer is leaving on vacation that afternoon and it will be 2 weeks before we can make an appointment. mark says ok and leaves his tn# so that the para-legal can call him back with an appointment time. 2 hours later they call back and ask if he can be in their office at 1:30 to start the paperwork. he says yes.
we have decided to wait until friday night to tell my sister.
why friday you ask....we want to talk to her with the most privacy and the least amount of suspicion from the kids and this means we need both girls out of the house. freddie works on friday night and squirt has been invited to a sleepover on friday night so friday it is. also i don't want to tell her and then leave her alone so it needs to be when she can be watched. remember her suicide attempt 5 months ago is what started all of this.
the lawyer advises us that as long as my sister is in agreement it should all go fairly smoothly and only take about 60 days. big plus she doesn't have to appear in court.
friday night - how do i tell my suicidal bi-polar sister that i want custody of her kids?
this has been the thought that has chased me all week.
at this point i don't know how she will take it.
will she be angry, confused, relieved, paranoid, or all of the above?
well when it was all said and done she was relieved, she understands that she could not live here and that this will be the best thing for us all. she had actually been worried about what would happen to the kids if something were to happen to her. we explained that she was not signing over her rights she was just letting us have permission to care for the kids. we even decided that we would never revoke our legal guardianship. our lawyer explained that once my sister is stable and able to care for the kids we could revoke our rights. my sister wants us to never do this. she needs the stability of not worrying about who will care for them and if we are their legal guardians she never has to worry (in theory - us worriers know she will always worry but this will give her peace of mind when she does worry). she knows we will always care for them.
so this was my week. and in a few short weeks i will be the "legal" mom of 3 kids and step-mom of 1. for the grand total of 4 kids. WOW. who would've thought. how my life has changed over the last 5 months.
we never know what God has planned and if He had told me all of this i probably would have laughed at Him or said "no thanks i have enough on my plate". thanks God for giving me just what i need even when i think i don't need it.
p.s. i didn't laugh inappropriately. yeah God!!!!
Have hugs. Will travel.
ReplyDeletedarling... i think you look GREAT for just giving birth to two new kids.!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeletemy how you will change their lives forever. what a blessing you are to them. you will forever be my hero. what strength and courage you possess. i know Jesus is looking down on you at this moment, saying,"Well done thy good and faithful daughter." May the peace of Christ so richly dwell in you and your families lives forever.
i also pray finances for you and your family far above what your needs are. i pray rich blessing on all of your family, as you are such an example of what Christ would do.
It's funny how our sacrifices can so deeply bless us. When my "Legal Guardians" decided to take me in. They gained a very loyal, friend, confidant, and supporter.
ReplyDeleteAs your kids are, I was old enough to really "grasp" what they were doing for me. This deed will not be forgotten in those children's hearts. They will forever be grateful.
In our situation Laura has become my very best friend, mom and the person besides N. I trust most in this world. I pray that your situation will lend to this kind of blessing.
For I know the plans I have for you. Isn't it amazing how amazed we are when God's adventure and plans for our lives begin to unfold like timed clockwork. Just a few months ago I think we were discussing about how God only gave you one child...hmmm, think He may have known what He had planned for you...to give someone a hope and a future. You're still my hero! I am soooo very proud of you, my friend. So very proud! And Mark too!
ReplyDelete