My husband and I are currently taking foster parenting classes in hopes of fostering children in our home. We already have a 2 year old daughter of our own. We want to share the love we have to help others who may not have an opportunity to grow up in a loving healthy home. How does fostering affect your relationship with your biological children? How does growing up in a home with foster kids affect your childhood both as the biological child and as the foster child?
2007-02-27 03:29:28 · 5 answers · asked by mamaladybok 3 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Parenting
wow, that is a mouthful, and would take more than the space allotted to answer your question.
first let me say kudos to you and your hubby....this is an enormous thing that you are undertaking, you both are hero's in my book. and you will be to some lucky child/children.
There are many pros and cons to this query. I am a former foster child, and have been privy to the system for quite some time. It is at times a thankless job, full of heartache and pain. It is a roller coaster ride to say the least, ups and downs, joys and sorrows. With a biological child involved, my first piece of advice would be to treat them equally, as much as you possibly can. I know that will be hard, but you do not want to alienate either one of them. The foster child may need more attention than your child. This will be on a case to case basis. Remember they are dealing with heavy emotions of loss, hate, rejection, abandonment, just to name a few.......I know this sounds harsh and just like the most horrible thing to be involved in, but the love and commitment and joy that you bring to a child's life is IMMEASURABLE!!!
2007-02-27 04:15:22 · answer #1 · answered by NolaDawn 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well I can't speak for myself, but my mother-in-law is a foster parent. I think it's great to be a foster parent and to open up your home and heart to a child. While being a foster parent can be hard on your family, there are many rewards to it. Good luck.
2007-02-27 13:13:41 · answer #2 · answered by Aumatra 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have great respect for good foster parents, but I do advise you to be wary of your CPS office. With just one false accusation, they will ruin your lives. Just be careful, tape every conversation with CPS, and keep excellent records.
That said, as long as counseling is involved for the bio kids, and they can understand what is going on, I don't think there will be a problem. If your bio kid starts having problems, you should probably stop fostering.
2007-02-27 12:44:49 · answer #3 · answered by scarfyrre 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, my parents fostered a couple of children, but they decided they couldnt handle it. Most of the time the parents got them back when they shouldnt, and the kids just got tossed around. My parents would get emotionally attached and it would kill them to see them leave.
If you are ok with adopting, you can foster only children who are eligible for adoption and then if you get attached, you can provide a loving home for a kid who would never have gotten one.
2007-02-27 11:35:12 · answer #4 · answered by Soon2BMommy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i was fostered by a family with 4 of their own kids
i got on well with all of them glad to say
the youngest one did get a tad resentful when she saw how well i was getting on with the family tho but she did settle down eventually to the situation and we are the best of friends now we are grown up and have families of our own
we even encourage our respective kids to view each other as cousins too
i think the key to fostering when you have your own kids is to make sure that your own know they have a special place in your heart that isn't going to be encroached on by all the other children
2007-02-27 12:26:22 · answer #5 · answered by Aslan 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋