NEWS *We have PINK!

That's right...YESTERDAY- the day I published this blog post- we got a phone call to care for a baby girl & we said YES! Y'all wouldn't even believe just how much God has been in the middle of all of this & worked out every single detail.
 

Here goes... Timeline:
Tuesday, January 10th: Reddington was very restless & did not want to go to bed which is unusual for him. Since his nose was running & he asked for medicine, I gave him 1 tsp. of Benadryl at 9. It has the opposite effect that I would've hoped & he was awake until after 1 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
Wednesday, January 11th: At 5:20 a.m. I woke up & text my principal that I would like a substiute for the day & went back to bed. I knew it was a short night & wasn't sure how Reddington would feel when we woke up so I took a sick day.
We ran a couple of errands in the morning because Reddington was acting fine. At 11ish I got the call from DCFS as I was pulling out of a parking lot. I parked & heard the details. I immediately went home & woke Nathan up to make sure he was ok with me saying "yes."  I reminded him that this is what we "signed up" for & he gave me the go-ahead. Love that man!
I spoke with the Investigator (Jennifer) multiple times between 11 and 3 p.m. There are too many details to list so I will tell you some of the reasons why I know that God was weaving this together:
*We found out less than a month ago that we were officially licensed for this age. I know Foster Parents that have waited months for a phone call like this one.
*I rarely take sick days. Now, I know the reason why was so that I could be available for something much bigger!
*Baby Girl was in the hospital.  The DCFS worker (who got off work at 5 p.m.) had to be willing to meet me at the hospital at 3 p.m. to sign her over to me. At first, he said I would have to come back another time. After I got there, he showed up within 10 minutes.
*The hospital gave permission for me to pick her up alone. They did not require Nathan to be present. If they had, we couldn't have left home until at least 4 p.m. & the DCFS worker wouldn't have been available to sign her over to us.
*We stopped at Target for a few PINK necessities & a new car seat. There was only 1 car seat available due to "inventory" & it just so happened to be the same brand of the one we had with Reddington meaning we already have a 2nd base to snap it into.
*We arrived right on time at about 3 p.m. Baby Girl ate & passed the 1 1/2 hour "Car Seat Safety Test" & we were leaving the hospital at 5:40 p.m.
*I was supposed to set my alarm for every 3 hours to wake & feed her since she is a preemie.  She was born at 32 weeks. That would mean my alarm would go off at 12 a.m., 3 a.m., and 6 a.m. A couple of minutes before my alarm was set to go off every single time Baby Girl woke up & started purring like a kitten. We are still waiting to hear a cry from her and see a tear!
*As I type this right now, Baby Girl is being represented in court by DCFS. They are having a hearing to determine if the investigators have enough information to place her in Protective Custody. If the judge rules yes, then she is ours to care for indefinitely.  If the judge rules no, then she could go home today.

Pray for the outcome that God has in mind. We are praying for His will in all of this & not ours.  She is ours for today & that is what we do know. Ours to love, pray over, take care of, be a Big Brother to, & smother kisses on.  We do not know what tomorrow holds but we do know that our hearts are filling with love & we are smitten. We are thankful for this opportunity & continue to praise the One that made it possible because He already knows the outcome! Our cups runneth over...

"Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today." Matthew 6:34

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

*There are a ton more details that I will share as time goes on.  If we find out that Baby Girl is going home today & the judge ruled in honor of the parents, I will let you know as soon as I know! Thank you for your prayers. We could not do this without you!
UPDATE: The Judge ruled in favor of DCFS. Baby Girl is in our care until further notice!