We
absolutely do not have the money to afford four more kids on top of our three,
but at least we have room for them. For a whole month they were living in a
seedy hotel with ten people, so just having room to play or sit quietly and do
homework is pretty awesome for them. We have a full basement, and it’s
partially finished. That’s where the kids stay, on a set of bunk beds and a
queen-size bed. We could use a couple more dressers and some major
organizational supplies (especially for their shoes! My god, the shoes!!!), but
otherwise they fit here just fine.
Where I’ve
been so pleasantly surprised is by everyone in our community. When people find
out we’ve taken in these kids, they have surprised us over and over with
generosity. A woman from the church my kids attend gave us a queen-sized bed.
My brother-in-law and his girlfriend brought us a car full of groceries. My mom
made little Easter baskets for seven kids instead of three. I talked to their
school counselor, and told her where we were really having trouble was feeding
the kids, so she hooked us up with the “Lunch in a Backpack” thing. That helped, but we were still struggling to
feed these kids, all ages 5 to 10, who seem to be hungry at every moment of their waking hours. So I applied
for food stamps, and we were approved for $608 a month. That’s about $150 a
week, and all of us are so grateful.
One evening
when the kids were playing outside, a woman who knows their grandpa stopped by
and gave us a nearly full platter of Subway Sandwiches, which was perfect
timing as they hadn’t had much for snacks all day and I didn’t have any idea
what I would be able to put together for dinner.
The school
system also hooked my nieces and nephews up with clothes! They sent three bags
of clothes, some old and some new, including shoes, underwear, and socks. My
eldest niece got three really beautiful dresses, and they all felt so special
with their new things.
One day, a friend
stopped by and gave us a couple of grocery bags of snack foods!
We have just
been amazed at how everyone we know has helped provide for these kids. It
matters. So, so much.
I’ve taken
to making a weekly menu now, and buying groceries once a week. I stock up on
bananas, clementines, apples, and pears, and buy the ingredients for the
dinners I’ve chosen. I keep ingredients to make our own cookies on hand. All of
the kids, even mine, are starting to eat more vegetables and a wider variety of
foods. We haven’t gone as healthy as I know we should, but we’re moving that
way (the other day, they ALL ate salad!!
SALAD!!). Our house is so full
now! The hubby and I had just begun talking about having another baby when all
this happened, but we absolutely cannot handle that now, and that’s OK. Being a
presence in these kids’ lives is more important right now, for sure.
So even
though none of the people who have helped us read this blog, we are
grateful. I will try my best to pay this
forward.
