3:22pm

I'm at the music lesson with my children and my phone rings. I didn't recognize the number so I let it go to voicemail since I was IN the lesson.  I notice that whoever called has left a message.  I was just about to check it when my husband called.  I was still in the lesson so I let him go to voicemail, also,  (bad wife) so I could listen to the first voicemail.  It was DCS (Dept of Children Services).  The lady said something about being our worker, whom we hadn't met, but even though we hadn't met, she was calling with a potential placement.  <insert shock>

I stepped out of the lesson and called my husband, who was a little...excited?...as he told me he had just gotten off the phone with a caseworker about a placement.  He began to give me the info he had:

- white, male. 4 months old
- being transferred from another foster family
- has 'limp baby' syndrome
- possibly blind
- foster mom said "it takes too long to feed him"
- can we take him today?

He told the lady that he needed to speak to me before he gave her an answer.

While I'm on the phone with hubs, a similar mystery number called me.  I let hubs go to answer this call. It was a different caseworker.  She gave me the info hubs just ran down for me.  I told her that I needed to speak to my husband before I gave her an answer.

While pacing the halls of the church where the music lessons were held, I called to speak to hubs again.  We wondered, "Could we deal with a blind child?"  "How severe is 'limp baby syndrome?'"  "Why did other foster family disrupt their placement?"

The ultimate question though, "Do we want to take this placement?"

We decided to trust the Lord. 

Hubs called the caseworker back and told her that we could accept the placement.

Talk about butterflies in your stomach.  Oh my word.  We just agreed to take a baby.  Someone else's baby.

The caseworker explained that their process is to call three families.  If they get a 'yes' from all three families, a group of caseworkers reviews all of our files and decides which family might best fit the child.  We were told that we would be called back with a decision.

<Begin freak out>

As soon as the music lesson was over, I told the children that we *might* get a baby in a few hours.  They were excited.  So excited that I had to prepare them for it not happening, lest their hearts be broken.

Hubs and I decided to meet at, where else? Walmart.  If we were getting a baby, we'd need a car seat stat.  We also looked at cribs, even though we had a pack n play.  We were told that DCS prefers a crib....it's more "permanent."

While strolling the aisles and comparing prices, hubs' phone rang.  It was DCS and we had been chosen to get the baby.   (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)  His caseworker said she'd meet us to give us custody.  Where did she want to meet?  Where else??  Walmart!  A different Walmart, across town.  In one hour.

We purchased a travel system, but this Walmart didn't have the crib we chose.  Good thing we were headed to another Walmart...