Sonia (FA Staff): What motivated you to become a foster parent and how has your initial motivation evolved over time?

Nikki (Foster Parent): We were asked to adopt our son through a kinship adoption. In order to do that, we had to start the foster parent process. It was something we always talked about to grow our family, but it just ended up finding us instead! We have three children now who are adopted from foster care or are headed towards permanency with us. I suppose in the beginning, we were motivated by our specific situation with our son. We didn’t know how much our family would grow from this process! Over time, we've come to really appreciate the fostering journey, because we wouldn’t have our family without it.

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Sonia: What are some of the brightest aspects of fostering?

Nikki: Our kids!! Our family has grown in love, size, laughter, chaos, experiences, memories, and futures to look forward to. We wouldn’t have that without fostering.

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Sonia: What has been challenging about fostering?

Nikki: We grew VERY quickly. We grew VERY quickly. We were moms of just two and headed right into a pandemic. In isolation, confusing times, and raising small children we had a lot to navigate. Shortly after our youngest turned 2-years old, we welcomed another two year old, a one-year-old, and a few months later a newborn. We had a lot of little kids all at once!

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Sonia: How have you navigated these challenges?

Nikki: Honestly, each other. We make a great team! We will say though, Mary at FA has been our saving grace when we felt overwhelmed or needed support.

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Sonia: What kind of support or resources from Family Alternatives have been most helpful to you?

Nikki: Have you put 5 car seats in a car? Have you bought 5 car seats? Have you put 5 kids in a stroller? Have you had a crib show up on your front door while you're at the hospital picking up an infant? FA has made some of the impossible things feel possible. 

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Sonia: If someone isn’t ready to become a foster parent, what might be helpful for them to learn?

Nikki: That places like Family Alternatives exist. We needed someone to advocate for us. We needed consistency, communication, and flexibility. FA promised that, and they followed through.

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Sonia: Why Family Alternatives?

Nikki: Because no one else will understand why or how you do what you do as a foster parent. We hear that all the time: “Wow, I could never do that!” And Family Alternatives reminds us that we can. They validate the journey and remind us that we were chosen for this.