Last week, we were thrilled to have a little foster baby. He came to us straight from the hospital at two days old. Oh, my goodness, he was a beautiful boy.
I was not the only one enamored with this sweet baby. All three of our Littles– ages 2, 3, and 4– were fascinated by this little fellow. I think prior to this, the word “baby” brought them the image of a doll.
Our 2-year-old was amused by him. He was completely thrilled and tickled by the baby moving his hands or head. I mean completely. The first time the baby waved his hands around, our little guy pointed at him and then fell out laughing. The older two of this Triple Threat noticed that the way we cared for this baby was different from the way they played with the dolls around here. Tinker, our 3-year-old, was constantly rocking and feeding her baby. Occasionally she would pronounce matter-of-factly, “Oops, dirty diaper again.” All three kids were fascinated with baby’s tiny toes, little hands, and small, squeaky voice. Little mama and daddies are so sweet to watch.
There is something so integrating, so right about them getting to know this little foster fellow and sending him off to his forever family when they came to be part of our forever family in the same way. While this is obviously not an idea they can grasp right now, it is something that many years hence they may be able to look back on and understand. I am so grateful to those “other mothers” of our children, especially the last ones, who paved the way for our Littles to be loved in our home. I do not know how to express this exactly, except that the love and care they received there began the healing process in their hearts that allowed them to attach to us.
Thanks to you, mamas.
