PARENT AND CHILD AND LOVING IT

 We've got a nicely full home at the moment. One of our two medium-term foster children has been found a family home (kinship fostering) and another has gone to their real home (which is always Plan A if it's feasable), timing is everything as you'd predict.

So;

It's week 8 of our latest arrival; a Parent and Child placement.

Biggest problem so far? I'd say this; the mother is learning the enormity of parenting. An enormity that's even more enormous for a single parent. A single parent who's barely aged mid-teens. A girl who's away from home for the first time in her life because Social Services decided that the young mother's own parents were already on their rader hadn't got what it takes to teach her parenting and that therefore the baby might be at risk. 

The dear girl is learning that, while her ex-classmates are getting home from some weekend gathering at someone else's house at 1.00am, she's also awake; trying to comfort and feed a demanding  babe-in-arms.

She sometimes sits and has a little weep about where her life is at. But, to be fair, most of the time she's cheerful, resolute and philosophical. Or so darn tired she's on auto-pilot. 

What I'm reporting to each of the ten or twelve (I've lost count) professionals who are attached to her placemnent is; she's a loving, responsible, tireless mother.

Biggest plus so far? Actually - and moreover honestly - there are too many to mention them all. A few;

• The baby is a delight. Even when he wakes the house up crying for his guzzles at midnight and 3.00am. He's already growing into being himself, very bossy - he even lords it over my husband who's ten times bigger than babe. Whenever hubby takes his turn at giving the baby a hold, he finds that the baby grizzles if hubby doesn't stand rather than sit, and is required to show baby the views from our front and back room. It's a power thing.
• The mother is a delight. A good mum, she's also learning budgeting and cooking skills. Tonight she's cooking everyone Nachos. Her other speciality is cottage pie. She's on her way, all she has to do is learn that the clever family chef uses recipes which are a) budget-conscious b) easy on the washing-up.
• Our home is a delight. Nothing sprinkles sunshine around a house quite like a baby and a loving young parent. Those of us who've been round the block a few times (and I'd include plenty of the looked-after children we've loved to have in our home), are - from time to time -careworn, battle-hardened old soldiers, given to bouts of world-weariness and even cynicism. Not these two kids! No, this young mum and her kid ooze with hope and innocence, an inspiration for the rest of us.
• We get delightful moments. The young mum did her first food shop at Tesco's with me and came away from the till saying "I never knew food was so expensive!" The mum gets and hour or so of "Me" time every day, but she came looking for her son saying "I was lonely without him". Oh and this one…(she's bright but has had no education), she asked me…"Did you live through the Black Death?"