i'll be home for christmas

and so will SEAN!!!!!!!!
we met with sean's new case worker (yippee!) and the foster care specialist supervisor and sean's foster dad, and we all agreed that sean was indeed ready to come home. when we told him, he just beamed! he knew we were thinking at semester break, which is jan 11, but he's done so amazingly well, that we decided he could come home now.

ok, hang on, i need a tissue. HONK!

it's been a long, hard slog for all of us, but i'll tell you what. sean's fosterdad is a very amazing man. he took a child who was out of control, no matter what we or his previous foster family did or said, and helped him to turn it around so completely that everyone is stunned at the change. sean was argumentative, hostile, controlling manipulative, and felt like he was battling the world. now, he's agreeable, and loving, and best of all, willing to accept constructive criticism and consequences when he knows he's wrong. i don't know what this man did, but i don't know how to thank him. we are, however, going to get him a doozy of a christmas present. and the best part? he wants to remain a part of sean's life. and we want him to. while sean is being discharged from regular theraputic foster care, we are leaving him at agency based foster care as a "just in case." what this means is that while we are adjusting to having sean here 24/7, if anything goes wrong (which i don't think it will), he can go back to the foster dad if needs be. the caseworker asked the foster dad if he would be willing to take sean as a traditional foster child, if needs be, which pays less than either agency based or theraputic, and he looked at her and us, and said, "for sean, you bet." i almost cried then, and i need a tissue again! HONK!

anyway, there's more good news. stephanie had been working as a seasonal temporary at OTC, with the hope that they would hire her as a permanent. well, she called me today, and while she's not happy with the schedule they gave her (she has to work saturdays), they did offer her a job. and with starting in the busy season, her wait time for benefits will be minimal, so she will be getting benefits, soon! like a grown up! we talked a little about it, and i advised her to get into the 401K, even if it was just a little bit. wow, i'm advising my child about retirement!

she will start again on Jan 2. she will be off for approximately 2 1/2 weeks, which will be a bit of a pinch for her, but she should get caught up soon.

to have the two kids i worried about the most get things straightened out is a load off my mind, particularly at this time of year. i don't need any better christmas presents. (i know better, though, lol, mark's been getting boxes in).

ok, how about a few laughs?

you might be a red neck if most of the stuff in your garage doesn't belong to you (i actually had this happen once!)
. . . your best shirt has ten jokes on the back.
. . . your favorite restaurant is open twenty-four hours.
. . . the seat covers in your car are two old t-shirts.
. . . all your neighbors have electric fences.
. . . defending your sister's honor is a full-time job.
. . . your last medical checkup was on board a UFO (and we don't mean unfinished object!)
. . . there are more kids than groceries in your shopping cart (been there, done that!)
. . . every dog in the neighborhood is related to your dog (DADDY!)
. . . you dump your boyfriend because your husband has been paroled (and he's gonna KILL that sucka!)
. . . you wait in the car while your wife changes a tire. (or is that just weenie?)
. . . you ever opened a beer while making love (now that would be a mood killer ! pssst!)
. . . you have to wiggle wires under the dash to get your headlights working (or jiggling the switch! i guess that makes steph a redneck!)

ok, i've got 2 gifts to get done by tonight, and neither is done. what the hell am i doing here! tootles!