Ever wondered what the first few hours, days, weeks or months look like when you welcome a new foster placement into your home? Katie and JJ have created a little roadmap for you to follow with tips on how to make those kiddos feel safe and welcomed into your family!

Today, Katie & JJ sit down to discuss 5 things they wish they knew before stepping into foster parenting. You'll get a quick crash course on trauma behaviors, how fostering impacts your marriage and other close relationships, and walk away with a list of questions to process through if you're thinking about stepping into foster parenting! They also discuss some ways you can support foster families in your community if it's not your season to say yes yet.

Questions to work through if you're considering foster parenting:

•  Why do I want to do foster care?
• Am I trying to rescue kids?
• Do I have margin for this?
• How do I typically handle chaos?
• Is my marriage and other key relationships stable?
• Do I have regulated coping skills?
• Can I tolerate ambiguity?

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Today, Katie sits down with KMITL's co-host, JJ Harper, talk about her journey navigating infertility. JJ shares learning about her diagnosis, wrestling with next steps, and ultimately her and her husbands decision to step into the world of foster care.

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It's no secret that foster parenting is inherently stressful. We're not just talking about hard days, but entires seasons, years, decades of chronic stress! Chronic stress can take an immense toll on your spiritual, emotional, mental and physical wellbeing. We don't have all the answers, but Katie & JJ, (two foster mammas) sit down to talk about the lessons they've learned while enduring the chronic stress of foster life.

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Our guest today is Jonathan Kindler, a licensed professional counselor, professor, a pastor, a podcast host, dad, husband, former foster parent, and most importantly: Katie's brother! Talking with Jon is amazing because you get both clinical insight and spiritual perspective to conversations about emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

Jon has spent more than a decade helping individuals and couples navigate anxiety, trauma, relationships and grief - always with a blend of compassion and biblical truth and practical wisdom. He serves on faculty at Living Faith Bible Institute where he shapes future counselors, and he's the founder of Sound Mind Counseling in Kansas City.

Jon also hosts the Sound Mind Podcast. There, he explores mental health through a biblical lens. We are so excited to hear from him today, his story as it relates to foster care and the grief that comes with it.

Jon's counseling practice, Sound Mind

Jon's podcast, Sound Mind

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Katie sits down with Zoya Maverick, a former foster youth, a fierce advocate and tender-hearted voice in the foster care community.

Zoya brings both lived experience and deep compassion to the conversation, sharing honestly about the challenges and the beauty of walking through hard seasons. She's someone who doesn't shy away from the ache, but she also points us back to the light. I can't wait for you to hear her story.

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Today's guest is Rachel Savage, a mom of five, both biologically and through foster care. Rachel has walked through deep grief and has remarkable resilience. After being on the front lines in Afghanistan, becoming a parent, a foster parent, and then walking through the tragic loss of her husband a few years ago, Rachel has continued to parent with extraordinary courage, faith and love. Her story is one of heartbreak and hope: holding onto the light in the middle of pain. She shares with us what it looks like to keep going, to keep showing up for her kids and to keep choosing joy and light in the midst of darkness and sorrow.

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 Today on the show, we are honored to get to talk to one of our Foster Light board members, Danielle Ripley-Burgess. Danielle is a three time cancer survivor, a foster and adoptive parent, and an author. She has a super inspiring story that has been shaped by resilience, and has shifted her into being a pillar of wisdom and courage for so many people. She's created a platform that encourages other people to face unimaginable hardship with hope and faith. We're so excited for you guys to get to be inspired by her incredible story.

Where you can find Danielle:

https://www.danielleripleyburgess.com/

Foster Light

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