5 things you don’t say…

After becoming a foster parent (a little over 6 months ago), I have learned a lot of things.  I have personally made my own mistakes, and don’t want you to have to go through some of them as well.

So today, I wanted to share 5 things that you shouldn’t say to a foster child.  Let me know if you find these tips helpful!

1.  Don’t judge or say bad negative comments towards their biological parents.  As much as you may WANT to say something, or you agree with the children who are openly speaking about negativity with their parents, just don’t.
2. Don’t judge the foster children based on their background, or their past events in other homes.  You may or may not have been everything upon placement in your home, but just because they were a certain way somewhere else, doesn’t mean that they are going to continue to behave that way.
3. Don’t have the same expectations for the foster child(ren), that you may have with your biological child(ren).  Just imagine how long it took your child to grow up and learn the ways about how things run in your family.. let them have the time to learn.
4. Don’t show affection and love to your own biological child(ren) and not to the foster child(ren).  Sometimes you not even know what you are doing, but the foster child(ren) are watching everything.
5. Don’t undervalue the foster child(rens) likes/dislikes or their wants/needs. They may be interested in something completely different than what your family may be used to or interested in.  Take into account that they have very little control in their life, and if putting them in a sport would make them happy, or finding a special hobby just for them that they could do, then just do it.

Being a foster parent is hard.  You have good and bad days, but hopefully these tips can help you live a full life with these precious children!

©2017 Sheridan Johnson @Journey with the Johnsons. All Rights Reserved.