5,000 Views and Counting

Hello, friends! Woot woot - as of a minute ago, my blog has 5,006 pageviews! That is super cool. I'm pumped. I promised a special blog if I got up to 5,000, so here goes nothing.

I have carefully studied the posts that have received the most all-time views. They include: "Roasted" (in which I detailed the roasting of the University Lutheran graduates); "A Wednesday in the Life" (in which I described a Wednesday in my LCI life); "I've been installed!" "Did it hurt?" (in which I described my installation in Tallahassee); "The Puzzle was BIG NEWS" (in which the puzzle was big news); and "Fireworks, Icebreakers, and Propitiation" (in which I described my 23rd birthday). You know what they all have in common? I'm not really sure either. But here's my guess: they all had pictures, and they were all fairly informative.

Therefore, this blog will include pictures, and at the end, there will be an announcement. Prepare yourselves, friends!

I'm writing this from my DCE study. It's slightly more organized this evening than it was this morning. (Trust me on that point.)

On my door I have this sign, given to me by Pastor Jay to remind me that Florida is probably warmer than wherever I am.

On the wall by the door I have my prayer map. The orange dots represent missionaries that I know, the pink dots represent other church workers that I know, and the green dots represent friends and family.

On the next wall, I have my calendar. I wanted one that showed me all 12 months at once because that way I can see things in perspective.

Right next to my desk I have a small white board with a rainbow fish that I made on my last Sunday at Messiah in Johnston, IA.

Behind my desk I have a cork board full of random notes.

To my left, I have my dog, because, well, she's cute.

Next to Kensi is my bookshelf, which will only hold all of my books until I acquire approximately one more book.

Above my bookshelf are items representing many of my favorite things: Concordia, campus ministry, Drake women's basketball, and, of course, my nephew. (I hope posting a distant picture of a small picture of my nephew doesn't get me into trouble with his parents...)

And the obligatory selfie.

Now that you're all satiated with a plethora of pictures (that's for you, Melissa), here's the announcement: I am in the process of becoming a foster parent. I'm in my DCE study tonight because it's the easiest place for me to watch training videos and scan documents to send to my case worker.

I decided to become a foster parent for a few reasons.

Number one, I want to help people. The kids in the foster system certainly need someone to help them, or they wouldn't be there.

Number two, I'm passionate about kids. I briefly worked for a residential treatment center, and while I didn't enjoy my time there, I did fall in love with the kids. For all of their troubles, they were just kids. That center is what made me interested in foster care in the first place. (In case you're wondering, I've requested to foster kids in the 11-18 age range. That probably seems crazy to many of you, but trust me when I say that I should not be fostering younger kids... I'd have no idea what to do with them. There's a reason I prefer youth ministry to children's ministry!)

Number three, my situation right now allows for foster care. I go to work at 8:30 and get off at 3:00 - perfect timing for dropping kids off at school and picking them up. I have a spare bedroom. I don't make a lot of money, but I also don't have student loans to pay off or other people who depend on me. As Pastor Jay would say, I'm fat - I'm faithful, available, and trainable to become a foster parent.

And number four, as much as I can without having actually done it, I understand the stress, challenge, and trouble that foster care can be - and I still want to do it, because I also understand the joy, opportunity, and benefit that foster care can be.

I know this won't be easy, but I know it will be worth it. I ask for your prayers and support as I continue down this journey. I'm not officially approved yet, but I expect it to happen within the next month at the latest. Needless to say, when I am actively fostering a child, you won't hear much about it because of privacy laws, but I will make sure to let you know when a child comes into my home so that you can pray for us.

This is Iowa Girl Meets World, signing off for the evening. Thank you all for helping me get to 5,000 views. :)