A Timmy Update: December

Timmy is still with us, and will remain with us at least until February 20th, 2008. He's still about six months behind in most of his development, but is improving every day. His vocabulary has grown to about 600 words, although he won't always say more than two or three at a time. This worries me a bit, because that's a symptom we saw in our son Joe, who also suffered from brain damage done before he was adopted. Hopefully we'll have him in Head Start after the first of the year, and the competition will encourage him to talk more.

The last information we received from the courts indicated that Timmy will either be returned to his birth mom, or will be placed permanently in our care. That decision will be made no later than May 8th, 2008. So far, no other placements are being considered. Rose has satisfied some of the court-ordered requirements, but not all of them. She still refuses to believe that Timmy was deliberately injured. I would encourage any of you who read this to pray that the courts will make the best choice for Timmy, regardless of what anyone else wishes - including us.

Having Timmy has been a blessing for my wife and me. It's encouraged us to become more involved with the world, instead of withdrawn, as we had been before. Regardless of the court outcome in Timmy's case, Jean and I plan to work with a few agencies in the city to continue our involvement with children that need a safe place while the courts decide their future.

Back in February, I prayed to God to give us a mission that wouldn't involve any of the local churches. I want to tithe to God, but not to some local church that's going to use it for their benefit, not the benefit of God. I was willing to give both time and money to whatever cause God asked us to contribute to. Within a month, we had Timmy. God answers prayers, but in His Own way, and in His Own time. Timmy i with us on a "kinship" placement, which means we're considered of a member of his extended family, although there's no real relationship other than friendship between Rose and our youngest daughter, Anna. It also means that we don't get paid for providing foster care for Timmy. Taking care of this beautiful, wonderful little boy has been worth anything it might have cost us, and we're thankful to have him!

Merry Christmas!

Life is hectic when you're a parent, and the past two months have been even more hectic than average. Before we get distracted with the Christmas shopping, getting the tree up, wrapping presents, cooking, and all the other myriad ways of preparing for Christmas, we want to stop and wish all our friends a very Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.