Foster Four

Our attic was like a cross between a department store and a real attic. Half was devoted to the usual: boxes, bags, old toys and furniture. The other half looked like a clothing store with racks of clothes, shoes, and shelves of underwear, socks and almost every basic piece of clothing a child or teenager needed. We didn't keep rain gear or winter clothes up here since those items tended to wear out quickly here, so we bought those things as we needed them. I grabbed a bag for Chris's clothes and a bag for Adam's. each boy got 2 different sizes of socks, underwear, pants and shirts. If I got any approval for the boys to stay here, I'd take them for a shopping day. I had a gut feeling that Sarah would be shocked to see the boys here and she'd be furious after hearing the boys tale of abuse and starvation.

When I was finished picking out clothing, the bags were bulging. It was a little difficult to carry down 2 flights of stairs but I managed. When I got down to the 2nd floor, I was surprised to see that Chris had chosen to share the same room with Adam. In a way, it would mean more room if we got more children in. It all depended on Sarah and the courts.

I carried both bags into the room, pulled the underwear bags out and gave them to the boys. Each boy had 2 different sizes and 3 different styles. It meant the boys had to go through 6 bags of underwear to find their size and what style they wanted. Both boys quickly figured out their size and style and I turned around to give them some privacy so they could pull them on. 3 minutes later, I heard a quiet "we're decent" I turned back around and saw that both boys had boxers on. " almost decent" I said. " pants are next" I pulled the different pairs of jeans out of each bag and gave them to the boys. " like with the underwear, figure out which pair fits the best, the ones that are too small can go back to the attic." It took a few minutes for Adam and Chris to find the right size and fit , but soon they were both standing in jeans. Then I tossed each of then a bag of socks. I watched them both rip their bag open and pull a pair onto their feet. " now the shirts. I brought a large selection for each of you to choose from." Laying out the shirts on the beds, I watched the boys choose the shirts they liked. After they had each pulled a shirt on, I directed the boys in putting away the clothes they wanted to wear. Then it was lunchtime.

"Alright, now it's time for lunch. Knowing my mom, she'll have something tasty cooked up for you."