Gladney Blog

COVID has taken on a completely different meaning.  After 51 days in quarantine, I have learned to put my purpose over panic.  The first few weeks in quarantine were pure chaos; swarming with uncertainty.  Despite hearsay of what the future holds, I know one thing must continue – my role as a working mother.  Being home made my role no different than any other day.  Sure, there was a change by working remote and being with my children 24-hours, but with a routine, everything and everyone fell in place. 

This past week my daughter was playing in the backyard when she suddenly ran inside yelling “Daddy, there’s things flying everywhere in the air!”  When he went to look, he found a giant swarm of bees and quickly ushered her and our Golden Retriever inside. After a little investigation, we found there was a large beehive in our neighbor’s tree. For all the obvious reasons I was worried for our safety—we’re not sure if our girls are allergic to bees yet—but I was also disappointed.  Like many homes with small children, things can get loud, chaotic, and overwhelming.  Our backyard has become a sanctuary while we’ve been sheltering in place and now this bee Armageddon was taking that away. 

Spring typically brings sights, sounds, and feelings of renewal. I love flowers, and spring brings a theme of growth to my mind. As we deal with COVID-19 and social distancing, I personally feel like some areas of life are on pause, while other areas are busier than ever. There is underlying anxiety for most of us, along with grief and loss for many.

Whatever this season looks like for you, please know we are so grateful for you thinking of and supporting Gladney. While most of our staff members are currently working remotely from home, our caseworkers are continuing to serve expectant mothers who are making an adoption plan, care for teenage girls in foster care in the Gladney Home, advocate to find adoptive families for waiting children in state foster care and international orphanages, and be with adoptive families when their new children are placed with them. Our mission continues.

Even in this challenging season, Gladney daily witnesses a spectrum of growth—babies literally growing and meeting developmental milestones; children who have experienced hurts understanding what it means to be loved and cared for and learning to trust; adoptive parents acknowledging they need support and reaching out for connection and resources; and birth mothers processing their grief and loss, while being proud of who they are and of their children.

Thank you for your support and involvement in their growth. Because of you, Gladney will be present and meet their individualized needs in a personal way—step by step, through changing seasons of life … during their adoption process and for years to come.

On the lookout for activities for your kids? We have some new coloring sheets as a gift for you! Really, they’re not just for kids—coloring is a fun and calming activity for adults, too.

As a videographer, I keep getting asked the same questions so I put together some tips to look and sound your best while video chatting:

I switched from working full time in an office to working full time from home in 2016 when we moved to Houston for my husband’s job. Although grateful to work for an organization that offers this flexibility, it was a big transition that took adjustment and a lot of getting used to. It also happens to be a big transition that much of the country has been forced to make in the past few weeks. As a work from home veteran, I am here to share my story, and offer you some of the tips I’ve learned to keep myself productive and most importantly…sane.

As you may know, the Gladney Home is housing teenage girls currently in foster care. Like most, we are now on an extended spring break and practicing social distancing. This can be challenging, not only with little kids at home, but older kids as well. To avoid the lure of constant Netflix, iPhones, and screen time, here are some things that we have been doing to break up the day and keep everyone entertained.