I put a lot of thought and effort into my foster care bedroom during the certification process. I really tried to think ahead and prepare for any possibility. Just a few weeks into our first placement, though, we completely moved the entire bedroom. Some things you just can’t know until you’re in it. My biggest tip for your foster care bedroom is to keep an open mind and be willing to move things around until you find what works. Simple is almost always the winner in our house. That said, there’s a few things that may be helpful to keep in mind.
Convertible furniture is ideal
We have a crib that converts into a toddler bed and then to a twin size bed. This is our main “sleeping space” that we keep available for foster placements. We also have a set of bunk beds that can be assembled bunk style or separately so that we can use them in whatever way is most useful during a given season. You can also use a portable crib (pack n play, etc) as a back up sleeping space for children under 2 years old. We’ve used a portable crib for shorter term placements when DCFS was trying to keep siblings together and there wasn’t another home with more space available. The name of the game is to choose furniture that has multiple uses.
DON’T buy tons of clothes to store
You never know what size/season your kids will come to you in. We had TONS of clothes stored in the closet of our foster bedroom, and it really was more of a pain to keep up with than anything. My tip here would be to collect gift cards here and there when you have a little extra cash on hand and use that to buy exactly what you need when your kids arrive. This is especially good for kids who are old enough to choose their own items. Handing them a gift card and saying “here’s $50 to spend on clothes” can be a mood booster for them during such a tough time. We ended up donating our extra clothes to our local foster closet, and we can go shop from the foster closet if there are clothing gaps we need to fill in the future.
DO keep your favorite baby gear on hand
If you’re accepting infants and toddlers, there can be lots of more expensive items that you’ll need. This is something I DO make the effort to store and keep on hand. I like having nicer car seats, carriers, swings, etc, because they are just usually easier to use and work better for us. We always have a car seat, a stroller, infant swing, and high quality baby wearing carrier on hand. These are 4 pricier things that I have preferences on and it’s worth it to me to make the space to store them.
Seek out support services in your area
We have several foster closets in our area, and they always have tons of supplies on hand at a moments notice. I’ve gotten things like bottles, formula, diapers, pajamas, etc from foster closet donations. This is a huge help making it through those first few days when there’s so many other things that need to be purchased at once. If you have a support system in place for your family, creating an Amazon list for things you need is an easy way for people to pitch in and support the children entering your home.
Be flexible!
Flexibility is the key to surviving foster care. Be willing to change your plans when things aren’t going smoothly. My kids have moved bedrooms multiple times. We have assembled, broken down, then reassembled bunk beds more times than I can count. Each of my kids have occupied every bedroom in our house at one point or another. Being a foster family became much more manageable when I let go of the plans I made before I knew what I know.