The Journey of TLC Parents
The unsung heroes of Infant Adoption are Temporary Loving Care (TLC) Parents. TLC Parents are licensed foster parents who take temporary care of infants who haven’t yet been placed with their adoptive families.
At Hope Cottage, we are privileged to work with two wonderful TLC families. One of our TLC moms, Jaime, spoke with us about her experiences working as a Hope Cottage TLC mother.
Jaime has years of experience as a TLC mother. She says that “The first newborn I took care of, I was nineteen… eventually, we had our own children. Our oldest daughter had some medical issues, and we were blessed that people helped us. We try to help others in turn by taking care of their children.”
Jaime nurtures and loves her TLC babies - who only live with her family for a period of months, weeks, or even days - as part of her family. “Everybody needs a mom. If you’re the birth mom, that’s your role. There’s sometimes a time between the birth mom and a placement with the adoptive family where I’m the middle-mom. I’m not a babysitter, I’m not a nanny… I love that child as if they’re my own. Life completely stops, and I take care of that baby as if they’re my own. We do skin-to-skin, we do bonding activities…”
Jaime makes sure that TLC parenting involves her whole family. “My husband Mark and my children are very involved. Like, when somebody asks them ‘Do you have siblings?’ they chuckle because they have biological siblings, but they consider the TLC babies part of their family… This is a family thing. It’s not just a Jaime thing.”
Hope Cottage is not the only agency that Jaime works with, but she is unequivocal in her support for Hope Cottage. “Working with Hope Cottage has fostered more than just professional relationships: it’s fostered friendships and sincere hearts. I always say ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe how hard you work.’ There’s a mutual respect where they respect what I do and I respect what they do. We have to have this trust, not only because they need to trust me to take care of their hope babies, but because I have to trust them that they have the children’s best interests at heart. They trust me, and I appreciate that. They are very respectful and appreciative, and I respect and appreciate them in turn… Hope Cottage is top-notch. They have my back. If I need something, I wouldn’t hesitate to give them a call and ask. Whether it’s TLC-related or personal, I feel like we work well together.”
TLC parenting has become a part of Jaime’s identity, of her sense of family and of home. While she works at an insurance agency, her supervisors support her TLC work and give her flexibility to spend time with her TLC babies when they join her family. “We have a ‘love wall’ in our living room, and it’s pictures of all of the babies we’ve had throughout the years. I made a sign that says “Temporarily in our homes; forever in our hearts.” ‘That’s a true statement - it’s not that we’re just loving them and forgetting them. They’re always with us.’” We are lucky that Jaime’s commitment to the Hope Cottage family has kept her in Dallas. “We’ve had opportunities to move, and TLC has kept us here. It’s come down to the fact that ‘we don’t want to stop doing what we do with Hope Cottage.”
Thank you for all that you have done for our Hope Cottage, Jaime. We are so lucky to have you in our Hope Cottage family.