She temporarily placed a couple of old black and white photos she had taken upon her walls for something to look at. In her bedside table drawer, she placed a photo of her and Tina taken on their wedding day almost eight years ago. She loved the photo and wasn’t ready to let go of it yet.

Across the hall from her was the laundry/storage room. It was also good sized and had new appliances in it as did the downstairs kitchen. There was a small room next to that room which Bette made into her office. Everything fit into it perfectly and would work out just fine for her at night, without disturbing Ozzie.

That evening, he took a bubble bath and took great delight in playing with a few new toys in the water. He gazed around at his new environment and was quite happy with himself. For this night, he and Bette would start a new bedtime ritual, the bedtime story and he was so excited for that as he also loved to read. With every new activity they did together, he was falling in love with his new life and his new ‘mom’.

When she had a moment to herself, after he was asleep, she opened up her computer, turned it on and researched the Internet on what it would take to become Ozzie’s foster mom and then move towards adopting him as her son. She signed up right away for foster parenting classes online and for classes at the Children Services Division building. She wasn’t quite sure how to go about letting the authorities know that she had him in her home already. She’d have to figure that one out quickly.

When she arrived at work that first day, Bette quickly explained to her new boss about Ozzie and his story, and then afterwards explained that he was now going to stay with her. She shared plans about becoming his foster mom first and then working towards adoption. This surprised Allyn that this was happening so soon with Bette, but she could see and hear in her voice how excited she was for this to happen. She would definitely support her with this.

Bette then asked Allyn if she knew of a lawyer that could assist her with the adoption of Ozzie. She replied that she had a good friend whose daughter had had to use a lawyer for second parent adoptions, so she’d inquire with her. Bette thanked her and then went to work after they talked about the goals for the day. Working with Allyn was a dream come true for her. The work was busy but very creative and fulfilling.