Hosting Paloma from Spain was one of the best decisions our family has ever made!
One day as I was scrolling through Facebook I had seen an article about the need of host families by ICES. As I read through the article I was intrigued at the possibility. As a blended family we don’t have all our children through the school year, so our large home could very easily hold another child. I approached my family about the program and it was only a second before everyone agreed that this was something everyone wanted to do. We poured over the different applicants reading details of each student trying to choose who we wanted to invite into our home. As I read through Paloma’s (from Spain) documents and read through her and her mother’s letters, I knew she would be a perfect fit.
Even before Paloma arrived we wrote back and forth going into detail about ourselves, our families and likes and dislikes. Waiting at the airport, with the whole family anticipating her arrival, the moment she walked towards us our arms opened to hug her, she instantly firmly planted herself into our hearts. Worries about her being comfortable with us and vice versa were gone as we joked and laughed all together on the way home.
As time has gone on, month after month, she feels like she has always been part of our family. Her family back in Spain is now our extended family that we love just as much as we love her. The joy that fills my heart as she experiences new things here fulfills my life in ways I never knew were important to me. Our decision to open our home, life and hearts to Paloma was the best decision we could have ever made.
We have spent time in Charleston, seeing shows, showing her all the family traditions we have over the holidays and are now planning for spring break in Savannah. I love cooking her foods that my kids have always loved. Paloma, myself and my daughter Isela love spending girls’ nights together going to the movies.
Most of all seeing the bond she has made with myself, my husband, and all our kids mean the world to me. Feeling sad that we have mere months left with her, we all know no matter what happens when she goes home, she will always be part of our family.
The Rabe family
Dacula, Georgia
hosting Paloma from Spain 🇪🇸
