Olivia Scally

Olivia grew up in the suburbs of Cleveland and graduated from Cleveland State University with degrees in Nonprofit Administration and Sociology. In 2016, she moved to New Philadelphia with her husband, Correy, and their dog, Maddie. They became a licensed foster family in February 2022 and accepted their first placement in March. They are members of The Branch Church located in New Philadelphia and Olivia enjoys serving in ways that connect members of the church to needs in the community. She is excited to share her non-traditional journey into motherhood and explore the raw and complex topics that come with fostering and adopting.

Questions for a Foster Mom : The Hot Seat

My husband, a lover of good conversation, put me on the hot seat with several questions for a foster mom. The Hot Seat My husband loves asking questions. He’s the question master. So, in preparation for sharing more of our journey, he suggested addressing some hard but important questions about our journey. So here I …

Questions for a Foster Mom : The Hot Seat Read More »

Encouragement from a Foster Dad: Love Them Anyways

After being recently reminded to “love them anyways”, Correy offers some encouragement from a Foster Dad to parents feeling weary. Giving Advice Several months ago we were at a friends house getting ready to enjoy some good food together. I remember feeling stressed, tired, beat up, and on the verge of burn out. At that …

Encouragement from a Foster Dad: Love Them Anyways Read More »

Recognizing Trauma Behind Behaviors

Parenting children in foster care requires a trauma-informed approach. Recognizing the trauma behind their behaviors is essential. An Essential Parenting Skill Understanding the reason behind a child’s behavior is a skill most parents must develop. If your toddler is throwing a tantrum, it helps to pause first. Considering how much sleep they got, when they …

Recognizing Trauma Behind Behaviors Read More »

The Gift of Grief : Processing Loss with Kids in Foster Care

Losing our family dog reminds us that the gift of grief is found in the ways it strengthens our bond and allows us to model healthy grieving. A Tribute  Our family recently had to make the difficult decision to put our sweet dog Maddie down. I shared a short tribute attempting to summarize the impact …

The Gift of Grief : Processing Loss with Kids in Foster Care Read More »

Book Recommendations for Kids in Foster Care

Reading can help caregivers communicate hard topics to their kids. Here are several book recommendations for kids in foster care.  Reading Culture We are a book family. I’ve always looked to books to help me gain a deeper understanding about things I’m interested in. I also have a deep love for fiction and the ways …

Book Recommendations for Kids in Foster Care Read More »

Balancing Extracurriculars for Kids in Foster Care

The schedule of kids in foster care can be very demanding. Balancing extracurriculars is important to empower kids in foster care to be kids.  Appointments Something I completely underestimated when we started our foster care journey is the pure number of appointments that would be added to our schedule. Granted, this is natural when going …

Balancing Extracurriculars for Kids in Foster Care Read More »