When Your Parents Foster Nearly 200 Kids...
Thu Feb 05 2026
This episode is the first one of our new FCG spin-off series called, The Mother Load and we started out with a bang! Heather sits with her co-host Steve’s daughter, Rachel, and digs into what it was really like growing up in a home where her parents fostered nearly 200 children. She speaks candidly about the chaos, the compassion, and the moments that tested everything, answering the question many people quietly wonder:
How do parents open their home to nearly 200 children and still make sure their own kids feel seen, secure, and deeply loved?
Rachel grew up sharing her parents, her space, and her childhood with hundreds of children who arrived carrying trauma, fear, and hope. Some stayed briefly. Others became family forever.
In this conversation, Rachel reflects on what it meant to move from “the baby” to “the big sister,” the times generosity stretched a household thin, and how understanding trauma reshaped the way she saw anger, fairness, and belonging.
This episode isn’t about foster care from the system’s point of view. It’s about life inside the home, and how intentional parenting, communication, and love make it possible to expand care without losing connection.
The Mother Load is a Finding Common Ground spin-off for caregivers, daughters, and the people carrying the unseen emotional load.
This is where those stories finally get airtime. Come Tired. Leave Empowered.
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/finding-common-ground--6199849/support.
Recorded at ROC Vox Recording & Production Studios in Rochester, NY. Learn more at rocvox.com.
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This episode is the first one of our new FCG spin-off series called, The Mother Load and we started out with a bang! Heather sits with her co-host Steve’s daughter, Rachel, and digs into what it was really like growing up in a home where her parents fostered nearly 200 children. She speaks candidly about the chaos, the compassion, and the moments that tested everything, answering the question many people quietly wonder: How do parents open their home to nearly 200 children and still make sure their own kids feel seen, secure, and deeply loved? Rachel grew up sharing her parents, her space, and her childhood with hundreds of children who arrived carrying trauma, fear, and hope. Some stayed briefly. Others became family forever. In this conversation, Rachel reflects on what it meant to move from “the baby” to “the big sister,” the times generosity stretched a household thin, and how understanding trauma reshaped the way she saw anger, fairness, and belonging. This episode isn’t about foster care from the system’s point of view. It’s about life inside the home, and how intentional parenting, communication, and love make it possible to expand care without losing connection. The Mother Load is a Finding Common Ground spin-off for caregivers, daughters, and the people carrying the unseen emotional load. This is where those stories finally get airtime. Come Tired. Leave Empowered. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/finding-common-ground--6199849/support. Recorded at ROC Vox Recording & Production Studios in Rochester, NY. Learn more at rocvox.com.