My husband and I vowed that after we married and settled down, we would become foster parents - a vow we kept and one that has enriched our lives greatly.

The most violent and troubling stories become part of our national consciousness about foster care.

My husband and I have been involved with foster youth since our early 20s. Right out of college and not yet married, we spent weekends mentoring a family of young girls.

We don't want to be treated any differently, and we want to continue with our lives and our careers.

We were pressured to accept kids we were not qualified to handle. And we do that to people all the time, which is why we don't have enough foster parents.

The first half of our lives are ruined by our parents and the second half by our children.