Belinda Baxter is a mum to six of her own biological kids. By most people's standards, that's already a lot to handle, but Belinda knew she had more to give.
Speaking to Mamamia, Belinda said she began her fostering journey through Fostering Connections, the state-wide foster care recruitment service supported by the Victorian Government.
"I rang Fostering Connections and they talked to me, answered all my questions, gave me the information and support I needed, then connected me with a local agency."
Working with that local agency, Key Assets, Belinda and her husband became foster carers, bringing the current grand total of children in their home to a whopping 13.
Belinda admitted that most people are shocked when she tells them she has 13 kids at home.
"The most common question I get is, 'Wow, do you have a TV?'" she laughed. "It's turned into a bit of a running joke."
In fact, she has something much better: a five-acre oasis where the kids in her care can feel secure and supported before they head out into the adult world.
"It's really a kids' paradise," she told Mamamia. "It's a very unique setup. We have seven bedrooms inside and six independent living units outside. We live on five acres, so there's lots of space for everyone, as well as lots of horses, lambs, ducks and all kinds of animals.
"There's a big music studio where we sing and play all different instruments. It's really healing for kids who come to us with trauma."
The independent living arrangements that Belinda and her husband are able to offer mean the older kids in her care can learn skills that will serve them when they're adults, like food shopping, cleaning, laundry and mechanics.
But the family is far from isolated: "The whole community is behind us," Belinda said. "You really need that village around you."
A typical day for Belinda with so many kids around is hectic, but she wouldn't have it any other way. "Our whole lifestyle is devoted to the kids," she said. "Our life is full of routines and systems — we have two washing machines and three dryers! But it works."
When Belinda tells people her story, their response is often that they could never do what she is doing, but she's very quick to emphasise that taking on seven foster kids isn't the only option.
"There's all different types of foster care — you can do it to suit your lifestyle and commitment," she said. "You can take kids for a weekend or a couple of days over the school holidays, and build relationships with no long-term commitment.
"You could be a short-term carer for a couple of weeks to months or offer emergency care, which is immediate but still short-term. Then there's long-term care, which is taking in kids until they're 18 or until they transition into independent living."
Belinda said she herself "mixes and matches" these types of fostering to suit her family's needs.
"I want people to know that they shouldn't think, 'Oh my gosh, she's got 13 children, I could never do that' but you don't have to have 13 children! It completely depends on your lifestyle and your capacity."
And of course, you don't need a farm or even a big house to become a foster carer — people from all walks of life, in all kinds of circumstances, can make an impact as foster carers.
As for the process of becoming a foster carer, Belinda insisted it's nowhere near as difficult as you might imagine.
"That's a bit of a myth, that you have to jump through endless hoops to become an accredited foster carer," she said. "It took about four months from the start of the process to the end. And I'm really grateful for the process because it tells me the carers are quality carers."
Another question prospective foster carers often raise with Belinda is their fears about their biological children interacting with any potential foster kids.
"You receive a lot of training and support through your agency," she said. "They're very accommodating to your concerns. Fostering Connections gave me the confidence to get started and now my agency, Key Assets, looks over everything to make sure the kids we take on are a really good fit for our family."
Of course, raising children is never "easy", whether they are your own biological kids or you're involved in foster care. "There are going to be really challenging times in foster care, as well as our own parenting," Belinda said. "Sometimes, of course, we have challenging days. We make mistakes. We are parents and we are human. But the rewarding days far outweigh any of those challenges."
If she had to give one piece of advice for anyone thinking of becoming a foster carer?
"You will never regret the time you have sown into a child's life. If you're thinking about becoming a foster carer, talk to Fostering Connections. We have learned so much and grown so much — we started out just as normal parents. Now we love what we do so much, and we know that it's really making a difference."
Explore Fostering Connections to find the right foster care agency for you, or speak to a foster care specialist on 1800 013 088.
Feature Image: Getty.