When reporter Yvonne Wenger set out to become a foster parent, she looked for an honest story that would open up this complicated world. She couldn’t find one. So she set out to write it.

“The Wait” began with 73 pages of journaling about life as a foster mother — and the moral dilemmas she navigated over two years. The father of her foster sons granted permission to include them here.

Yvonne's story draws on her journal, medical records, interviews, pictures and documents.

“The Wait” comes amid a shortage of foster parents nationwide and a nine-year high in the number of foster kids awaiting adoption.