Home Austin

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Home Austin We believe that every child deserves a safe place to call home. At Home Austin, we believe in the restorative power of the love of Jesus.

We dream of the day when Foster Care is not a scary word, but rather a place where hope can be found. We desire to not only Foster children but also walk alongside ALL those affected by Foster Care.

06/17/2026

This weekend, the boys and I headed north for the Cause Partner Retreat… a weekend full of rest, reflection, and celebration. 🎉

As I look back over the last few years, I can honestly say I’ve felt a little off-kilter at times. But I’m incredibly grateful for the ways the Lord has been gently restoring and realigning my heart these past few months. Looking back, I can see His faithfulness in every season.

This weekend we celebrated 10 years of , and it also marked nearly 10 years since I met .funke at CGA, heard the Lord’s call to step into foster care, and began partnering with The Cause. So much of who I am today has been shaped by those moments of obedience.

This week I turn 30. There are definitely some big feelings that come with that milestone, but mostly I feel hopeful, expectant, and excited to see what God has in store for the next decade.

It’s hard to pick my favorite parts of the weekend, but if I had to, I’d say watching the kiddos make friends with children from around the world, learning from one another, worshipping together, speaking life into each other, and sharing lots of late-night silliness.

And this moment. 🤍 The vocals you’re hearing are sweet Lily Clemons singing life over all of us (with her dad 🥹) and sending us off so well. What a gift to be reminded that God can use anyone, regardless of age, to encourage, challenge, and bless those around them.

So grateful for this community and this place that always feels like home.

To our gracious supporters over the years, your kindness is making a real difference in the Texas Hill Country floods.Fo...
07/10/2025

To our gracious supporters over the years, your kindness is making a real difference in the Texas Hill Country floods.

For 8 years, I’ve commuted in and out of the Northshores - a little community made up of Jonestown, Lago Vista, and Point Venture, all tucked along the north side of Lake Travis. Over time, I’ve been welcomed, encouraged, and surrounded by the kind of small-town goodness that feels uniquely Texas.

For 3 years, I had the honor of serving alongside Younger Homes + The Hope Center on the leadership team for the Big Event - a day dedicated to neighbors helping neighbors. We saw 500+ volunteers show up year after year, and that number is still growing.

As many of you have heard, the Hill Country is facing the unimaginable this week. Every day feels heavy as we wait for updates and check in on our neighbors. But today, we caught a glimmer of hope - alongside my sweet kiddos, we got to show up in a small way for a community that has always shown up for us.

Over the years, Home Austin has been abundantly blessed with physical donations - and today, we were able to share that wealth with our Northshore community. Because of your generosity, our support of vulnerable families in Texas is reaching beyond foster care and meeting needs in real time.

Thank you for being the kind of people who show up. Please keep praying - for the helpers, the families, and the communities affected all across Texas.

Needs are changing daily - if you’d like to help support the Hill Country during this time, I’d love to connect you with resources. 💙💛

As they say in LV, we all row together.
– Carmen

I’ve spent the better part of the last three months trying to find the prettiest (metaphorical) bow to tie on what our 1...
03/26/2024

I’ve spent the better part of the last three months trying to find the prettiest (metaphorical) bow to tie on what our 18 months together meant but truth is nothing quite fits right. I’m hoping that in the next few months I’ll find the words but for now all I can say is we loved hard and that feels like the greatest job well done… even when it hurts.

Brief overview of what’s been happening over here-
- Said “see you later” in late December to these precious boys. The hole is deep and far and wide in everyone’s hearts!
- Decided to take this year to refocus and only stay open for any previous families should they need us. It’s been quite the journey and maybe I’ll share some more soon!
- I am not quitting foster care just taking some time to reset and figure out how to do this more “sustainably”, fostering is so deeply woven in my soul now that I don’t think I’ll ever not be in some capacity involved.

I love seeing the world through your eyes!! 🤠The partner retreat shaped our family in ways I wasn’t prepared for. Holy ...
06/12/2023

I love seeing the world through your eyes!! 🤠

The partner retreat shaped our family in ways I wasn’t prepared for. Holy ground this weekend in Albany, TX! Ready for what’s to come.

📸: .4.la

Thank you Kainee for opening your heart, home and businesses to us and our dreams!! We had an incredible day sitting in ...
11/06/2021

Thank you Kainee for opening your heart, home and businesses to us and our dreams!! We had an incredible day sitting in your presence and soaking up all your wisdom.

Grateful for our girl Shelbie who listened to a podcast and fearlessly reached out to Kainee and set this whole trip up!!

We are working on some big things behind the scenes over here and we are super duper excited! Love dreaming with these ladies!!!

The most loved little boy!! I can not believe how big A-man is getting. Honored to have gotten to celebrate his birthday...
10/28/2021

The most loved little boy!! I can not believe how big A-man is getting.

Honored to have gotten to celebrate his birthday with him twice this month! Once as a team with his friends and then today with one of our favorite caseworkers & CASA volunteers!

He sure does light up our life!! Swipe to see some adorable pictures of our ever growing boy.

3 whole months of loving you my lil S man!! ❤️ You have the brightest personality and the cutest toothless smile, you lo...
10/28/2021

3 whole months of loving you my lil S man!! ❤️

You have the brightest personality and the cutest toothless smile, you love being snuggled, sung to and feeling the wind. You are curious and kind. It’s an honor loving you and your mommy & daddy!! Thanks for letting me continue to walk this journey with you buddy.

➡️ swipe to see this squish when we first met. I can’t believe the difference.

Almost a month ago we said “see ya later” to this handsome little hunk! We are absolutely honored to have been able to s...
07/03/2021

Almost a month ago we said “see ya later” to this handsome little hunk! We are absolutely honored to have been able to stand in the gap with him and his family this year and look forward to a continued relationship with them.
This one was special. They all are. Every child that walks through my door captures my heart in a matter of seconds (thanks Jesus for strong maternal instincts) but there was something about this big baby that came at 10pm in a fedora that barely sat on top of his curly hair. He came in a season where life seemed calm, a season after a dark few months & before some even darker heavier times in my life. He taught me how to slow down & love even harder… he taught me to laugh when crying felt like the only option but probably the most important lesson I learned in his time here was the beauty that comes with the pain of “getting too attached”. I knew that this wasn’t his forever home but to be transparent my mind had wandered there, even though I had been routing for family placement. It hit me hard out of what felt like nowhere. The tension I walk in foster care of joy & sadness was exasperated after the orders were placed for him to move. I laid awake sobbing, “Jesus please make this stop hurting so much. Please please stop making it hurt me when it’s their time to move”. The Lord, like He does, reminded me if He were to take away the pain of the end the beauty of the middle would then too have to go away. If I want the end to not hurt I would have to detach my every emotion from the time my children spend in my home- which I arguably believe to be the most important part of what I do. So I have decided that though the end hurts the beauty of the middle is too sweet to miss out on. I will get too attached over and over again. Just like that the Father will honor it, heal my heart and make me “whole” and ready for the next kiddo over and over again.
It was the sweetest treat to fly with him to his family’s house & get him all settled in at home. He’s doing amazingly well (if you’re wondering I am too) and enjoying time with TONS of people who love him dearly!! I’m hopeful that I’ll get to continue to watch him grow from afar 🤍

05/06/2021

Love. ❤️ Now that I publicly died to my savior complex (yesterday’s post) I’m going to share something a little less vulnerable today. Something I wrote years ago.
February 2019-“I’m hesitant to post this (or even to write it down) because I know how utterly dramatic this is going to sound. Here we go...Ive spent the last 30 minutes crying on the phone in the airport, telling my mom how torn up I am about a boy I just met. I never knew this kind of love existed. With A I held my self protective walls up high (which didn’t work if you were wondering) but with my sweet B boy I didn’t stand a chance. Before I even laid eyes on him sitting in my living room praying at 2 am I knew I was already falling madly and deeply in love with a tiny human I had never met. As I walked out to the truck in the foggy rain and looked through the back window to see him there sleeping I knew my heart was in for a major change.

I’m traveling for a week and I’ve cried 6 times. Mostly because our future is so unknown. I’ve cried because I know the pain I’ll face when he’s moved. I’ve cried because I know that I didn’t guard my heart well enough. I’ve cried because I’m crying and I feel ridiculous. I’ve cried to my mom and said, “I don’t know why I chose to do this.” When she simply responded, “it’s not a choice it’s a calling.” My heart quickly realigned to see Kingdom vision outside of myself and my heartbreak.

If you don’t want to foster because you’ll “get too attached”- I don’t blame you. It sucks to cry over a kid that’s not yours, over a kid whose future isn’t necessarily determined by you, it sucks to love with your everything and know that at any moment that person could be gone. Sweet friend, if you have the capacity to love that hard then we need you here loving with your everything and melting in to thousands of pieces along the way.”

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Austin, TX
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