You can do it! I feel I know you and I feel you have what it takes. I too am always the lucky recipient of statments like, “What a wonderful thing you are doing!” And often just as those words were hitting my ears, I was doubting myself and wondering if I would be able to carry on. So far so good. We are almost on our 10th year of parenting our (former foster) kids.
I take my strengh from my sister and a few wonderfully suppotive friends. However, I have also been second guessed and very critically judged by the way I have had to parent my special needs kids. Comments like, “All kids do that!” When I know that they don’t do exactly the same things or to the same extreme as my kids.
It will be a long hard road. Your kids will try your last nerve, mine have. But you will survive and you and they will be stronger. We have 5 adopted kids. The eldest are entering high school this year. The challenges don’t go away. They change. Some of them mellow, new ones arise. You have already touched on teenagers with your other children, you will be fine.
God bless.