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I'm 24 about to be 25yrs old I have a stable job and transportation. An old friend of mine asked me to do fictive kinship care for her daughter and adopt her. All of her family including the grandmother has failed home studies or either backgrounds. I guess I'm her last option at this point. I'm really excited about doing it she has given my information to her caseworker as well as her lawyer to start the process I guess homestudy and background (which I will pass I have nothing on my background) I do have some questions I hope someone can help me out with.
1.The baby is 2.5 she has been in a foster home almost a year now, the foster parents stated if mother loses her rights they've considered adoption How will this affect my chances? Will they have more rights over me (remember this is fictive kinship/Not related to baby)
I've done kinship care before with two previous kids and at the last minute their aunt intervened and she got them (very heartbreaking i had them for 2 years, kids were devastated)
She is a 2.5 yr old little girl I live in a 1 bedroom apartment will that be a problem? (There is space in my room for her to have a toddler bed in there)
Mom and Daf already stated the will relinquish their rights if I'm approved for the homestudy.
(By the way Im in Central Texas the Austin/Hutto/Roundrock area)
Hi fellow kinship person :)
If you do this, make sure you document what your intent is, post adoption
Your friend asked you because they are desperate to not lose their child completely (thats about where we came in too)
You have a picture in your head of hat this means. They have a different picture in their head. in order to avoid pain post adoption, communicate what you are willing to live with.. next year.. in 5, 10 years
What is the minimum you can commit to, and commit only to that. Are you ok with them dropping by daily? weekly? not at all? do they need to give you advanced notice? can they call to talk with "their kids" whenever
can they come pick them up, without you, can take them for a visit? an overnight?
its much easier to deal with these decisions now.. and not, at 7pm on a Sunday night, when they are a your door
best of luck to you
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Me and the mother have a mutual understanding she just wants to be able to see her (supervised,) and talk to her over the phone. She knows I would not allow her to take her anywhere without me and know she can't just pop at my place.
The main questions I have are,
Do the FP have more favor over me because she has been with them for almost a year?
Is it ok that I live in a 1bedroom?(she only 2.5) I can provide a toddler bed for her if needed.
It depends on the rules for your area in regards to bedrooms. In my state, a child who is older than one can't share a bedroom with an adult. You would have to move to be considered for placement.
I'd guess, just based on posts here, that whether FP would trump you for placement is going to depend on the CW involved. Some seem to favor fictive kin while others tend to favor FP, especially if they have a yearlong bond with the child. Your case would be stronger if you had a relationship with the child before she was placed in foster care, I'd guess.
Her mother when she was "able" to get her back they stated she was ok to move in a 1bedroom and get the baby. I live in Texas I think as long as they have a bed and under the age of 5 they are ok to share a room especially with her being a female like me. Im not sure I dont know where to find the guidelines.
I did have a relationship with her before she got placed I have babysitted her and been around her before, just 2months before she got removed I lost contact with them until last week.
The oldest I have heard of being able to share a room with an adult is age two, but there may be exceptions. Regarding whether you or the foster parents will have priority, that will depend on your area as well. In some states, foster parents can intervene after having had placement for a certain amount of time. In others, kin always have priority (this may or may not include fictive kin at this point in the case). It may also depend on what the child needs. The best thing to do is call the caseworker and ask those questions.
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The rules for bio parents are different than the rules for foster or kinship parents in many cases.