[RichardandJudy]

Hi everyone,

We have been foster parents through Alpha Treatment Center for about 1 year. We foster children from birth to 3 or 4 years old. Recently we had a baby boy placed with us who was only 1 month old. We have had him for almost 2 months now, and the social worker tells us that his mother won't get him back, and that they are unsure about whether the baby's dad is really the "bio" dad. He doesn't want to take the paternity test, which leaves any of his family ineligible to take the baby. The baby has really bonded with us, and us him. Is there any way, chance, possibility that we might be able to adopt him? Does the "system" take any of this(infant bonding) into account? Or is it just an automatic process thats out of our control? Are there legal alternatives outside of the "system? We haven't taken any classes through the county to become adoptive parents, but it sounds like it's all the same stuff we had to do through Alpha Treatment Center to become foster parents. Thank you for your responses, and God Bless!