[hipretty]

Help! Please!
I need some advice what legal moves to make. My husband and I recently moved to Central Florida from South Florida. We attended our Orientation class around Thanksgiving and we are on pins and needles until we know when the next MAPP classes will be.

We have a special needs son who will be six. Since we are new to the area, we do not know anyone here well enough to leave him with anyone, and if we go out as a couple it is when my Mother drives up and stays for holidays, long weekends etc. So this whole adoption thing will be a family affair. My Mom came in for the Orientation, and will do the same for the all the MAPP classes.

I have been browsing this site (unregistered) for awhile trying to glean whatever information I could. I did learn as a potential adoptive mother I should get the information "out there" that I am looking to adopt.

Private adoption is not financially feasible for us. We have been going the "state" route. My son has been begging us for a baby brother (:-0) which is impossible for me to do, and which is improbable through the state. We are not planning to foster.

I do not know if you believe in Prayer, but I have been praying and praying for a "baby" to come our way.

Here is my dilemma:

My Mother went to a Christmas party at a dear friends house. Her friend's son was there with a female friend (not sure how romantically linked they are). Let's call her Bea (not her real name). My mother was showing a picture of my little boy to the group and Bea could not get over how much my boy looked like her little boy. She said they could pass as brothers. My Mom asked her "How old is your son?" Bea said he will be 3 at the end of January. Which happens to be when my son's birthday is. So my Mom asked her "January what?" Bea said "January 26th or 27th!" My son's birthday is the 27th. My Mom's antenna's went up, and instinctively realized, she would know the day if he was in her custody.

She asked her "He is not with you???" and Bea told my Mom. "No someone took him from me." My mom sat with her through the entire party talking, and this is what she got from her. When Bea had the baby, she was in no position/state of mind to raise the baby. The baby is with the sister of an ex boyfriend (Not the bio Father!!!!!) but I guess she was with that boyfriend at the time she gave birth. She does not know the last name of the bio Father. He was never in the picture.

The sister of the ex boyfriend still has the child. Bea used to visit him, until the last time she went there, the baby had bruises over his back. I guess she questioned them about it. They never let her see him again. They never legally adopted the baby, Bea said she never signed anything. She would like to get him away from them, but she is not in a position to take care of him herself. She does not know what to do.

My mother not really knowing the legal moves to make either, asked Bea if she can take care of the child now, Bea said "No". It seems she is not really bonded to him, but it does not sit right with her about the bruises and the whole way, they stopped letting her see him. She would like to get him signed over to a good Mother. not really trusting the situaton he is in. My mom told her we were looking to adopt, and asked her several times "You never signed anything???" Bea insists "No, this was not a legal adoption, and it is not family"

My Mother told her, if it ever came down to anything, her daughter was a wonderful mother, a stay at home mom etc. My mother turned to her friend and asked her what kind of mother I am...and her friend said "They don't come any better!!"

Bea gave my mom her first and last name her phone number, and said she was interested. She said she would sign legal papers to do this all legally. My husband wants to see pictures of the child, he says "you would not buy a car site unseen, you view the children's pictures on the State websites to see who tugs your heart." My child is beautiful and he has developmental delays. What would you learn from his picture?? I don't think that Bea has any pictures anyway. Unless they were from when he was an infant.

Here is my dilemma. Where do I start? Drive across the state to meet Bea, if nothing can be legally done?? Contact an attorney who will charge us thousands of dollars for a (possible) private adoption that we found ourselves???

1) I can call the woman who gave my Orientation class and ask her what to do, but the state may pull this child from his environment, put him in state care, and foster him out first, which is not in our plans. Then we would lose out on him.
OR

2) I can try to find out where the child is and see him interacting with the family (from afar???) to see how he is developmentally.
OR

3) I can get paper work drawn up and signed by the bio Mother, and then contact the woman from children and families and ask her then what to do.

I am not family or next of kin, but if I meet this bio Mother and she trusts us and finds us worthy, and she agrees, does she have legal say who her baby goes to??? Basically this looks like kidnapping if they are now witholding the child.....but then again at the same time if she is struggling either financially or emotionally and cannot take her child, she possibly does not have the where-with-all to fight these people, and they could possibly call this abandonement on her part. She possibly does not understand her rights.

4) What legal rights do they (the people with the baby) have???

5) Do I still need to take my MAPP classses??? If so, Should I finish the MAPP classes and then pursue the adoption. If I do not have the MAPP classes done the child may go to someone else.

Please I am begging for help. Any and all advice is welcome. My Mother said "don't get all crazy now", but I feel if I do not try to pursue this, I may always regret it. Don't forget this gal is a friend of my mother's, friend's, son. So she may feel very comfortable with the situation. Can this be the baby I was praying for???

Thank you ahead of time!
Love & Light, Tee