[mommalinda]

hi,
I was needing to find out what we will need to do if we get to adopt our fs, we have had him for 2 months so far the mother has never raised him and she calls herself sissy to him her mother and step-father have been raising him he is 2yrs.old the father just got out of prison for fraud with 4 more years prob. he has to live with his mother so she was denied him to the granparents that was raising him failed her drug test and lied and pergered herself on the stand at court they were told they would never get him back no other relatives have stepped forward wanting him,that could pass a homestudy we said we would adopt him if they will let us we love him very much so we were needing to find out what paperwork or more classes to take we already have took mapp classes 3 years ago and are certified fosterparents but still don't know alot of legalities. Help

[mckenna]

first, they have to tpr on both parents and make his goal termination pending adoption. every state is different. in my stated i had to complete 16 more hours of spaulding training, then after both parents were officially tpred on then the case got sent to the adoption unit and since i had already made my intentions clear that i would adopt him, they started the paper work for me to finalize. from time of initial placement til adoption was 2 1/2 years. i have never met anyone who got a child as a foster child first that finalized in under 8 months. a child must be in your home for 6 months before finalization and it usually takes more like 8-12 months.

[monroeman]

Make sure that the caseworkers know that you want to be considered as the adoptive placement if that is the way the case goes.

You have to have a home study completed to be eligible. Many, maybe most, foster parents have not done this. I couldn't tell from your post whether or not you have this in place already. If you don't, the state should do it for you without charge. You can usually get reimbused if you pay an outside agency to do the HS, but only if you are chosen as the adoptive placement.

As soon as TPR is done DCFS identifies an adoptive placement. Remember that there is an appeals period after TPR - usually 30 days. It ain't over 'til it's over. Right now, with only two months in the placement, a family member would usually be chosen, provided there can be found one who wants to and who can be approved. It doesn't sound like there are any, so it is likely that you would be chosen as the adoptive placement. If TPR takes a while, the bond the child forges with you often overrides family ties and the child is place with the foster family.

Once you are chosen as the placement for a child you need to retain an attorney to help with the finalization. The state usually reimburses this expense. It wouldn't be a bad idea to just consult with one now to make sure that we're steering you straight. This is what I did while my son's birthmom was in the TPR process. It didn't tangibly affect the outcome, but it provided me with peace of mind. It cost a little, but was worth it to me.

Hope this helps.

[mommalinda]

we had a homestudy done thrue dfcs for fostering back injune of this last year 2003 and the lady said that when or if we get to adopt our foster child she can come back out if need be or the one we just had will be good enough.we are not for certain if any of the other family members will want him because his mother did drugs through out her preg. and he has some residual effects from it