At the end of this court hearing in March 2010, the State, CASA, and ad litem attorney were ambivalent.
Should our 7-month-old foster child, Lil Bit, stay with us or should he go live with his great-aunt?
None of them expressed concern either way !
UNTIL…
That one phone call to State CPS headquarters.
CPS Policy: A child should always be placed with family first.
Then, quick as a flash, the State, CASA/GAL, and ad litem attorney ALL adamantly opposed Lil Bit staying with us.
Suddenly, we were being accused of keeping our foster child from his family. Worse than that, we were keeping Lil Bit from his Mexican culture.
For 2 months until our next court hearing in May.
We met with the CASA before court. I wasn’t optimistic.
Then this miracle happened. A strange day in court for our foster baby.
What changed?
- Birth mom moved back in with her abusive grandmother (her third move in 5 months)
- Caseworker AB turned in her resignation
Is this what changed the mind of CPS toward us?
In June, we attended a meeting to discuss permanency for our foster baby when the State told birth mom that they would be terminating her rights (no matter what she did). The birth mom (and her mother) told the State that they did not want Lil Bit to go live with his great-aunt.
Is this what changed the mind of CPS toward us?
The fact is we don’t know what changed.
In August, we met with CPS and CASA in our home. They told us to work on conditions for an open adoption. Lil Bit would stay with us.
LIL BIT WOULD BE OUR SON!
The fact is we don’t care what changed the mind of CPS toward us. We care that our Lil Bit would be safe. With us. Forever!