Adoption process questions, please read and be respectful- thank you.?

Question

ok, my sister is married and just had her first child. she did not take care of the pregnancy- purposely not eating enough and that resulted in an early term baby. alot of this my family feels stems from the fact that it was a girl baby... and they only wanted a boy. my sister is very irresponsible and her preme child is not even 2 months old, and she is talking about wanting to adopt so they can have a boy—it’s like she does not even care about the one she has right now. I know nothing about adoption, and I'm just concerned that my sister would be able to just walk in and pick a child. I know they cannot afford, care for properly and efficiently bring up another child- let alone the one they already have. They can barley pay their bills and hold a job!

Answer 1

there are ways to stop the process. However some people slip through the system. They do do an investigation regarding finances though. it sounds like with the money issue it wont happen

Answer 2

Well there is a home visit, references are required from people stating what kind of parent you are, medical history is done and a complete physical, they can order a psych evaluation, they will ask why you want to adopt and if you state a specific s*x they will ask you why and rarely will they allow you to adopt with a new baby in the home as the first born is suppose to always remain the first born.  They will do a financial check to make sure that bills are being paid on time and that there haven't been any shutoffs or collections in the last 6 months.  They will check the home to make sure it is safe and how many children will fit safely in the home.  When you already have a child they ask to meet with that child because that allows them to see if the child is being properly cared for, any signs of neglect or abuse will cause the adoption process to be stopped pending investigation.  They must provide proof of income for atleast one of them and show stability within that job and they look into proof of ability to commit to things.  They usually require a drug test with the physical and will do fingerprinting and criminal background checks.  The whole process can take a year or longer.  There is alot to go through before you can even be approved to adopt then a child must be located and must be the right fit for your home environment.  They prefer that family members close to the person right up referals with if they feel the family should adopt or not, these are kept confidential so only the caseworkers know what is said.  Also they will check for any reports to CPS as this will affect the adoption as well.

Answer 3

The homestudy process is pretty involved and intensive.  It is designed to "weed out" people that would make poor adoptive parents.  However, there are always those who can slip in through the cracks.  An approved homestudy is no guarantee of being a good parent.

However, even getting to the homestudy part takes a lot of paperwork, a lot of dedication and a lot of patience.  If your sister and her husband are like you describe, they may not have the will or the patience to go through with all of the pre-adoption, (or even pre-homestudy) process.  

I feel sorry for your poor niece and hope that the rest of the family can rally to support this baby.

Good luck

Answer 4

If she's as irresponsible as you say it is unlikely that she will even follow through with the process. Also she would have to have an approved home study, including references, that say she can provide a good environment to a child. They will visit her home, ask about her current child, why she wants to adopt... Hopefully if she gets this far they will figure out that she has problems and won't approve her to adopt. It is really not that easy.

Another thing to consider is that if she is really as bad a parent to her current child as you say you may want to keep your eye on thing and report her to the child protection agency if needed.

Answer 5

Believe me I use to live in vegas and their adoption policies r strict..... I cost alot of money ........most married couples trying have to be married for 3 years............ and a social worker will be there alot just to make sure the household is stable.....They will check work history if it is all bad they will be declined untill they can pass the preadoption process...... and on top of anything else u can also vocie what u said to us to the social worker and that will end there chances right there.................. So believe me she has alot working against her.................................

Answer 6

With all due respect...I think you should focus more on her inability to care for her daughter.  You should educate her on her responsibility as a mother to provide not only food, clothes and shelter but she also needs to provide her children with opportunities for HEALTHY emotional growth.  In regards to adoption, you can simply tell her that when the Agency is completing the HomeStudy they will see that she is not able to take good care of her daughter and therefore she won't be able to get her License.