So I haven’t heard from Cindy again. I plan to text her and just tell her I hope she’s safe and ok. I think the baby will go into foster care in that state, and I only hope that Cindy is able to get the names of the parents if the baby gets adopted, so we can try to keep in touch. But if she comes back prior to giving birth (just like she did with M), the only way I would be able to even possibly consider taking the baby is by applying for an emergency kinship placement via foster care. Even direct placement adoption via private lawyers is out of my price range (my price range is $0).
I was told by the agency licenser (of my former agency) that they wouldn’t consider me a kinship placement and license me emergently for M’s siblings. I don’t really think that’s how it works though… I feel like as M’s parent, we are a kinship placement, and should be contacted and asked if we want the baby, just like M’s half-siblings’ other parents were asked if they wanted her prior to moving forward with adoptive placement.
Fellow foster parents, am I wrong?
I would think if she comes back to where you live, they would contact you. Our girls’ bm had another baby before our adoption was complete but we had moved across state lines 2 hours away and there was no push for her to be placed with us even though we were still in contact with sws, etc. I don’t know if we could have begged and pleaded and that would have happened, but we just didn’t think we could do it logistically with a new case.
My answer got super long so I put it on my blog. In short, I think you should be considered a kinship placement. Check out my full answer here: https://thebeautifulopportunity.wordpress.com/2015/02/08/fostering-the-sibling-of-your-adopted-child/ Hope that’s ok.
I don’t have any answers/experience in this matter, but I wish you (and that baby) the very best. What difficult circumstances.
Unrelated to this, I wonder if you’d send me a quick e-mail? I don’t have your current e-mail address, but I do have a question for you.