Thursday, October 8, 2009

Is DHS for real???

And when I say "DHS" I mean Department of Human Services - Children & Family Services - the ones that are in charge of this whole ordeal with my crack-head step-daughter. So she gets visitation twice a week for two hours each time, even after failing a drug test - and I have to take him every Tuesday and Thursday to DHS offices in Little Rock from 11:00-1:00, rain or shine, whether he feels like it or not. First, let me say that Hunter's colic has all but passed. He hasn't even had gas drops for at least two days. He laughs, talks and plays like a normal 3-month-old. Except during the visitations. When I'm sitting there waiting for her to show up he's laughing and talking to me, but as soon as she gets there and takes him he starts screaming - and he screams for the entire two hours. She got away with saying it was a tummy-ache until now, but now she's claiming that he's just not comfortable there at the DHS office, they don't have any toys for him (he's 3-months-old for goodness sake) and all they have is a rocking chair (uh, he loves the rocking chair). So DHS asks me to start letting her come to my house for the visitation. Uh - no. She should show that she can be a mother in any setting. If she wants him to have a toy, then bring a play mat and bouncy-seat - she STILL wouldn't be toting around as much as I do there. Not to mention, she already visits her 2-year-old son at her mother's house (who has custody of him) and was caught rummaging around the bathroom looking for drugs. She's a thief and not allowed in our house. And really - would DHS ask foster parents to do this??? We are the foster parents. DHS picks her up and takes her home for every visitation. DHS picks her up and takes her to all of the doctor appointments. DHS picks her up and takes her to all of her psych appointments and parenting class (oh yeah, don't EVEN let me forget that one ... she only had to take a 3 HOUR parenting class after fracturing a 3-week-old infant's head - for real????). Why is she not having to prove that she can be relied on to get him to the doctor if needed, or anything else??? Why is DHS taking her everywhere??? Does she really have a chance of getting him back???? What is wrong with this system? I'm stressing out all the time in fear of losing him, of her getting him back, when she has not even the smallest mother-bility in her. She failed the last drug test, 2 or 3 weeks ago, and they haven't even re-tested her - they said they were going to do a hair follicle test, but I guess they are going to wait to give her time to let it all pass now that she knows about it. Her boyfriend beat her up 3 times in the first 2 weeks of August, she stopped telling us about it after that because DHS told her she had to leave him (but she refuses) - all three of those times she went to the ER and got pain medications, so I'm guessing they are doing it on purpose to get drugs. This girl has not shown one thing that demonstrates she has parenting ability, and they still let her have visitation, even asking us to do it in our home!!!

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