We are a couple in Florida and as of right now, my girlfriend is with my daughter on vacation in Tennessee for 2 months. We are still together and she does love me. She has said a few times in the past that since she is the mother, and we�re unmarried, that she has the rights to do what she wants. Her family is in Tennessee. If they tried to get her to stay, and she did stay, what rights do I have as the father? Can the baby be taken from me without my consent?
My girlfriend has lived in my house with me and my family for 2 years, the baby has also been here with me her whole life (8 months, she's 9 months old now). I am a great father. I am tired of the threat, even if they�re jokes. Also, if she came back and down the line we broke up, can she legally take my daughter out of state? My concern started because around the time my daughter was born, her family talked about her going back with them to help her take care of the baby. I JUST became a father and they thought it'd be okay to take her from me right away. Her family aren't bad people, but I don't believe they care about me or my needs as a father. I thought she would be back near the end of this month (They've been gone since May 10th), and now she tells me they're coming back around July 15th... What if they keep pushing it back, etc.
I wasn't happy in the first place about her taking my daughter with her for a month or so, and I felt like I didn't have any control over the situation. I felt as if I couldn't say no to her without fear that she might throw that threat back in my face ("I'm the mother, I can take her with me if I want to. You can't stop me.") She's not a bad girlfriend, but I am not 100% confident that if the right circumstances happened, she wouldn't try and take the baby from me.
In the future, if she wants to go with her family again for another couple of months, I think she would do it again without the consideration for my feelings. You can see that I'm feeling like I'm missing chunks of my daughter's life. She could take her first steps any time now and I'm not going to see it.
I appreciate any information, though I am not looking for judgments on my relationship or that type of advice. I know how my girlfriend works and no cookie cutter solution is going to work for me. I'm just trying to assess what control I have over my daughter as the father, even though we're unmarried. If that even makes a difference. Thank you all in advance.
My girlfriend has lived in my house with me and my family for 2 years, the baby has also been here with me her whole life (8 months, she's 9 months old now). I am a great father. I am tired of the threat, even if they�re jokes. Also, if she came back and down the line we broke up, can she legally take my daughter out of state? My concern started because around the time my daughter was born, her family talked about her going back with them to help her take care of the baby. I JUST became a father and they thought it'd be okay to take her from me right away. Her family aren't bad people, but I don't believe they care about me or my needs as a father. I thought she would be back near the end of this month (They've been gone since May 10th), and now she tells me they're coming back around July 15th... What if they keep pushing it back, etc.
I wasn't happy in the first place about her taking my daughter with her for a month or so, and I felt like I didn't have any control over the situation. I felt as if I couldn't say no to her without fear that she might throw that threat back in my face ("I'm the mother, I can take her with me if I want to. You can't stop me.") She's not a bad girlfriend, but I am not 100% confident that if the right circumstances happened, she wouldn't try and take the baby from me.
In the future, if she wants to go with her family again for another couple of months, I think she would do it again without the consideration for my feelings. You can see that I'm feeling like I'm missing chunks of my daughter's life. She could take her first steps any time now and I'm not going to see it.
I appreciate any information, though I am not looking for judgments on my relationship or that type of advice. I know how my girlfriend works and no cookie cutter solution is going to work for me. I'm just trying to assess what control I have over my daughter as the father, even though we're unmarried. If that even makes a difference. Thank you all in advance.