What is the name of your state? PA
Is there any situation in which a biological aunt can apply for gaurdianship of her nephew without parental permission? Nephew has been been in my care now since he was 3 months old, and he will be 4 years old this summer.
I have no official custody. I have a notarized letter from 2006 that gives me permission to deal with his health care because he was un-insured and I wanted to put him on CHIP. The child's father is voluntarily out of the picture, though he does have an open support obligation to the mother, whom is my sister. He has not slept at his father's place in over a year, before that he had a weekend every couple of months though no custody order. He sees him maybe four or five days a year now. The mother (my sister) lives very close, but has other priorities and choses not to be involved either. He has not slept at her place since last spring. He sees her for an average of 2 hours per month, facilitated by us bringing him to her.
I realise I will never have full custody legally. Neither parent abused him. Neither parent spends enough time with him to do so in the future. Neither abandoned him legally. I am in phone contact with my sister almost daily. She did not run off and stop calling. She just prefers not to waste any time what-so-ever on child rearing. Its very hard to get across how odd this situation is...she's never here (I keep track in a journal...it is apalling to me as a parent), yet she lives very close, and works about 30 hours per week AT NIGHT leaving her ample time to see her son if only she cared to. I can't prove anyone unfit, and disinterest is not abusive since my nephew is perfectly happy in his situation here. I love my sister, she just is not meant to be a parent.
The problem is that my sister is very immature with a temper. I constantly walk on eggshells in our phone conversations (which are rarely related to her son) because if I upset her at all she threatens to come take him away. No problem if it was going to be permanent in a good situation (at first we figured she would come back for him when she got herself together), but she is only using it as a threat. It's power to get whatever it is she wants at the time...such as backing her up in some stupid arguement with another relative or some other petty issue.
I am also hitting walls in my efforts to give him things. Pre-school? My son (a year younger) is all registered for fall. I can't get my sister to sign the papers. Speech therapy? My sister had a speech delay and my nephew does as well. Won't sign. I will pay for these things like i do everything else, she just can't be bothered to meet up for 20 minutes to sign the paperwork even though she's 10 minutes away. And she won't admit to others how little she sees her son, so if I just show up with paperwork it will ROYALLY piss her off.
Anyway, I seek gaurdianship. My sister is not against it except that she fears it would screw up the support she gets from the father, as well as her ability to claim him each year on her taxes (which she has already done this year). I could care less right now and have no intention of pissing her off by screwing with those monetary things. I realise that she is profiting from the father's child support, but saying anything about it would just hurt her son. I have no rights and never will aside from possibly legally being able to admit him to the hospital and pre-school with gaurdianship (as far as I know). I'd rather he live here than be yanked back and forth out of spite.
I CAN easily prove that he physically lives here. Hospital records, dental records, pediatrician reconds, occassional daycare records, CHiP records, receipts for two toddler bed, two winter coats, two pairs of shoes, Two toddler robes, family memberships to activities, and witnesses from the library (storytime), the neighbors, our family, etc. Plus she'll have none of this. She lives on my mom's couch presently and didn't even show up in the ER last month when he was there for 7 hours even though we called her and she was off that day. She chose to nap instead. She hasn't signed a medical record or invoice in 3 years.
Any advice on the best course of action here would be great. Again, I don't want to affect the rights of my sister or my nephew's father...I just need the ability to legally do things without the headache, AS WELL as some type of legal acknowledgement that my nephew has been living here in case something happenes to my sister or the father. Anybody? Am I just kinda stuck? The stress of having to "pitch" pre-school and hope I can convince her without POing her was only the most recent problem. This will only get worse as he gets older.
As bad as the father looks for not being involved, she is well aware that a mother who gives up their child "just because" looks like an absolute monster. I feel bad for her hang-ups because she is my sister, but her son needs a third person with the ability to take care of him while she deals with it. Neither parent wants that responcibility. I'm not fighting for custody, he already lives here of his parents free will, just the legal power to do what neither parent cares to do when he's with me.
Is there any situation in which a biological aunt can apply for gaurdianship of her nephew without parental permission? Nephew has been been in my care now since he was 3 months old, and he will be 4 years old this summer.
I have no official custody. I have a notarized letter from 2006 that gives me permission to deal with his health care because he was un-insured and I wanted to put him on CHIP. The child's father is voluntarily out of the picture, though he does have an open support obligation to the mother, whom is my sister. He has not slept at his father's place in over a year, before that he had a weekend every couple of months though no custody order. He sees him maybe four or five days a year now. The mother (my sister) lives very close, but has other priorities and choses not to be involved either. He has not slept at her place since last spring. He sees her for an average of 2 hours per month, facilitated by us bringing him to her.
I realise I will never have full custody legally. Neither parent abused him. Neither parent spends enough time with him to do so in the future. Neither abandoned him legally. I am in phone contact with my sister almost daily. She did not run off and stop calling. She just prefers not to waste any time what-so-ever on child rearing. Its very hard to get across how odd this situation is...she's never here (I keep track in a journal...it is apalling to me as a parent), yet she lives very close, and works about 30 hours per week AT NIGHT leaving her ample time to see her son if only she cared to. I can't prove anyone unfit, and disinterest is not abusive since my nephew is perfectly happy in his situation here. I love my sister, she just is not meant to be a parent.
The problem is that my sister is very immature with a temper. I constantly walk on eggshells in our phone conversations (which are rarely related to her son) because if I upset her at all she threatens to come take him away. No problem if it was going to be permanent in a good situation (at first we figured she would come back for him when she got herself together), but she is only using it as a threat. It's power to get whatever it is she wants at the time...such as backing her up in some stupid arguement with another relative or some other petty issue.
I am also hitting walls in my efforts to give him things. Pre-school? My son (a year younger) is all registered for fall. I can't get my sister to sign the papers. Speech therapy? My sister had a speech delay and my nephew does as well. Won't sign. I will pay for these things like i do everything else, she just can't be bothered to meet up for 20 minutes to sign the paperwork even though she's 10 minutes away. And she won't admit to others how little she sees her son, so if I just show up with paperwork it will ROYALLY piss her off.
Anyway, I seek gaurdianship. My sister is not against it except that she fears it would screw up the support she gets from the father, as well as her ability to claim him each year on her taxes (which she has already done this year). I could care less right now and have no intention of pissing her off by screwing with those monetary things. I realise that she is profiting from the father's child support, but saying anything about it would just hurt her son. I have no rights and never will aside from possibly legally being able to admit him to the hospital and pre-school with gaurdianship (as far as I know). I'd rather he live here than be yanked back and forth out of spite.
I CAN easily prove that he physically lives here. Hospital records, dental records, pediatrician reconds, occassional daycare records, CHiP records, receipts for two toddler bed, two winter coats, two pairs of shoes, Two toddler robes, family memberships to activities, and witnesses from the library (storytime), the neighbors, our family, etc. Plus she'll have none of this. She lives on my mom's couch presently and didn't even show up in the ER last month when he was there for 7 hours even though we called her and she was off that day. She chose to nap instead. She hasn't signed a medical record or invoice in 3 years.
Any advice on the best course of action here would be great. Again, I don't want to affect the rights of my sister or my nephew's father...I just need the ability to legally do things without the headache, AS WELL as some type of legal acknowledgement that my nephew has been living here in case something happenes to my sister or the father. Anybody? Am I just kinda stuck? The stress of having to "pitch" pre-school and hope I can convince her without POing her was only the most recent problem. This will only get worse as he gets older.
As bad as the father looks for not being involved, she is well aware that a mother who gives up their child "just because" looks like an absolute monster. I feel bad for her hang-ups because she is my sister, but her son needs a third person with the ability to take care of him while she deals with it. Neither parent wants that responcibility. I'm not fighting for custody, he already lives here of his parents free will, just the legal power to do what neither parent cares to do when he's with me.
