What is the name of your state? Florida
My oldest daughter is 7 has never met her biological father. She knows her stepdad isn't her real dad, having met him at age 3 and understanding that we "came together" to be a family. He also has a son, who is 6, and watching his relationship with his mother has indicated to her that stepdad isn't her real daddy. Although she has this understanding, she also hasn't asked about her biological father, but I expect that one day soon she will. Her biological father told me he didn't want a baby at all, and never contacted me after we separated, although he knew exactly where to find me. I was on medicaid at the time and he was sought after for child support, however he could not be located and I would have had to pay to reopen the case. My subsequent decision was to not chase a man who didn't want me or his daughter. I spoke with an attorney shortly after she was born who advised me to do nothing and wait to file for abandonment which I believe he told me was on a case by case basis. Until now I knew she wasn't ready for any sort of truth concerning her real dad. But her awareness of our family dynamic is growing, and I want to be able to be truthful with her, without hurting her.
Neither I nor my husband intend for him to adopt her right now. We would like to wait until she is older and understands the magnitude of that change, as well as why her biological father is not in her life. Any information I receive from here is simply to gain a better idea of what our options are in the future.
My question (finally--and I apologize for being longwinded) is if she decides that she wants her stepdad to adopt her despite possessing knowledge of her biological father, would we have to file for abandonment first and then adopt? Or would that be included in the adoption process? For example, placing an ad in the paper for him to respond to by a certain date.
My oldest daughter is 7 has never met her biological father. She knows her stepdad isn't her real dad, having met him at age 3 and understanding that we "came together" to be a family. He also has a son, who is 6, and watching his relationship with his mother has indicated to her that stepdad isn't her real daddy. Although she has this understanding, she also hasn't asked about her biological father, but I expect that one day soon she will. Her biological father told me he didn't want a baby at all, and never contacted me after we separated, although he knew exactly where to find me. I was on medicaid at the time and he was sought after for child support, however he could not be located and I would have had to pay to reopen the case. My subsequent decision was to not chase a man who didn't want me or his daughter. I spoke with an attorney shortly after she was born who advised me to do nothing and wait to file for abandonment which I believe he told me was on a case by case basis. Until now I knew she wasn't ready for any sort of truth concerning her real dad. But her awareness of our family dynamic is growing, and I want to be able to be truthful with her, without hurting her.
Neither I nor my husband intend for him to adopt her right now. We would like to wait until she is older and understands the magnitude of that change, as well as why her biological father is not in her life. Any information I receive from here is simply to gain a better idea of what our options are in the future.
My question (finally--and I apologize for being longwinded) is if she decides that she wants her stepdad to adopt her despite possessing knowledge of her biological father, would we have to file for abandonment first and then adopt? Or would that be included in the adoption process? For example, placing an ad in the paper for him to respond to by a certain date.