Let me start by saying that this has never been a case of just wanting to “get this child”. Not ever. She does not have relatives willing to commit to her. It was never about having her HERE, it was about having her SAFE and STABLE.

The goal is to get a child who has spent 18 (and counting) of her 28 months of life in foster care in two states. We just want to stop the cycle of her being in and out of foster care due to mom's constant drug relapses. Mom is also moving state to state so the clock gets restarted as the new state tries to ensure mom has had sufficient opportunity to regain custody of her child. By the time they get CPS records from the old state, mom is working her case plan and making progress... and so they watch to see what happens--extending Cookie's time in care.