I'm turning 16....would they let me adopt a baby with parental consent?

HappyMomAnna

No you can not adopt anyone yet--you are not an adult and you need to wait until you are able to provide not just attention and care but, a home and security.

Finish high school--go to college and lay a foundation first... You have a lifetime to put your experience into action.

...and it really is most preferred for a child to have both a mother and a father so.... choose your husband well and discuss adopting before your wedding.

You might enjoy the Big Brother -- Big Sister program. Check your phonebook and apply.

ARTmom

No-first you have to be able to show a residence thats safe and proof of income. Also you must be of legal age-18 at least. Most of the time they do give preferance to married over single too-

Randy B

Nope, in spite of any good intentions you may have you would be prohibited from adopting a child until you are old enough (usually over 21 in most areas) and are financial and socially mature enough to adopt. I don't mean that as any sort of slam, it's just the way things are.

Donna M

Hi, I see that you said you are turning 16. I was 16 when I had my son. I had help with my son from my parents. My parents ended up raising my son for most of his years. Not because I was a bad parent. But because I didn't grow. My parents raised my son because my son became ATTACHED to them. Don't get me wrong, I was mom and they were the grandparents, but they had stability and I didn't. Also, two families under one roof does not work very well and alot of times ends in bitter words. Anyways After having my son, I took care of him. He was my responsibility. I got up with him 4 times a night, each and every night. Then I went to school. Studied my butt off and when I came home, my son was my responsibility, not my moms. I took care of him, did my homework, fed him, did my homework, bathed him, did my homework. Are you understanding where I am coming from? I did have alot of adults tell me I was very mature for my age. But, I never really got to go do anything. I never left my son behind. If I wanted to hang out with my friends, I took my son. We would visit at their home with their parents there. My friends all would go partying, running around the mall. Sleep overs. Not me and if you have a child, not you either. My son is now turning 21 in April. Time flies fast. I dearly love my son and would only change a couple things if I could do it over again. I would have worked harder in school to make sure we got further in life. I would not have just jumped on the first man wagon to find a father for my son and would have been picky. Because of my immature decisions, My son has lived with me for a total of about 6 years now. He has seen and been through bad things in life that a child of his age at that time, shouldn't have endured. Like seeing his mom get hit, having not one but two stepfathers who never cared enough to truelly get to know and love him. He is truelly a wonderful young man. But, I wasn't financially or emotionally capable of taking great care of him.
You may have raised your cousins, but you now need time to be a teen yourself. Expect more out of life instead of picking up the pieces from that cousin of yours. You did well taking care of them. But you will miss out on a HUGE chunk of your life if you don't discover your life as a teen. Take care and good luck with the rest of your teenage years.

DevonChaos

Um. NO. In raising your cousin's kid, I highly doubt that you were the sole caregiver, paying for all medical needs, food, shelter, clothing... etc...

You have to be much older, usually 21 to adopt. Then the other list of qualifications come into play. You have to have a place to live. You have to have a job. You have to have a stable life style. You have to have money.

Even if you are able at this age, legally you cannot do it. You are not emotionally ready to handle this yet, and it would most likely put strain on those around you who would end up supporting the child when you are unable to. In my state you aren't even able to hold a full time job until you are 18. You usually have to have a full time job to get medical/dental insurance. This is something you pretty much HAVE to have when raising a child.

For the time being, you can go volunteer in places where children are in need. There are shelters and day care centers for low-income children. You can ask them if you can come entertain the children for a while, or see if anyone in your area needs a babysitter. If you are committed to helping children, doing charity work and speaking out on issues you believe are important will prepare you for your future as a caregiver and a mother. Where there is a will, there is a way... When you are of age...

Suz

Absolutely not - not unless you're legally emancipated and declared an "adult" by the court. Otherwise, you have to wait until you're either 18 or 21, depending on the state.

Amanda C

HA! NO! geez. some people. most agencies want potential parents to be at least 25.

SkYkIsSeR

I'm sorry to say this but no the government would not give a child to a 16 year old. You have to be 21 to adopt and at least 18 if you are gaining custody of a sibling/relative.
You are young and have tons of time for a baby later on. You should be worried about movies and school and yes, even boys (to a certain extent!). No matter how much money you have, you will struggle. If a married couple with only 1 child can struggle, so will you love. Good luck and think about this thoroughly!

Rowan

no. you are not legally an adult.

Jake

I don't think so. I know you think that you might be ready to parent but you need to mature a little more also most agency aer looking for 2 parent families. or you could do designated adoption is some one wanted you to adopt their child and you could get a home study done you could go through the courts. but i would not recommend that

Joe

Nope you have to have your own baby

Flying Monkey #073177

BWAHAHAHAHA! Not a chance. If you want a baby go bump uglies like normal teens who want to be parents.

-- Skittles --

Being 16, I am sad to see you ask this question.

If you really had to ask this because you are unsure, you surely shouldnt be caring for your own child, adopted or not. You are surely very uneducated to not understand why you, at your age can not adopt a child, nor understand why not.

Be seeing you....

mom to be

Your not old enough and you are not able to provide for yourself and a child. If you really want to spend time with children, why not consider volunteering someplace where you can do that.

Birthers are NOT mothers

Pop out your own cause you are too young to adopt!

Lost in Space

Nope, they sure wouldn't. Hopefully no moron would give a baby to a 16 year old.

Nurse JC

No, sorry but no. There are plenty of older, educated and settled families waiting to adopt. Why do you think they would overlook them to give a child to another child?

onfaithalone

no....thats great that you want to adopt a child but why so soon?? you are so young and have plenty of time for that

â™¥â™¥Ritaâ™¥â™¥

Uhhhh, no.

LindseyTaylor

No...you can not adopt and take responsibility for another human being when you are not even legally responsible for yourself.

period.

mom2babycolin

No. You are not legally an adult. But there's more to it than that. There's a very long process, parenting classes, check on how you support yourself, whether or not you're married. Not to mention you need to fork over $10,000 in fees & court costs.

tabbi8407

no, they will not let you adopt

Simone S

u silly silly girl u are still a child and u want to adopt a baby grow up and get to school where u should be

gabby stoner

Thats so cool you would wanna do something like that. You probably wouldn't be able to directly, but maybe if your parents adopted a child for then that might work. I bet you would be a great mom, and don't listen to those other rude comments people made. Just if you can get a child through your parents make sure its real what you want to do.

Queen S

awww that's so sweet, i knwo how you feel as i raised my twin sisters since birth as both my parents work, i don't think they'd let us 16 year olds adopt due to our age and they'd look at us as unfit to handle children and immature, i think the age is 18 for consent. i bet you would make a good mum and i know you will be. good luck
XxxMwahXxx

Aden is due in july

no your not leagle age for a contract.

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