A Long Time Coming

Nearly seven months ago, Mandi and I made the difficult decision to not allow Kaedyn's biological father (Andy) to continue with his court-ordered visitation schedule because we felt Andy was exposing Kaedyn to an environment which was simply not healthy. We also felt Kaedyn was placed at risk, both mentally and physically, due to the kinds of activities in which Andy chose to engage, even when he was with Kaedyn. The decision to stop visitation was not a difficult one with regards to Kaedyn's well-being, rather it was difficult because we put ourselves at risk in that we knew we would technically be in contempt of court since the visitation schedule was court-ordered. We did not, however, permanently ban Andy from seeing Kaedyn. We simply told him we needed to sit down and discuss our concerns before he would be allowed to see Kaedyn again.

As I said, that was nearly seven months ago, and we have not heard anything from Andy. No phone calls, no letters, no contact. Period. Not even one attempt. In Nebraska, it is possible to begin child-abandonment proceedings if a parent has had no contact with a child for six months. I mention this because in order for me to adopt Kaedyn, which has been a goal since Mandi and I met nearly seven years ago, one of two events must occur: 1. Andy must voluntarily forfeit his parental rights, or 2. Andy must have no contact with Kaedyn for six months, thereby falling under the Nebraska statutes of child abandonment.

The chances of Andy voluntarily giving up his parental rights were zero percent, at best. Our only hope was for Andy to discontinue contact with Kaedyn for a period of six months, and that has now come to pass. It was a long, painful wait, as just one phone call or letter would have reset the clock, so to speak. Mandi and I met with an attorney this morning, who feels our chances of winning this case are very good. We are fortunate in that this particular attorney has dealt with Andy before, so is familiar with his character, or lack thereof. The papers will be filed either yet today or tomorrow, and Andy should be served within a week.

We honestly have no clue how Andy will respond. If he chooses to contest, he will need to hire an attorney and we don't believe he has the resources to do so. As our attorney pointed out this morning, however, people can become quite creative when the need for money exists. We are excited about our chances, but cautiously moving forward as we realize there are a number of things we simply can't control. Who knows what God has in store for us, and all we can do now is pray. As this process carries on, I will continue to provide updates. In the meantime, please keep us, and especially Kaedyn, in your prayers.