children belong with loving families--and that does not always mean their biological parents.

i am devastated. i need to vent. my cousin and his family have been foster parents for a while. almost two years ago, they were given a baby boy at the age of one month old, who was born two days after my own son. CPS told them from the beginning that it would be temporary, as the parents wanted to get their child back. he was a bit delayed, but made strides since his foster family really worked with him. there was to be a hearing at 6 months old. the biological parents failed to meet the terms of the court and failed to get their son back at that time (drugs and other issues). in fact, they had four other children they'd already lost all rights to. despite my cousin's objections that they wanted to adopt the boy, the judge extended the parent's chances to one year. another six months go by and, again, the parents fail to meet the judge's standard to get custody of their child back. again, the foster family says they want to adopt the boy, and again, the judge feels that children belong with their biological parents, and gives the parents a third chance. at 18 months old, the boy is finally returned to his parents, whom he hardly knows.we just found out that, yesterday, at 22 months old, the biological mother has beaten this little boy to death.i cannot comprehend it. i look at my own son and i cannot fathom a person who could hurt a child that small. i had always thought that, from time to time, i would wonder how that little boy was doing, as my own son grew. they had played together and were so close in age. but now all i can think is what an absolute waste. what horrible suffering that little boy went through. how no one could protect him. and what a fucking shitshow our "justice" system is. via /r/Parenting http://ift.tt/29ibKKM