It has been 4 years since my parents called dhs on me and had my children removed from their home. At first I had weekly visits in which my children told me they missed me and wanted to come home. Then their behavior got worse and several times told me that my mother (grammy) told them they did not have to listen to me. After that they would cancel visits so I could not see my children. I did everything dhs told me to do... parenting classes, counceling, mediation, court... and I lost 2 jobs in the mix of all this cause they had me doing several things a week and my employers did not like the fact I had to keep changing my schedule. I ended up losing in the end because nothing I did was good eonough for them. I signed over my rights because I was promised to have visits with my children. Well after I signed over my rights I learned that everything dhs did and my parents did was against the law. When a visit was cancelled they were suppose to set up another that same week... that never happened. In a 3 month span I saw my children 3 times. The rest of the times my parents cancelled the visits and they were never rescheduled. My parents adopted my children 2 years and I have not seen them since. My last visit with my children was suppose to be a 3 hour visit (by Maine law) and I saw my oldest for an hour and a half and my youngest for 2 hours. Dhs knew this and did nothing about it. My fathers health has dramatically decreased since then.. almost dying twice. My mother does not have her drivers license and can not ever get it again for having so many dui's. They both receive ssi as neither one can work. If my father passes away my mother can not take care of my children herself. Ihave expressed my concerns to numerous people and I keep getting told too bad there is nothing I can do. I know there is... I just don't know what it is. They both have a history of being in jail and dhs took my oldest brother away when he was younger. So how were they able to adopt my children I have been wondering this entire time. My parents are telling my oldest child bad untrue things about me.. they have the entire time. They tell him I do not love him or want him. And during visits they told him he did not have to listen to me. My youngest does not know who I am as my parents told them both from the very beginning of all this to call them mom and dad. Both of my children are special needs and its mean to say but my parents only want them for their ssi checks. Before they adopted them dhs was giving them money every week for them plus they receive ssi and my children's ssi (so they received about over 2000 a month altogether) and yet every week my parents would call dhs and complain they didn't have enough money to support my children. How can 2 adults and 2 children not live off 2000 a month?? And yet dhs still let them adopt my children. I know there is something I can do I just do not know where to look or where to begin.

So I take it that, your children were taken from you, and placed in a better place- as determined by them, four years ago. You don't mention what the reason was why they took them in the first place, or what you did to cause such a decision to be made by the authorities. Nor do you say that between the time they took them, and the time they adopted them, was a full two years that you had, to get them back, and that didin't happen.

If you had proof, during those two years, that you had met all the requirements in order to be a fit parent, and still it turned out that your parents adopting them was in the best interests of the children, it is too little too late to now say that a bad decision was made to allow the adoption. There must have been reasons, if you worked so hard to get them back into your custody, that, despite your best efforts, of apparently doing all the right things, that they were successful, and you were not.

An adoption, is permanent, and legally binding. You cannot, so long after the fact, point out minor arguments as to they didn't keep their appointments for you to see the children, prior to the adoption (for whatever reason), or that those involved in your case failed to do their jobs properly, and failed to know all the reasons they shouldn't have had your children, because you are now finding fault, but not then. And if you had pointed out all that you have said here about their shortcomings at the time when you could have influenced a decision, it had not enough bearing to influence the main decision. And that was, that for whatever reason, drastic measures needed to be taken to take the children out of your home.

It could have been a neighbour, or concerned friend or relative that made the original call, and the children would still have been removed for whatever the reasons were apparent at the time, that justified the actions of taking your children.

I am unsure as to why now, that you are finding yourself in a position where you need answers to questions that should be obvious.

If you intend to fight or reverse the adoption, or if you plan to put regular visitation in place, or you have concerns as to the welfare of these children, then the only thing you can do, is get a lawyer skilled in these matters, and address all your quesitons to him or her. That person will advise you on what you can, and cannot do, legally, post-adoption.