I apologize ahead of time for the lengthy question but I want to be sure not to leave anything out. My 3 year old "godson" has lived with me on and off for the better part of his life. His mother named me his "godmother" however, like many things in her life, she continues to put off his baptism. My godson's mother, has bounced around from couch to couch, shelter to shelter, for many years even before her son was born (she actually gave up custody of her first child 6 years ago to the child's grandmother). She is not one of those mothers who does drugs or abuses her children, she just doesn't hold a job for more than a week and has no motivation to make anything of herself. I have tried to help her. I have given her a place to stay multiple times, given her rides to and from work, given her financial advice, but she has done nothing but burn me. She collects food stamps and cash assistance for her son despite the fact that her son lives in my care. She has left her son in my care while she moved to another city to be with a man and has called me crying for money to get home because the man turned out to be bad news. She has left him in my care while she has lived in places not safe for a child for many different reasons. My godsons father was not around for the first 2 years of his life as he was in jail for several charges I am not completely sure about but I know assault is on the list. Several months ago while my godson was living in his mother's care, she allowed his father to take him for several days, ignoring my concerns. His father basically kidnapped him for a month and she had to trick him into bringing him back. She was not able to report it to the police because she has not filled for full custody yet (something I have been on her back about since he was born) While this is hearsay, my godson came home with several scars that appear to be cigarette burns. My godson's mother is now back in another homeless shelter and is unable to care for him because there are not enough beds. I want to know if I were to pursue legal custody would I have a fighting chance?? I have many witnesses that can testify when and how long he has lived with me. My concerns are the fact that I live in a small 2 bedroom home with my same sex partner and one roommate. So technically i have no bedroom for him (he sleeps on a pull out couch in the livingroom). For the record, I am not trying to take my godson away from his mother by any means! He does care for his mother and gets excited to see her. I would allow her to see him whenever she wants. I want the legal papers for my own piece of mind. For the past 3 years I have lived in fear of her getting angry and accusing me of kidnapping, I have not been able to take him to the doctors without her consent,and I have struggled to find a job and cannot put him in day care due to the fact that I don't have custody and my partner has had to support the family. Anyways, sorry again for the book. I would appreciate any advice you can give me.