The year was 2009. Two teenagers, Catelynn Lowell and Tyler Baltierra, sat in a hospital room, sobbing as they handed their newborn daughter to a couple they barely knew. That moment, broadcast on MTV’s 16 and Pregnant, became the blueprint for what many hoped would be a "perfect" open adoption. But fast forward to 2026, and the dream has basically turned into a legal and emotional stalemate.
Brandon and Teresa and Carly are no longer just names from a reality TV throwback. They represent the messy, unscripted reality of what happens when the cameras keep rolling, but the legal rights have long since vanished. Honestly, if you’ve followed the Teen Mom saga, you know the vibe has shifted from "blessed" to "blocked."
The Agreement vs. The Reality
Most people think "open adoption" means a legally binding contract for visitation. It doesn't. In Michigan, where the adoption originated, these agreements are often more of a "gentleman’s agreement" than a court-enforced mandate. Brandon and Teresa Davis, who live in North Carolina, took Carly home with the intention of keeping Catelynn and Tyler in her life.
For years, it worked. There were annual visits. There were photos. But then things got weird.
The friction started early, mostly over social media. Tyler, in particular, has a habit of posting. He’s proud of his daughter. He wants the world to see her. But Brandon and Teresa? They wanted a private life for Carly. They didn't sign up to be reality stars; they signed up to be parents. When Tyler posted a video of Carly in 2015 against their explicit wishes, the relationship took a hit it never really recovered from.
Why the Adoption "Closed" in 2024 and 2025
By late 2024, Catelynn started sounding the alarm on social media. She claimed she was being "ghosted." By early 2025, she confirmed the news: Brandon and Teresa had officially "closed" the adoption.
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They blocked her. No more texts. No more annual visits.
Why? According to recent episodes of Teen Mom: The Next Chapter, the Davises felt the boundaries were being obliterated. Catelynn was allegedly "love-bombing" the situation—sending gifts, blankets, and cookies every other week. Teresa reportedly reached out to their adoption counselor, Dawn Baker, stating that the constant contact was becoming "inappropriate" and "uncalled for."
The "Sisters" Conflict
There’s a specific detail that most people miss. It’s about the word "sister." Catelynn and Tyler’s younger daughters—Nova, Vaeda, and Rya—know Carly is their sister. They talk about her. They love her.
But for Teresa, that terminology was a bridge too far. She reportedly expressed that hearing the younger girls call Carly "sister" made her uncomfortable. It blurred the lines of the family unit she was trying to build in North Carolina. It’s a classic case of two different families having two completely different definitions of "family."
The Legal Dead End
Catelynn recently went on a 20-minute TikTok Live to vent. Fans kept asking: "Why don't you sue them?"
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The answer is simple: She can't.
- Legal Standing: Once the parental rights are terminated, the biological parents have zero legal leverage.
- Enforceability: Open adoption contracts in many states are not enforceable by law.
- Best Interests: A judge will almost always defer to the legal parents' (Brandon and Teresa) judgment on what is best for the child's mental health.
Tyler even posted the original adoption agreement on Instagram to prove they were "promised" visits until Carly turned 18. But reading the fine print shows that these were "requests" and "preferences," not requirements. It’s a harsh reality check for anyone looking at the adoption industry.
Where is Carly Now?
Carly is a teenager now. She’s roughly 16 years old. She’s not the toddler we saw on the early seasons of Teen Mom OG.
Sources close to the situation, and even Catelynn herself, have hinted that Carly is starting to have her own opinions. This is the part that hurts the most for the Baltierras. They’ve spent years wondering if it’s Brandon and Teresa keeping them away, or if Carly herself is asking for space.
Imagine being a teenager and seeing your birth parents—who you see once a year—venting about your "real" parents on MTV. It’s a lot. In a recent update from late 2025, Tyler mentioned he is "at peace" and will "applaud from the sidelines," but the tension is still thick enough to cut with a knife.
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What You Can Learn from This
If you’re looking at this story, it’s easy to pick a side. Some say Brandon and Teresa are "stealing" a child’s heritage. Others say Catelynn and Tyler are "entitled" and "disrespectful." The truth is usually somewhere in the middle.
If you are considering adoption or are currently in an open arrangement, here are the takeaways:
- Boundaries are everything. If an adoptive parent asks you not to post a photo, don't post the photo. Privacy is the currency of trust in these relationships.
- Know the law. Understand that "open" can become "closed" at any moment based on the adoptive parents' discretion.
- Center the child. The drama between the adults often overshadows the child's needs. If a child feels caught between two worlds, they might just choose to close the door on one of them to find peace.
The saga of Brandon and Teresa and Carly is a cautionary tale about the intersection of private trauma and public entertainment. For now, the door remains shut. Whether Carly chooses to open it herself when she turns 18 in a couple of years is the only question that matters.
Next Steps for Information:
- Review your state’s specific laws on the enforceability of Post-Adoption Contact Agreements (PACAs).
- Research the "Adoptee Rights" movement to understand how children in these situations feel as they reach adulthood.
- Check recent interviews with adoption counselors who specialize in "kinship" and "open" dynamics to see how to repair broken trust.