Hi Joy, and welcome to the forum. I'm pleased that you found us.

Don't worry about the bite of a Garter Snake, it is insignificant, even to an eight year old. Also, if the snake is calm and placcid so far it is likely to remain that way. This said, I don't think kissing is a good idea, for any number of reasons.

It sounds as though your new snake is large enough to take larger prey items, you might want to consider weaning it onto frozen/thawed pinky mice or strips of fish such as trout. Forget the crickets and roaches, Garters don't eat this type of prey at all.

We will certainly be happy to help you identify the species. You will find that the forums' anti-spam software will not allow you to upload photos until you have posted about half a dozen times, for the same reason you may notice that your posts don't appear on the forum immediately, this will soon end and you'll be a full member with full priviledges really soon.

Once again, welcome to the forum, and thanks for being such an understanding and giving parent!