I have a a child on my income tax form and didn't recive anything for her .. how is that possible.

Did you enter your earned income from working?

Yes I did .

I still don't think I got anything for her

Why didn’t I get back more for my dependent?

When you claim dependents, your refund is based on a number of variables.  First, you must have income.  If you had more taxes withheld than your tax liability, some of the money withheld from your pay will be refunded to you. Your tax lability can be reduced by the non-refundable Child Tax Credit. (The amount of the Child Tax Credit does not come to you as a refund) In order to qualify for any of the refundable credits your income must have been earned by working.  You might qualify for the Additional Child Tax Credit or the Earned Income Credit.  The amount you receive is based on how much you earned and how many children you are claiming . You do not always get “thousands”  back in your refund. You can look at a table showing how your EIC was calculated by going to page 30 of the IRS publication 596. 

www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p596.pdf

I'm retired how can i be getting back more than i payed in?

It depends.  If you're retired under 65 and is still working, you may receive earned income credit, depending on your filing status and income. On the other hand, credits are limited to retired individuals over 65. years old.