So, I kissed the mail...

Got your attention, didn't I? On Thursday I mailed off our profile books to Florida, but before I took them in to the post office I gave them a kiss for good luck :) According to USPS tracking, they left a notice at Shepherd Care today, so they should have our profile books and application paperwork by Monday.

Here's the scoop on what we're still waiting for:

• Clearance from the County: I'm taking the form by Monday, and hoping they process quickly
• Homestudy: Our social worker is finalizing it this weekend, sending to her boss to review on Monday, and then to the State for final approval.

We have our fingers crossed that this is all complete and mailed to Florida next week....  Then we only have to wait for a birthmom to select us. Yippee!!

Kirsta & Michael

HUGE NEWS!!

We've been very quiet the last few months, but we've been busy mulling over many facets of our adoption. In the end, we have decided to end our adoption from Ethiopia and begin a domestic adoption through an agency in Florida, Adoption by Shepherd Care. Some dear friends have brought their 2 beautiful daughters home through Shepherd Care.

Now we're through a lot of the paperwork, and have completed our profile books for birthmothers to review. We hope to be officially waiting for the call very soon...

More to come--stay tuned :)

Kirsta & Michael

More movement!!

Even as we wonder what the future of Ethiopian adoption will be, we move up a few spots--survey says....

Baby girl #48
Baby boy #29 (same)
Toddler girl #16 (1st movement since going on this list 2+ months ago!)

Happy weekend!

Out of the 50s and 30s

There's been some movement on the waiting lists (yea!) and we've moved into the 40s and 20s. Here are our numbers:

#49 baby girl
#29 baby boy
#17 toddler girl

There have been several updates from our agency in the last few weeks:

New Court Process and Requirements

We would like to thank all families for their patience while waiting for this information. We are yet to have an IAN family travel for court so the information we have been given is not based on our personal experience. We have heard from our staff in Ethiopia and know that the following is true regarding the new court process.

1. There will be two separate court dates, one for the birth family/guardian and another for the adoptive family. The birth family will have the first court date. If the biological parent or guardian does not appear, they will be given a 2nd appointment. We do not know if this will delay the adoptive parents scheduled court date. Approximately 20-30 days after the birth parents/guardians court date, the adoptive families will have their court date. The reasoning for having two separate court dates seems to be to keep the birth and adoptive families from meeting. Both parents will be required to travel for court.

2. The following documents are required to open the file to get a court date. 
a. Birth certificate (new)
This has not been a requirement until now. Birth certificates were required after the court approved the case and prior to the embassy interview. The districts/kebeles will issue the birth certificates, which is a new system. Until now, we have received the birth certificates after passing court.b. Photos of birth parents or guardians (new)
This is now going to be required to be attached with the social history of the child when the file is opened at court. Previous to the new regulation, only the child’s photo was required. c. A copy of the families passport (new)
This has not been required in the past. It will now be a part of the families Dossier.d. Translated medical of the child.
e. Translated homestudy.
How will this change the adoption timeline?

We do expect the wait time to increase with these changes and new requirements. The Ethiopian process has changed and it will take time for them to become familiar with these new regulations. We expect some delays in getting the birth certificates and family photos. We also expect an increased wait time because there will be two separate dates for birth and adoptive families.
We hope this is helpful and thank you again for your patience. We will keep you posted as the new process continues to develop.

Court Closure Date

The courts will be closing in Ethiopia from August 9th until the end of September. MOWA and the embassy will be open during this time.

Beginning July 15, 2010 IAN will only be accepting new families into the Ethiopia program who are open to children age two years and older. This new policy will not have any impact on families who are already a part of the program.

As all of you know, the combination fewer infant referrals coming out of Ethiopia and growing interest in the program has resulted in a much longer waiting list and longer wait times.  It is our hope that this limit on new families will be temporary and we will again accept all families when the wait time is more reasonable. 

Meanwhile, three new young boys will be placed on the waiting children list today.  We currently have 10 boys waiting for homes.  If you would like more information on these precious boys, please contact your coordinator. 

Ethiopia Program Update - June 28, 2010

-We have been hearing from many of you that you are concerned about the slow down we've recently been seeing in referrals, especially infants.  We certainly understand your concern, and while it is impossible to predict when things might change or why they are happening, there are a few things that may help clarify: 

• Things have not returned to normal after the elections. From our point of view, the election is over and things should be back to normal, but we don't really understand how things work in a developing country. The children must have paperwork completed in their home regions by the local authorities.  That is one place where the process is stalling right now.  It is not unusual for changes (or in this case a return to normalcy) to take longer in the outlying regions then it does in Addis. 
• The process is going to be permanently longer due to the new regulations after all the shake up last spring. The Ethopian authorities are being a lot more diligent when clarifying orphan status before we even know about the kids in the pipeline over there.
• In the light of the lengthening of the process, we have adjusted the wait times we estimate for the different lists.  Please bear in mind that these are only estimates, and we always hope wait times are shorter than we estimate.  Times given are from the time the family is added to the waiting list.

1. Infant girls:  12-18 months
2. Infant boys:  12-15 months.
3. Toddler girls:  6-12 months
4. Toddler boys:  4-8 months
5. Children over 5 years:  3-6 months
6. Siblings:  We cannot predict, as there is such a wide variety of what families on this list are approved for. 

-We know that many of you are anxiously awaiting information on the new court travel requirements.  Our in-country staff is working diligently on clarifying the details, and we look forward to having our first families complete the process in the near future.  Thanks for bearing with us as we do our best to provide the most accurate information available in a timely manner. 

-IAN has a representative, Tomas Bayou, currently in Addis Ababa.  Not only will Tomas be escorting children home, but he will be providing a great source of communication between the Ethiopia and US offices of IAN.

First wait list movement for us!!

We moved up on the waiting list for the first time since going on the list May 12. Yippee!!! Progress is good :)

New numbers:
#51 baby girl
#32 baby boy
#17 toddler girl

Appointment for fingerprinting!

We got our letters yesterday from the USCIS with our fingerprinting appointment. However, we'll be on vacation the date of our appointment. So, we'll have to reschedule.

A few interesting observations.... Though we're still likely months away from a referral, I am stressed that we have to push back our appointment. We have plenty of time to get this done, but I still hate to hold up the process in any way. Secondly, I find it humorous that we have to reschedule this appointment by mail. In other words, we have to send the form back marked "reschedule" and wait to receive a new form with a new date. Really? Can you imagine if you had to do this to reschedule a doctor's appointment or lunch with a friend?....

Anyway, it will be fine, and one day just a tiny bump in the road I probably won't even remember. Until then, we'll anxiously wait for our next appointment to be scheduled.....
Kirsta

Dossier en route to Ethiopia!

Our dossier has been authenticated in DC, and left for Ethiopia yesterday! It should arrive by the end of next week, where it will wait to get to the top of the list and be translated. 

No movement on the waitlist, but at least our paperwork is one step closer to being complete!! :)