Monday, January 5, 2009

Putting Sam to bed

Over the Christmas break Sam was looking at the waiting child list with me.  I can't give you too much details, but there was a child that caught his eye.  Here is our conversation that followed:

Sam:  He is like me.
Me:  Yea, he is a bit older than you.  
Sam:  So he doesn't have a family?
Me:  Not anymore. 
Sam:  That is really sad.  It would be cool if we could be his family.
Me: Yeah? Well then would would be a little brother. What do you think of that?
Sam: I wouldn't like it. (Thinking some more) Well, if he really needs a family I could like it. 

A few days later, after the wildness of Christmas, I was putting Sam to bed and he prayed, unprompted, for this little child to have new family.  That is my prayer too.  

My heart breaks. 

What is a ________?

Over the summer we were invited to a wedding in Maine. (Hi Kouba's!) It was there that we met another family who had adopted a little girl from Russia.  She is about the same age as Sam.  When we found out that this couple had been through the adoption journey William and I both sat back and relaxed.  For once we didn't have to explain our million and one reasons to adopt, and we didn't have to define every adoption term that there is.  The four of us just talked knowing that our hearts were in the same place.  It was really nice.  

My best friend, Erin, is another person that I can talk too without catching her up to speed.  I can just say, "Still waiting. . . " and she replies, "Us too . . ." Our hearts know what we are waiting for.  It was her first adoption that taught me what a Dossier was, I hope that I caught on pretty quick. 

So when I am talking to you and I start to speak another language this little lesson will help you to understand what I am saying.  Please memorize there will be a test. 

Home study- Is when a social worker comes into your home, and life, and interviews you, and some of your friends, to see if you are fit to become parent.  There are usually four visits for a home study.  We actually like to talk about ourselves so this portion was fun for us.  Except for the part when Sam kept talking about getting sp*nked.  Which up until that point he hadn't been sp*nked in years. 
Dossier - A pile of paper work that shows Ethiopia that we meet their requirements to adopt one of their precious children.  Seriously, it is a huge three ring binder filled with documents that proves we aren't criminals, we can drive safely, that our home is sanitary, that a fire marshall has approved our home for habitation, and our water is safe to drink.  It also contains our Home study and other important documents from our agency.  If you know us well, you will know the fact that we have all of these papers in a three ring binder and that we know where that binder is at all times, is an amazing thing.  We found our passports in a random box in the basement. We are not the most "together" people in the world.  I really have to credit William with putting everything together.  He carried the paper pregnancy.  
DTE-  Date or Dossier To Ethiopia: As of right now this is the most important thing.  This is the date that our paper work went to ET.  Our DTE is 5/2/08.  It is sorta like a due date, no more like a conception date.  7-9 months after 5/2/08 we will have a baby . . . sorta.  The DTE is also how our agency keeps track of who is next in line to get a Referral.  The last family that received a referral has a DTE of 4-4-08! We are getting so close!
Referral- When you are matched with a child. Unlike most countries, this is done by our agency.  We either accept or reject they referral. It is unlikely that we would reject a referral since our agency already knows what we are requesting in a child.  They would give us a child that has special needs if we didn't ask.  That is not to say that special needs wouldn't turn up later. 
Court Date - The day that our case will appear before a judge in ET to determine if the child is legally ours. About 30% of people fail court.  It is usually because ET is so adamant about making sure that the child is a true orphan and the paper work submitted didn't match up.  Which is really good, but really hard to endure from this end. Our friends the Kulps are going through this right now. 
MOWA - Ministry of Wom*n affairs.  They are the ET agency that controls orphans affairs.  They must approve us for the adoption before we pass court. 
 TTD-  Provided that we pass court our date to travel is set 2-3 weeks after our court date
AWAA- America World Adoption Association. Our agency. 

So there it is, well most of it.  

Saturday, January 3, 2009

The Promise of a New Year

Well, it is a new year and unless there is a serious delay, this will be the year that we welcome a new child into our family.  Things have been very slow on the adoption front for the past six weeks or so, but the new year brings hope and much expectation.  I have been reminded over the past week or two about how much God is in control and how life’s challenges and roadblocks are not surprises to Him.  We will be doing our best to put our trust in Him over the next couple of months as we get closer to bringing our child home.

As of right now we are around #20 in line, but there may be some surprise families waiting in front of us.  Our agency does not officially tell us where we are in line, so our best guess comes from the Yahoo Group we belong to that is made up of other waiting families.

Please pray for our patience.  I am really looking forward to focusing on all of the other things that God wants us to do before our child comes home.  I am obviously also very excited about our trip to Africa and how our life will be different after we get home.