The hardest part

You will really want to read this whole post so you can learn our latest exciting news!

The hardest part about this adoption process has been waiting. I'm a planner and like to know how and when things are going to happen, even months in advance! As a mom of four full-time children, things can get hectic, so having a calendar with everyone's schedule really helps. When we jumped in (literally) into the adoption process in November, all we really had to go by was the timeline of Darya's adoption (my friend Marianne's daughter whom I've mentioned in previous blogs). It took them 7 months. So that's what I set for us, however unrealistic. I later found out that when you're adopting in regions of Micah's country, it can go much faster. With Micah being in the capitol, it can take weeks longer because their courts are busier. So okay, it might take us 8 months :) The paper chasing we had to do seemed to take forever, but in hindsight wasn't really. It was just a lot of driving around, hauling the littles around many days a week. That had to be the most stressful part of the process... paper chasing... hoping we could get something signed or notarized, then having to go back for certain forms... narrowing down appointment dates, etc. NOT FUN! There were moments I would cry uncontrollably because I didn't think I could get a certain form notarized, then later got it, and found out I didn't need it! Talk about frustrating. Many requirements have changed as we've gone along as well.

They call Micah's country a moving target. Talks have ensued on the adoption process coming to a halt there because of trying to streamline their adoption laws. If something like that happened, we could be waiting longer, or not get him at all. We have rushed through everything to make sure we could get there as fast as we could. We still are. It's a "hurry up and wait" process. We committed to Micah on November 5th. 4 1/2 months later, we have our golden ticket in hand. THAT IS RIGHT! We got our I-171H emailed to us today by our USCIS officer. This is our last step in the U.S., then we can mail our dossier (a.k.a. "Beast") to Eastern Europe. That beast is 45 forms that have been notarized and apostilled, containing hundreds of pages, that will be FedEx'd to the facilitation team in Micah's country. They will then translate it all into their language, then petition for an SDA appointment. This is where we get to see Micah's personal file, accept the referral to meet him and FINALLY get to meet him face-to-face! Then a court date will be set where we appear before a judge and hope that he/she approves us to adopt him (this isn't usually a problem). Then there is a 10 day waiting period that is rarely, if ever, waived. This can extend over 14-15 days if weekends or holidays are included. Once he is officially granted our son, we get to run around obtaining his birth certificate, passport, medical clearnace, visa, and come home. The process there could take 5-8 weeks.

So tomorrow, I drive to Turlock with the girls and head to Sacramento Thursday morning to get our last documents apostilled (fancy, expensive piece of paper that authorizes the notarized forms). Then the beast will be sent via FedEx to the facilitation team! Our SDA appointment should hopefully be in the next 4-5 weeks, then we will be with Micah in his country until we bring him home!

SOOO happy the longest wait is now over. We are at the top of the roller coaster, and from here everything is DOWNHILL. Thank the Lord!