Change the world for one.

Praying for Haiti and for those suffering all around the world.  It is so overwhelming but also reinforces our decision to add to our family through adoption. Since everyone has been curious, here are some details about how we have been progressing on our journey.  We started the process in late October and everything so far has gone very smoothly and faster than we expected.  I have had more time to devote to the adoption since wrapping up my photography season and this is what we have accomplished so far:  

Our first big step was choosing an adoption agency.  I admit I agonized over this for a while.  I think I was waiting for sign and knew I was losing it when I started asking for advice from a 3 year old.  After much deliberation, we chose Holt International because they have many years of experience (dating back to the 50’s with adoptions from Korea), a solid reputation and a shorter wait time for Ethiopian adoptions since it is a relatively new program.  I have also connected with many families in process with Holt through their blogs and a yahoo support group and everyone has had a positive experience.  It is amazing to discover that there is a whole community of families that share such a strong connection from sharing the unique experience of international adoption.

Since Holt is based in Portland, we needed to find a local agency for our home study and looked to Hillside Children’s Center, an agency that I have a strong connection to through my work as a clinical social worker and volunteer work with Adoption Resource Network (which is now a part of Hillside).  Currently, I run an adventure based support group for adopted teens for Hillside, so this part was an easy choice for us.  Our home study included an 11 hour adoption training, a home visit, autobiographies, 5 page questionnaires, 2 office visits, 4 reference letters, a notarized letter from our bank, a letter from our pediatrician, physicals and letters from our physician, child abuse clearance, a letter from Will’s employer, a letter from my accountant, our tax info., and finally fingerprinting.  Once all this was completed, we turned everything over to Hillside and waited for the home study to be written. It felt like a long wait through the month of December and although I tried to be patient, I’m sure I drove our social worker a little crazy with anxious e-mails!

Once we completed everything for our home study, work began on our dossier.  This is the entire packet that will need to go through the Ethiopian court system prior to bringing our child home.  The dossier includes a notarized letter from our bank, a notarized letter from Will’s employer, a notarized letter from my accountant, a family profile summary, a notarized letter to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs explaining why we are interested in adopting, 2 passport photos of each parent, a notarized copy of our home study agency’s license, a certified birth certificate of both parents, a certified marriage certificate, 2 notarized letters of recommendation, police clearance from our local law enforcement agency, notarized medical certificates from our physician, notarized tax information, a notarized certificate regarding post placement agreement reports, a notarized attestation and declaration of personal condition, a notarized power of attorney and a notarized copy of our home study.  As if this was not enough, the power of attorney and copy of our home study also needs to be certified through our county and then state certified in Albany and then it will be complete.  

We finally received the final copies of our home study last Friday and the boys and I dropped them in the mail today to Holt (with a kiss from each of us for good luck!). This was a huge step as we will officially be put on the waiting list as soon as Holt receives and accepts the home study.  Currently, the average wait time for a referral through our agency is 1-3 months. We are asking for an infant girl.  We are able to specify gender because we have only boys and we all agreed on a girl.  The boys can not wait to have a little sister and Riley asks almost every day when she will be home.  She will be between birth and 2 years of age at the time of our referral, then it should be about 4 more months to get through the Ethiopian courts and then an additional 6-8 weeks to receive an embassy date.  When the time finally comes, Will and I will travel to Ethiopia for 10 days to bring our baby home.  

Now that our paper chase is almost over, the real waiting begins.  The wait for a referral, the wait for a court date (and usually a second court date), the wait for a travel date, the wait to meet our child and bring her home.  I will keep you posted!

In the meantime, I will continue to pray for children that are alone or suffering in the world, especially in Haiti.  When we began this process, we considered adopting from Haiti but decided it was not the best match for us due to the long wait.  In normal times, families can expect the process to take 2-3 years.  I can not imagine what it must be like for the families who have fallen in love with their children, have been waiting all this time and are now unsure if they are okay or will make it home.  May your faith give you strength and lead your children home.