Oh My Word!

If I had any clue how the last month had played out in Brooke's adoption, I would have traveled to Ethiopia right after Gabriel and Alayna's wedding back in July, to know if there is a legitimate hope of bringing her home before my adoption expires completely.  We have spent the last year with only occasional updates from the adoption agency that they are still trying to clear Brooke, but there are difficulties. Only after I told them that I needed a clear indication of what the hold up was, was I transferred to someone who actually went and got the whole story. The whole story, in short, is that Brooke needs a family member, any family member, to sign off on her adoption. It is not that anyone thinks that she isn't an orphan or shouldn't be adopted, it's only that UNICEF and it's anti-adoption agenda can shut down agencies and countries if every I isn't dotted exactly the correct way. Once I got the complete story, we devised the plan that I would travel and petition the court to pass her in court, based on the fact that her only living relative is Bella, already in our care. Once we had that plan in motion, I started re-evaluating my adoption documents for her. I was met with the horrible realization that my I600 was going to expire next week. While I initially thought we only had to re-pay (not to make light of that since immigration charges $760 to give us one piece of paper that allows our children in the country), in reality is was much more complicated. The I600 required a thorough home study update, which is much more involved in Virginia than even last year. Mine was also complicated by the reality that Gabriel no longer lives at home, yet is on our previous home study, which means he needs to be finger-printed, etc, in VA is spite of the fact he now lives in San Diego. So, at this point, I'm drowning in paperwork for an adoption that is, in reality, a long shot. 

I drove my sister to the airport today and arrived home to my notarized home study update. Upon further investigation, I realized that it had to be in the office in MO on Monday! Further analysis made me realize that I had 1.5 hours to compile the pile of paperwork. JD came home and copied for me and then dashed out the door to arrive at the Post Office at only a few minutes before 5:00! Nothing like the last minute! I pray that it will all make a difference in her case! 

I leave in less than two weeks for Ethiopia and will be writing a trip information update in the next few days- and asking for your prayers while I'm there!

  

(Stole this from another blog - summarizes my life pretty well most days! I should have majored in "dossier completion"!)