Dossier Turned In!

Second to the relief that came with passing our home study (considering the mishaps), was the relief of sending our Dossier to our agency.  For those that have forgotten, the Dossier included:

•Dossier Family Profile Summary form

•A short type-written statement from parents addressed to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs stating why you are interested in adopting from Ethiopia; please date and have each adoptive parent sign

•2 passport size photos of each parent

•Home Study Report

•Agency licenses

•Power of Attorney for adoptive parents

•Certified Birth Certificate of each parent.

•Certified Marriage Certificate

•2 Letters of Recommendation

•Police clearance for each parent from local law enforcement agency

•Medical certificates from Physician - one for each parent

•Employers' Letter (including any benefits and Life Insurance coverage in letter)
•Most recent Income Tax 1040 (1st 2 pages)

•Attestation and Declaration of Personal Condition

•Bank Letter

•Certificate from Parents re: Post Placement Agreement Reports

OTHER REQUIRED DOCUMENTS TO SUBMIT

•In addition to the above listed original documents, one full photocopied set of those documents is required. No staples in the photocopied set!

Although it seemed very daunting when we first saw the list, broken down into one-thing-at-a-time segments, it wasn't so bad.  I do wish we would have started the passport process earlier, but everything worked out just fine and there's no point in trying to rush God's perfect timing.

Our amazing, generous, favorite notary friend came over to notarize all of the documents that needed to be notarized.  Thank you so much!  She saved us over $100!

And then, much to my not-so-patient daughters' dismay, we spent a lot of time here.  Yes, I could have waited until later that night and gone without the kids, but I wasn't willing to wait a few more hours.  Yes, I made the three of them sit on the floor of Kinkos while I  made copies for four hours.  Yes, I bribed them with suckers.  Yes, they made a scene.  No, I didn't care.  Yes, I threw up in my mouth a little bit when they told me it would be $55 to overnight it.  No, I didn't pay it.  I went for the $15 and two day delivery.  Yes, I feel much better.

BEFORE

AFTER

So, why is this such a big deal, you ask?  Because once our Dossier gets to Holt, which it did on Friday, 6/18, we go on the official wait list! 

What does that mean?  It means that we may receive a referral for a 0-12  month old baby within 3-6 months.  A lot of people with the same agency have been getting their referrals much quicker than that, but we're trying desperately to not get our hopes up. 

Within the next week or so we should be given our magic number.  It is basically a first come, first serve type of deal.  I imagine our number will be in the 30s (based on all my not-so-scientific research), but the people in front of us are not necessarily waiting for a 0-12 month baby of either gender.  When a child becomes available for adoption, the first adoptive parents on the list that "match" the child's criteria will get the referral and we all bump up one.  Does that make sense?  The birth parent does not  get to look at our profile in a binder full of other prospective adoptive parents and choose us for their child.  The agency, along with our social worker, will refer a baby to us that they believe will best fit into our family.  

The referral will come in the form of an email (announced by a phone call) and should include any available pictures and medical reports. We will have two weeks (I believe) to accept or deny the referral.  During that two weeks we will send all available information to a pediatrician who specializes in international adoption in Oakland, CA, who will advise us on potential health concerns.  Based on her advice and endless prayer, we will decide whether or not to accept the referral.

Once we accept a referral, we will wait for our court date, which will most likely come a couple months later.  Court dates are held in Ethiopia two Tuesdays of each month (I believe).  We will need to travel to Ethiopia to attend this court date, meet the baby (we will be introduced as a "visitor"), and speak with the pediatrician.  At that point, the baby will be officially ours, but we'll have to come home.  Without our baby.  The time spent with the baby on the first trip will be brief, to make it easier for everyone.  Two to three months after that, we will return to Ethiopia for the Embassy appointment and to bring our baby home.

Having to make two trips is something that is new to the Ethiopia program.  No one, from any agency, has made the two trips yet, so they are still working out some kinks.  We are all anxious to hear about how its going to go, the details of each trip, etc.  We are cautiously optimistic in hoping that our first trip will be before Christmas, but with court closures in July and August due to the rainy season, this may be pushing it a bit.  It is not unlikely that we will get two weeks (or less) notice before travel.  With my tendency to be anal about things like this, the short notice may be a good thing!

We've been getting a lot of questions lately about where we are in the process, when we travel, how the referral works, etc.  I really hope this helps you understand more about the process.  Please feel free to ask more questions!

We are trying desperately to not watch the clock while waiting for our referral, but it is very similar to waiting for your ultrasound appointment at 20 weeks.  Not.very.easy.  There is definitely something missing from our family, and there is going to be a sense of emptiness until this baby is home where it belongs.  Until then, we continue to pray that our baby is being cared for lovingly, has a full belly, is warm, safe, and watched over, protected by God's angels of mercy.