Country Change

We are going to Latvia!!  It was not an easy decision to make but after a few weeks of evaluating pros and cons, we switched.  We did join an agency which is great to work with an experienced staff.  We are currently gathering up all the new paperwork needed for Latvia.  We only need our revised homestudy report and our BCI back and we can submit to the translators.  We have already been told of two sibling sets available. These kids are so adorable!! 

I put a map on this blog because, if you are like me, when I first hear of this country, you may not know where it is located.

Below are some fun facts about Latvia
1.The national flag is one of the oldest flags in the world. It dates back to the 13^th century. The legend says, a Latvian leader was wounded in battle, and the edge of the white sheet in which he was wrapped was stained by his blood.  This sheet was carried into several battles afterwards, making it the flag we see today.   

     2. In terms of Environmental Performance index Latvia ranks second in the world
   3.   Arvids Blumentals was the original Crocodile Dundee. He was the inspiration for the movie.

     4.   The children are mostly blonde or brown hair and either blue or brown eyes.

     5. In 1924, the Laima’s watch tower was set up to help Latvians be on time for work.

   We should have another update soon. 

July 14th US Adoption Rule change

We are one day away from the July 14, the infamous rule change in the US.  Last Thursday we saw the USCIS rules for “the change”.  We were grandfather in under exception E.  However, it states that we cannot change or update government documents and our home study on or after July 14.  Well our home study per Ukrainian rules is set to expire around the end of August. We were also not sure how Ukraine would like our home study expiring while we are in country.  So what to do…

I called our home study case worker and begged her to update our home study this past Friday since this Monday is July 14.  She let me know she could not update the home study.  What a crushing blow.  I wanted to break down right then and there; however, I knew I had to figure something out.  All I needed was our signature page update of our home study, which could not get updated unless something in our home study could change. Home study’s go over your finances, living situation, and what you are looking for. So I started to think, what can I change in my life to get an updated home study? Well nothing has changed with our finances or living situation.  The only thing that could change was what we were looking for.  So I told her we decided to raise our age range from 0 – 6yrs to 0 – 7yrs old. That would work. She did it Friday so our date on our home study is 7-11-2014.  We are good for 6 more months from that date.  

Jeff happened to be in a plane while all of this took place. So I told him I changed our home study to say that we’d be willing to take 6 kids.  He freaked out but still loves me.  I did tell him in the end what I actually did, after he finished trying to see how we could afford 6 kids.    

Silly Document Changes

Just a short update, hard to write a lot when you go farther backwards then forwards.  Ukraine wanted three documents verbiage changed.  One being “ in the past 6 months I made…” they wanted us to say “in the last 6 months I made…”  Well, we had no form to fill out so how was I to know they want last and not past?  Please note they also have my home study that has my salary, financial paperwork that states this as well. The second one was the date said 6/20 and not 20/6, that was a translation error.  The last one was on our promise to register our children, we said “we would register them upon completion of adoption” and they wanted “upon returning to the country of residence.” Again we had no forms or sample to go by so we did our best. We have kids sitting in an orphanage and my paperwork was held due to silly document changes!

If you are reading this blog and thinking about adopting from Ukraine contact me and I can send you my forms so you have the correct verbiage and don’t have to worry about document changes. 

Nesting Stage

Jeff and I have been working on starting a family for a few years now.  I have heard several women talk about this famous “Nesting Stage”.  I had never caught the nesting bug until now.  WOW and I’ve been doing some crazy things around the house.  You start doing these things and in the middle you think I have never done this before why now?  Nesting that is why. Below are some of the not so normal things I have been doing.

1.  Cleaned the pan under the fridge.  (Have to admit 1^st time. YUCK) 
2.  Got into a large debate over a Growth Chart.  It is super cute but the debate was crazy.

  3. Rug Doctor to the rescue!  Rented one from ACME (grocery store) and it was amazing. Spent many  hours using the machine until I was able to make several sweeps across the carpet with the cleaning solution remaining mostly clear. Now how to keep Jeff and dogs off the carpet? 

  4.  While reading other adoption blog there was a story of an adopted girl who always wanted to have a family picture hanging on the wall.  Well Jeff and I never had pictures of family on the wall so that had to be fixed.  Side note: In the store I was laying out all the frames to see how it looked and a store worker came over and said “that is a lot of work, just buy a custom frame, save time on hanging.”  Jeff most likely wanted to agree but not me.  So Jeff had to put 24 holes in our wall at exact locations…. he did an amazing job!!! They are all level too.

  5.  Went to a Thirty-One party and started buying totes like a mad women.  Now that I am going to be a proud owner of 5 different totes our kids will be so organized.  Jeff, do not worry none of them are pink. 

  6.   I have been getting rid of everything we don’t need or haven’t used in preparation for kids. We had three spare rooms full of stuff that is all gone now.  I also did not stop there every room in the house has been picked over.  I gave to goodwill about 60% of my closet… all of my closets.  It is really amazing how much room we have in our closet and how few clothes we wear, especially Jeff, he is still looking for his old flannels.   

  7.  Our shed had some water damage coming in the front so we put an overhang. Well this Mom to be could not have her shed feeling non-homey.  Now the shed has a panted floor with the word “welcome” spelled out.

  8.   Our mail box is in working condition however there is a broken rivet. That had to be fixed. Not sure how kids will notice but it is all fixed now. 

  9.  The house has two windows that sometimes let in colder air. So we took down the molding and used expandable foam to fix all the holes.

 10. When through the entire refrigerator and combined half bottles of condiments. Also, threw out more food then I want to say out loud that was expired from all food storage places. 

Jeff has been great with helping me on all my different projects. He sometimes finds it weird when I pull my toothbrush out to clean or how I can spend 4 hours cleaning a small bathroom.  At church our pastor had a sermon a few weeks ago and he talked about this “Nesting stage”.  Jeff and I just started laughing.

Hope to have an update soon with travel dates!!  The waiting is almost unbearable but the projects just give me a temporary distraction.

Waiting until middle of June

We have everything turned in to Ukraine in our red folder.  We had an issue before in Ukraine with our paperwork not being turned in with the correct folder color.  This means we now have to wait up to 20 business days to find out when we can travel!!!  I am writing this a bit late so on June 16^th!

You would think Jeff and I would be jumping up and down and going crazy with excitement.  However, with the new US adoption law going into place 7-14-2014, I am cautious.  Obama signed the law in 2012 and here we are less than 2 months from the start date and USCIS doesn’t even know how they are going to implement the new laws. We sat in on a nationwide conference call this past Thursday to understand the details and the gist of the entire phone call is; there is a new law and we don’t know how it will affect you, please be patient and check our web site in two weeks to see where you stand….  Of course if you don’t comply not only will you not be able to complete your adoption but you are also threatened with the possibility jail time and large fine.  

The gist of the new law requires all non-Hague countries to perform all the requirements of Hague nations.  However of the 7 requirements Ukraine finds 6 of these illegal.  So do we get to break US law or Ukraine law….  When this question was brought to the attention of USCIS officials their answer was you’ll have to wait until we can generate specific guidelines for each country.  Where the real stink of it all comes into place is that you now have to use a “Hague certified” adoption company to perform any and all international adoptions.  Of course to that would cost up to $30,000 extra and double the work.  All of our US approved paperwork is in the hands of the Ukrainian Gov’t. so now we get to pay a third party who has done nothing for us thousands of dollars to watch us board an airplane to Ukraine.  

So as a backup we’ve tried to find “accredited” adoption agencies, of all the agencies in Ohio there are only 4, and they will not accept us because we’ve done all the paperwork already.   We also been denied by three out of state agencies….no one will take the liability because they don’t want to break the new US law which no one know how it is even going to be implemented. 

So our next biggest fear is that when we get our date and fly to Ukraine and go through the process and the kids are ours in the eyes of the Ukrainian Gov’t., but will the US allow us to obtain visas or passports for our children?  We’ve written USCIS, called them and again not one there knows…. So what should we do?

One thing we are going to do is have faith that this will all work out.  We are going to trust our facilitators and their judgment even though we have never met in person.  We are going to pray that it will all come together. To tell the truth I feel deep down inside that this will all work out and that Jeff and I will be blessed with some amazing kids.  That really I am just growing and molding and I need this time to do just that.

Looking forwards

Sometimes I thinking about how much energy, money, and time we put into paperwork for an adoption and I get discouraged.  I am always asking myself, why does it have to be so hard? The emotional rollercoaster you are put on is challenging. I have been able to keep my spirits up by reading peoples blogs who have completed an adoption in Ukraine.  Their stories are very similar to ours.  So that gives me hope that with every down turn, every paperwork correction, political unrest, ink color, folder color, and so on; that it will all come to a beautiful ending.

Some people may already know that we know of a few sibling sets currently available for adoption in Ukraine.  Some of these sets along the way have follow off the eligibility list, either by adoption or other reasons.  I keep looking at their little faces every night to build up my strength.  I pray that they are safe and with everything going on be able to get food and basic needs.  Also, that one day they will get to know a parents love, by us or another family.

Tomorrow our paperwork will be turned into Ukraine!!  I hope to have a good update soon.  With this submission we should be receiving word of our travel date in the next 20 days or so.  I really hope it is soon. 

Paperwork Complete??

We have submitted all of the paperwork to Ukraine, we believe. Currently they are telling us that they have everything however, we feel they are missing our FBI background check.  We have contacted Ukraine but due to the unrest it may take them a few days to reply.  Jeff and I decided we are going to mail off our FBI background checks first thing tomorrow just in case they don’t have it.  Spend $150 in shipping it over to Ukraine or possibly delaying the adoption further…easy decision.  We are not willing to risk any further delays at this point. We still have the US deadline of July that we are trying to beat.  We have a chance but it is getting tight.

We have been hearing information about some of the current adoptions going on in Ukraine. American’s are not allowed to travel to certain regions of Ukraine. There was a US couple adopting a 15 year old boy from Crimea region.  They had to leave the orphanage and their son before their adoption was complete.  Since Russia took over all government agencies including adoptions this boy’s adoption was halted due to Russia’s refusal to allow Americans to adopt Russian kids.  The 15 year old boy tried to commit suicide because he felt this was his last chance to be adopted into a family willing to accept him.  I know there are people within Ukraine and at the Crimean orphanage desperately trying to work a deal but currently the adoption is still on hold.  Why is it that in times of war or unrest it is the children who suffer the most?