The waiting has been surreal, but the "patience quest" bountiful...I (finally) received notice from my adoption agency on Friday evening that they received the official list from the US Embassy in Hanoi of pending families approved for adoption. They told me that we ARE on the list, so our adoption will be allowed to be completed. Thank the Lord and pass the biscuits - I'm eating for two! heheI still have not yet been told that we can file the I-600, but I am hopeful that it will be this week or next. There are families in Viet Nam currently, and another travel group leaving next week. I'll just keep practicing my patience, and in the mean time, we are having a glorious early fall. The weather has been in the 70s and 80s, and Jordan and I have been spending a lot of time at playgrounds, parks and with friends. Stay tuned!Thanks all-Ann
Can you believe it? There is still no news. The bilateral US-VN adoption agreement expired, and the Department of State has issued a memorandum (excerpted below) and full copy at this URL: http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_4352.html. The remaining families in the program who have received an "official" referral will be allowed to complete their adoption. Like us, few families know if they are included in that group.The DoS (Dept of State) says that the US Embassy in Hanoi should have a final list of families approved by the third week in September. My agency says that they will try and have an update to me by this Friday.Thank you for you prayers and good wishes during this time. I am overwhelmed by the emails of support you have sent. This mama (and mama-to-be) thanks you sincerely...I just KNOW (I jus' feel it in my bones) that we'll be going to Viet Nam soon!Ann U.S. Department of StateVietnam: Update on September 1, 2008 Deadline
September 5, 2008
"The Vietnamese Department of International Adoptions (DIA) has confirmed that the DIA continued to issue referrals to prospective adoptive parents until September 1, 2008, the date the United States – Vietnam bilateral adoption agreement expired. According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Justice, prospective adoptive parents who received a formal referral by September 1 will be allowed to process their adoption to conclusion. " "According to the DIA, a referral occurs when DIA sends a letter to prospective adoptive parents informing them that both DIA and provincial authorities have agreed to the match of a specific child. Any case where this letter has been sent to the prospective adoptive parents before September 1 will be considered as having a referral and will be processed to completion.The DIA has informed the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi that they will supply the U.S. Embassy with a list of all cases that have received a referral. The Embassy expects to receive this list during the third week of September. " "Prospective adoptive parents who have not received a referral letter may wish to verify the status of their case with their adoption service provider.According to an informal poll of adoption service providers taken in mid August, approximately 600-700 prospective adoptive parents still had an application pending with the DIA and had not yet received referrals. The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam, will process to conclusion all adoptions that meet the Government of Vietnam’s criteria and deadlines."
The Associated Press reports:
AP Report September 1, 2008
(Ben Stocking in Bangkok contributed to this report. )US-Vietnam adoption pact ends, hundreds in limbo HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — A U.S.-Vietnam adoption agreement expired Monday with the two sides unable to resolve disagreements over fraud and corruption, disappointing hundreds of prospective parents who will have to seek children elsewhere.
The two countries said they will continue trying to iron out their differences, but for now the program will be suspended indefinitely.
Vietnam will continue processing adoptions for parents who had already been matched with orphans before the agreement expired. But the vast majority of the roughly 1,700 families that had cases pending will be disappointed, according to Vietnam's top adoption official, Vu Duc Long.
Long said he was still tallying the exact number and would release it later this week.
My agency coordinator has told me that my case "should" be fine, and (bless her heart) she is trying to maintain positive communication with all of us even though she has not heard specifics of anyone's adoption status. But we don't know really.
What I do know is that I am feeling a growing anxiety each day, and I continue to "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" Proverbs 3:5. I do trust... it is just SO hard with my humanly limitations and fears- you know?
I feel like I am 8 months pregnant with a high-risk pregnancy, and something is wrong but the nurse won't tell me, and she has just scheduled me for an appointment with the doctor several weeks away...
But you see - I have pictures of this little boy who lives a world away. I am bonded to him. He has a head full of wild dark hair, big dark eyes, thick lips, and little hands ready to hug. He is living in an orphanage with no single person who is committed to his care and love toward him. He has never known parents who care for his daily needs. He is already 4 months old, and every day he grows and learns and seeks connection. The days seem so much longer now... The days seem like a world away.
Everyday Jordan and I talk about baby Brian coming to live with us. She can't wait to be a big sister. She loves looking at his picture too. We pray everynight for him.
So that's where we are in this process of ' adoption childbirth'. Thanks to everyone who asks about our status - it's just almost too tender to discuss. I am still prayerful and hopeful and I'll post any news as soon as I know it!
I hope (and pray) that I receive the news today that the Department of International Adoption in Hanoi has formally acknowledged our "match" with baby Brian and provides me our travel request to come to Viet Nam.
We have had a mahvelous Labor Day weekend! We thoroughly enjoyed having my little bro Brian and his loving wife Denise visit with us all weekend. In addition, my friends Des and her daughter Aubrey from Houston stayed with us. Des’ sons Travis and Dustin and their girlfriends were part of our festivities, so we had ‘round the clock fun. Our family friend Regina came and went as she could, contributing fun, laughter, dish-washing and a brischetta/goat cheese appetizer that was killer!
We had a Luau party on Saturday night, with shrimp, scallop, chicken and steak kabobs, along with broccoli, chopped salad, au gratin potatoes and lots of Mai Tais. We had fake pineapple decorations, tiki torch fires, pool parties, Hawaii-Five-O music, and coconut cream pie. It was yummy. Jordan’s friend Molly, and her mommy Anna joined us for lots of fun. (In addition, Annie-dog received lots of treats!)
One engaging project that Brian helped us complete this weekend was the capture of a vermin from the front yard landscaping. Said vermin was regularly burrowing under the house foundation, and we thought for sure it was an armadillo. Knowing that Brian would be here for the weekend, I “high-tailed it” (hehe) to the Animal Control office for a trap so this project could be appropriately delegated. J
After the first night of “no catch” (but all the shrimp/scallop bait was craftily removed) Brian and Regina concocted a plan to trap the vermin. They stuffed the foot of a knee-high stocking with left over rib-eye steak and other epicurean delights and hung it in the back of the trap cage. This time the vermin would have to work for his meal!
Monday morning, Denise and I woke up early and checked out the “catch of the day”. We had successfully contained and trapped “Gustav”, a medium size opossum. Besides hissing quite a bit at Brian, he was calm and slept most the day until the Animal Control specialists came and took him to his new home in the wild. I was told that opossums travel in pairs, so we are preparing to trap "Hanna" in the upcoming days.
We had a wonderful time this weekend. With the help of my friends we were able to reconstruct the crib for Baby Brian’s nursery, de-fraged and optimized my computer, watched The Weather Channel non-stop and enjoyed lots of sweet, fun playtime with Jordan and Aubrey. We all missed Carl as he had to work this weekend, but we are thankful for his safety in Houston from the storm.
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