Friday, May 30, 2014
Leila's Birth Certificate!
Our coordinator received a copy today, and her declared birth date (her legal one, which means we're not sure if it's exact) is January 1, 2005, which would make her 9 years old! So exciting to know that we have an age and a birthday to celebrate for her! Thank you, God, for the baby steps.
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Good News and Bad News - Adoption Update
Today my stateside daughter put nail polish on her eye lids. Yep, nail polish. Not clear or even light pink. It was a nice shimmery mauve. She's asleep now, and it's still there. I mean, what do I even do with that!?
Ok, now to our African daughter. Here's the good news:
1. We now have a placement order from the juvenile courts in Niger that shows she was put into and still lives in an orphanage. This will be included with the rest of the paperwork that a Nigerien judge will review to determine whether or not she's eligible to be legally adopted from Niger. We needed this piece of paper to get the unconditional discharge signed by her birth mother and then Geoff (who will go over there any sign on behalf of us). Yes, this is the piece of paper I keep thinking will be getting signed. Now, we are officially closer.
2. Pouhin (orphanage director) is no longer in charge of Good Samaritan Orphanage! He went to the Ivory Coast, and is staying there. The missions committee board that distantly oversees the orphanage where Leila is and the board that a few LINK folks met with back in October (remember this post?) are finally moving ahead with signing the agreement they verbally agreed on (not sure why it took 8+ months to get to this point). This agreement says they will support adoptions out of the orphanage, LINK teams are free to visit with the children and they will request and accept support under LiveTen24 guidelines and procedures. Great news! While Pouhin seemed to have been cooperating as of late (or really just stayed out of the way), we wondered if he would try and pull something while we were there or if he would say untrue things to Leila. Now we don't need to worry about this! Please pray for the 2 new lay leaders they will appoint to oversee the orphanage and the children.
Ok, now to the bad or less-good news. Also known as "get on your knees and pray" news:
1. After a few translation snags, we finally received the results of Leila's recent health screening which was done to see if she had any diseases that would prevent her from traveling. There were no issues with diseases to prevent traveling, which is great, but they did discover she has sickle cell disease (or anemia). The screening was done at a bare bones clinic, so we gave permission today for them to take her to a government run clinic that has the ability to determine the severity of it and propose a treatment to start while she's in Niger. It is a hereditary blood disorder she was born with, but unfortunately, up to this point, she hasn't been treated for it. Combined with the malnutrition, it's no wonder she's so small, and this may explain why she seemed less-spirited (e.g. really tired) when I was with her in February. Please pray for her sweet little body and for wisdom for the doctor she sees.
2. Up until this week, we had no idea that our dear government passed a bill called the Universal Accreditation Act back in 2012. Well, the UAA and all the not-at-all-hard-to-understand parts go into effect on July 14, 2014 (my birthday - happy birthday to me!). And it seems that the specifics of the bill and who's grandfathered in and who's not are just coming out because it sure is helpful to give adoptive parents 6 weeks to make some potentially huge changes or tell them something they spent a lot of money on (e.g. home study) is now not from an approved agency. Can you hear my sarcasm? Yea, so I'm actually not quite sure what we could have known ahead of time and what's new, but it feels like a lot of people are surprised by some of this, and they are people that should know (e.g. our social worker). Basically, we don't know if the home study we completed will be accepted or not, but we have submitted our I-600a form (I totally did that on faith back in April; I felt like I just needed to do something for Leila, and that was all I could do, even though it was earlier than I was supposed to. Lord, please honor that!) and have a biometrics (fingerprinting) appointment in Norfolk on 6/10/2014. And the I-600a form completion is part of the grandfathering in, so we are praying that we will meet this and that we are understanding the guidelines correctly. Will you please pray for that, too?
We don't want to delay anything in this process, but we can't exactly fork over another couple thousand dollars for another home study. We are asking God for wisdom to make the right choice. And for patience. Love is patient, right?! I cried on the phone with our coordinator today. The waiting can feel so hard and heavy some days. And to think of her, untreated for something we would so easily treat from birth here in the states. It hurts my heart, and I pray it doesn't hurt her.
So, we wait, and we pray, and we hope, and we wait, pray and hope some more, knowing that "Hope fuels the soul to impossible places."
Ok, now to our African daughter. Here's the good news:
1. We now have a placement order from the juvenile courts in Niger that shows she was put into and still lives in an orphanage. This will be included with the rest of the paperwork that a Nigerien judge will review to determine whether or not she's eligible to be legally adopted from Niger. We needed this piece of paper to get the unconditional discharge signed by her birth mother and then Geoff (who will go over there any sign on behalf of us). Yes, this is the piece of paper I keep thinking will be getting signed. Now, we are officially closer.
2. Pouhin (orphanage director) is no longer in charge of Good Samaritan Orphanage! He went to the Ivory Coast, and is staying there. The missions committee board that distantly oversees the orphanage where Leila is and the board that a few LINK folks met with back in October (remember this post?) are finally moving ahead with signing the agreement they verbally agreed on (not sure why it took 8+ months to get to this point). This agreement says they will support adoptions out of the orphanage, LINK teams are free to visit with the children and they will request and accept support under LiveTen24 guidelines and procedures. Great news! While Pouhin seemed to have been cooperating as of late (or really just stayed out of the way), we wondered if he would try and pull something while we were there or if he would say untrue things to Leila. Now we don't need to worry about this! Please pray for the 2 new lay leaders they will appoint to oversee the orphanage and the children.
Ok, now to the bad or less-good news. Also known as "get on your knees and pray" news:
1. After a few translation snags, we finally received the results of Leila's recent health screening which was done to see if she had any diseases that would prevent her from traveling. There were no issues with diseases to prevent traveling, which is great, but they did discover she has sickle cell disease (or anemia). The screening was done at a bare bones clinic, so we gave permission today for them to take her to a government run clinic that has the ability to determine the severity of it and propose a treatment to start while she's in Niger. It is a hereditary blood disorder she was born with, but unfortunately, up to this point, she hasn't been treated for it. Combined with the malnutrition, it's no wonder she's so small, and this may explain why she seemed less-spirited (e.g. really tired) when I was with her in February. Please pray for her sweet little body and for wisdom for the doctor she sees.
2. Up until this week, we had no idea that our dear government passed a bill called the Universal Accreditation Act back in 2012. Well, the UAA and all the not-at-all-hard-to-understand parts go into effect on July 14, 2014 (my birthday - happy birthday to me!). And it seems that the specifics of the bill and who's grandfathered in and who's not are just coming out because it sure is helpful to give adoptive parents 6 weeks to make some potentially huge changes or tell them something they spent a lot of money on (e.g. home study) is now not from an approved agency. Can you hear my sarcasm? Yea, so I'm actually not quite sure what we could have known ahead of time and what's new, but it feels like a lot of people are surprised by some of this, and they are people that should know (e.g. our social worker). Basically, we don't know if the home study we completed will be accepted or not, but we have submitted our I-600a form (I totally did that on faith back in April; I felt like I just needed to do something for Leila, and that was all I could do, even though it was earlier than I was supposed to. Lord, please honor that!) and have a biometrics (fingerprinting) appointment in Norfolk on 6/10/2014. And the I-600a form completion is part of the grandfathering in, so we are praying that we will meet this and that we are understanding the guidelines correctly. Will you please pray for that, too?
We don't want to delay anything in this process, but we can't exactly fork over another couple thousand dollars for another home study. We are asking God for wisdom to make the right choice. And for patience. Love is patient, right?! I cried on the phone with our coordinator today. The waiting can feel so hard and heavy some days. And to think of her, untreated for something we would so easily treat from birth here in the states. It hurts my heart, and I pray it doesn't hurt her.
So, we wait, and we pray, and we hope, and we wait, pray and hope some more, knowing that "Hope fuels the soul to impossible places."
Monday, May 12, 2014
Momma Love
Spoiled. Yes, my husband knows how to do that. And while I'm still waiting to be a mother of 3 (eek, that sounds like a lot today!), he treated me like I'd mothered a nation this weekend. I returned on Saturday after almost 9 hours of yard saling and thrifting with my own momma (our annual Mother's Day tradition of fun and finds!) to find a clean house and vases of fresh flowers from the garden throughout the house. The dishes that had piled up were clean AND put away. The laundry had been done AND put away. The kids were happy, and I was definitely happy. I was told not to go in the guest room until the next morning.
So, on Sunday morning (yesterday), after sipping my favorite splurge coffee (Dunkin Donuts) on the porch, he took me upstairs to get the kids and my surprise. In our house, the kids aren't allowed to get out of bed until 7 (they have digital clocks). Lately, this does not mean they wake up at 7. Hardly. So, we escaped the noises coming from the monitor pre-7am by going outside. Some might say smart, others mean. They were perfectly fine, of course.
After a sweet card, they led me into the room with my eyes closed only to find that they had bought half of the Target ladies department and half the books on my Amazon Wish List! I felt the love. I didn't question where the money came from though Geoff knew where my mind was going. He said he'd been saving for a while. And since I know he loves giving, I didn't want to take that joy so I gladly accepted the new rubber boots (for the farm), dresses, workout clothes (apparently he was tired of my one pair of running shorts from when I worked at Ragged Mountain Running Store in college) and other miscellaneous items to wear. Oh, and a medicine ball and some workout weights for our attempts to cross fit at home.
Off to church, a casual lunch with friends and home for the rest of the day to work in the garden, relax and enjoy dinner that Geoff cooked (breakfast!). And we got to witness the birth of 2 baby goats. We heard the labor cries and got there just in time to see it. Amazing. And on Mother's Day!
I felt so incredibly loved today and was reminded of how great a gift mothering is. Not easy (more like the hardest thing I've ever done), but definitely worth it.
I know Mother's Day isn't joyous for everyone, so I pray if it was a hard day for you that you could still see God's grace throughout it. Oftentimes through our brokenness and pain we experience His great grace like never before.
So, on Sunday morning (yesterday), after sipping my favorite splurge coffee (Dunkin Donuts) on the porch, he took me upstairs to get the kids and my surprise. In our house, the kids aren't allowed to get out of bed until 7 (they have digital clocks). Lately, this does not mean they wake up at 7. Hardly. So, we escaped the noises coming from the monitor pre-7am by going outside. Some might say smart, others mean. They were perfectly fine, of course.
After a sweet card, they led me into the room with my eyes closed only to find that they had bought half of the Target ladies department and half the books on my Amazon Wish List! I felt the love. I didn't question where the money came from though Geoff knew where my mind was going. He said he'd been saving for a while. And since I know he loves giving, I didn't want to take that joy so I gladly accepted the new rubber boots (for the farm), dresses, workout clothes (apparently he was tired of my one pair of running shorts from when I worked at Ragged Mountain Running Store in college) and other miscellaneous items to wear. Oh, and a medicine ball and some workout weights for our attempts to cross fit at home.
Off to church, a casual lunch with friends and home for the rest of the day to work in the garden, relax and enjoy dinner that Geoff cooked (breakfast!). And we got to witness the birth of 2 baby goats. We heard the labor cries and got there just in time to see it. Amazing. And on Mother's Day!
I felt so incredibly loved today and was reminded of how great a gift mothering is. Not easy (more like the hardest thing I've ever done), but definitely worth it.
I know Mother's Day isn't joyous for everyone, so I pray if it was a hard day for you that you could still see God's grace throughout it. Oftentimes through our brokenness and pain we experience His great grace like never before.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Tidbits Part Two on Leila
Bruno (works at Leila's orphanage) is working with the minor court system to get a placement order for Leila (this is a legal document that reflects her placement into the orphanage). I didn't know we needed this, and I'm not yet sure if this is required before her birthmother signs the unconditional discharge. Sounds like it isn't, but I haven't received confirmation on that.
Leila will be going to a clinic next week for a health screening. This is not a full physical examination, but rather a simple screen for any communicable diseases that may make her ineligible for a Visa (and therefore, any international travel). This will allow us to know if she has any “issues” that may need to be addressed or managed. And at the end of the process, she will go through another health examination at the doctor that the US Embassy requires.
Keep praying!
Leila will be going to a clinic next week for a health screening. This is not a full physical examination, but rather a simple screen for any communicable diseases that may make her ineligible for a Visa (and therefore, any international travel). This will allow us to know if she has any “issues” that may need to be addressed or managed. And at the end of the process, she will go through another health examination at the doctor that the US Embassy requires.
Keep praying!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
