It has been 4 weeks since we first laid our eyes on our son. 4 weeks since we got to see him and hold him for the first time. The past 4 weeks have been the longest 4 weeks of my life. But the good news is... a month down in the wait to bring him home.
Many people have asked me, "What's next?" "How long?" "What's the process?"
What's next?...
The Wednesday after we got back from our trip (Sept 18th), we had a letter stating that the United States have approved him to immigrate into this country! This is called our i800 approval. This was then sent to the embassy in Z's country. The following Friday (Sept 27th), our lawyers in his country attended a meeting on our behalf and our article 5 was issued at that meeting.
Two BIG steps done two weeks after we said goodbye to him!
Now our Article 5 have been translated and will sit on the MOJ's desk for a signature saying they approve us to proceed. The MOJ could sign this week or she could sign weeks from now. It's very hard telling. Our hope is that she will sign quickly. That's what we are praying for.
After signature, we will wait for a court date. This is the FINAL step. Court... which will happen on our behalf while we are sleeping. When court happens we will wake up, hopefully with news that we have a new son! Then approximately 5 weeks later, we get to go rescue him and bring him home forever!
The process between trips is approximately 3-6 months, usually closer to 4-6. (we've been told.). One month down so now we have 3-5 months left :-). Counting down! The wait is VERY hard.
One thing that could slow the whole process down that is 100% beyond our control. We need an updated FBI clearance for court. We mailed our fingerprint on September 16th... right when we got back. These usually take 5 weeks to process and another 1 week to get federally appostilled, then sent to his country. Everything was fine with the time frame... UNTIL OUR GOVERNMENT SHUT DOWN! Yes, not all of our government shut down... but of course THIS part of the government is no longer working. We got our first FBI clearances back in March, (for court we are told they have to be within 6 months). That is why we need an update.
We are not losing hope though... there is still a possibility that we can pass court without the updates. I've seen cases pass without the second set of updated clearances. It just depends on the judge we get. Please pray that our lawyers can explain this to the judge or that this part of our government will start processing these again and we can get them back in time for court. We have no clue when court will be so the sooner we get these back, the better. We have placed this in God's hands and know that everything will work on in His perfect timing. No sense in getting upset over things we can't control.
I find it very ironic that Z's country has a government slowdown and now we do. Not many can say that both governments slowed down during their adoption process!
Thanks for your continued prayers. We are working on another fundraiser and I will announce it soon.
Soon little guy, very soon we will take you home forever!!
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