Tonight just keeps getting better and better! After an extremely long week at work for me (and at home for my wife) I got home to find out that we have an issue with our plumbing and proceeded to dig up the lids for our septic tank and our septic tank cleanout. The plumber comes tomorrow - please let it be something which is easy to fix.
By now you are probably wondering how any of that relates to our adoption - well it doesn't; but, to top off this week we got news from both our adoption agency and the US government about a new problem in the DRC. The DGM (General Director of Migration) has stopped issuing exit letters to children being adopted from the Congo internationally. This basically means that they are not letting people who are ready to take their kids home leave the country, or allowing any more internationally adopted children to leave the country for some unknown period of time.
Why? That was the first question I asked. That is easy to answer - once again an adoptive couple has tried to circumvent the DRC rules for adoption and has caused this unnecessary delay for every other person adopting from that country. Honestly - why can't people just follow the rules so that it doesn't backfire and collapse the process for more than just you! It makes me angry that people think it is OK to gamble time with my children for their adoption process. If you don't meet the adoption criteria, don't apply to adopt from that country! This country might be more lenient than most about the stretching of some of their rules, but some they are quite adamant about keeping - why would another couple try and break the same rule that caused the DGM to shut down in May?
Bottom line: I am upset. I am upset because no one knows how long the lock down will last - maybe a week, maybe a year. I am upset because I completely understand why they are locking down the exit process and it was caused by something which was completely avoidable.
Please pray for the decision makers in Congo to realize that they should not punish the parents or the children who are waiting eagerly to be united and come home. Pray that no other couple thinking about adoption breaks the rules and causes the country to rethink whether international adoption of their children is such a good idea. Pray this shutdown is short and that our investigation process is short so we can quit worrying about other people keeping us from our kids.
Reference: http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=alerts&alert_notice_file=democratic_republic_of_congo_3
Friday, September 27, 2013
Saturday, September 14, 2013
Finally - The Home Stretch
It has been quite awhile since the last post; sometimes it was just too depressing to think about how much still stood between us and our kids. However, the end is finally "in sight", although we still do not know when it will be.
We recently received news that our I600 application (petition to the US government to request the children be qualified as our immediate family) was approved. This was the first step in what I would call the last phase in our journey. Now we have to wait for the US Embassy in Kinshasa (DRC) to do an investigation verifying the veracity of the documents we submitted and the stories of our children. Although the investigation itself doesn't take much time, there is a significant wait period prior to it being our turn: they estimate 3-6 months. After the conclusion of the investigation, we will travel for our visa appointment and to pick up our kids and bring them home.
My parents will be sharing a brief view of our journey in their church tomorrow. This really can't come at a better time as we are needing a big final push in our fundraising to reach the amount needed for the last payment to our lawyer and travel expenses. If you know anyone with a heart for adoption, please pass along our information and our need.
Speaking of homes - ours recently changed. About a month and a half ago, Erin and I decided that our current home, which we loved, was not going to be a good layout for our family when G and O (the new kiddos) come home. Thus, we decided to sell our house and find a new one. This went very quickly (our house was only on the market for two days) and then we visited 25+ houses before finding our new home. As we unpack boxes and reset up rooms, we look forward to the day when all the rooms are full.
We recently received news that our I600 application (petition to the US government to request the children be qualified as our immediate family) was approved. This was the first step in what I would call the last phase in our journey. Now we have to wait for the US Embassy in Kinshasa (DRC) to do an investigation verifying the veracity of the documents we submitted and the stories of our children. Although the investigation itself doesn't take much time, there is a significant wait period prior to it being our turn: they estimate 3-6 months. After the conclusion of the investigation, we will travel for our visa appointment and to pick up our kids and bring them home.
My parents will be sharing a brief view of our journey in their church tomorrow. This really can't come at a better time as we are needing a big final push in our fundraising to reach the amount needed for the last payment to our lawyer and travel expenses. If you know anyone with a heart for adoption, please pass along our information and our need.
Speaking of homes - ours recently changed. About a month and a half ago, Erin and I decided that our current home, which we loved, was not going to be a good layout for our family when G and O (the new kiddos) come home. Thus, we decided to sell our house and find a new one. This went very quickly (our house was only on the market for two days) and then we visited 25+ houses before finding our new home. As we unpack boxes and reset up rooms, we look forward to the day when all the rooms are full.
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