Training

While this is not directly related to the adoption process, it is something interesting and fun! Tonight we will be having dinner with a couple we greatly admire-- for who they are, but also for their parenting skills. We plan to ask them a lot of questions, and learn a lot about how to raise a TCK-two culture kid- in China!  I'll tell you how it went!

Paperwork!

After sending off a big check, we received 16 pages of questions for our Home Study. Since neither one of us likes to procrastinate, we went right to work on them, and sent them off the next day! Now we wait..... Next month in Thailand we will get the physicals we need for the dossier and for the Home Study, but then we cannot do much until we are back in Oregon.

But still we are so excited, and are blessed by how fast this is moving!

Fingerprints

Today we stopped by the Consulate in Chengdu, for what we thought was a quick visit. Over 2 hours later we left with our finger print cards, and the coolest notary seal we have ever seen. 

Today we also sent off the money for out home study..exciting stuff.....

moving forward

Things are beginning to progress a little faster now. We have been in touch with the Home study people, and as soon as we pay the bill we will get the paperwork! She also told us that if we get going with the interview portion as soon as we get back to the US, we can have the Home study and dossier done by December! We are so excited...

The 2nd Step-our trip to Beijing

After waiting for almost a week, we were emailed the contract with our adoption agency. In 3 hours we booked train tickets, planned our trip and got all the needed permission for a 36 hour trip to the US Embassy in Beijing.

We arrived in Beijing after 12 hours on the train (we can fly from California to Beijing in about the same amount of time) and went to the Tex-Mex Restaurant for cinnamon rolls! Then on the the Embassy, where we got the contract signed and notarized. After going to 2 different places, we were finally able to Fed Ex them off!

After another 12 hour train ride, we are back home and waiting again! Oh ya, our package was in Alaska before we got back.....the Beijing to Xi'an route really needs a bullet train!

The 1st Step

On Thursday June 5th, 2008 we officially began the process to adopt two children from Ethiopia. This is an amazing step for us, and we are so excited abut it. We believe that this is the time, and we cannot wait to meet our children.

We will be updating every time something happens, and we hope that you can join with us on our amazing journey.