Hello all,
Here is another update on the status of U.S. adoptions from Vietnam. This article says it ALL...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080428/ap_on_re_as/vietnam_us_adoption
Please PRAY for these little ones!!!
Hugs and love,
Robin and Brandon
Monday, April 28, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
What a day, what a week!
Hello all and HAPPY FRIDAY!!! :) I hope you all are doing well and enjoying this beautiful spring day! It's been absolutely GORGEOUS here in Indy!!! I can't get enough of this weather and the pretty flowers blooming everywhere you turn!!
So, first I will start with a RUSSIA update! We had a Russia conference call on Tuesday of this week with our Russia coordinator at FTIA, Inessa. It went very well. She was calling to go over how to complete our dossier...Well, she wasn't aware that I was still in a dossier FRENZY from just completing our Vietnam dossier (hehe). I'm an ole pro now ;-) Everytime she would say, "ok, so about this document"... I'd say, "done, done, done" :) Needless to say, I'm just about done with our dossier, the only thing left to do is our notaries and apostilles and then our I-600A specifically for Russia. She wanted me to wait until our home study was complete to get all of the above papers in order, so that the dates on the documentation is not far off. All of this to say, our home study should be completed along with all of our documentation (baring any unforeseen circumstances) in the next 4 weeks. At that point we are on the waiting list and our wait could be anywhere from a few days up to about 5 months. With that in mind...Many of the Russian adoptive families I have spoken with said they got their referrals as early as day THREE up to about 2 months!!!! So it could be much sooner than we anticipated. I'll keep ya posted! :) OHHHH, and we are thinking about a couple of new names....Hadley (the A sounds like the "apple") and also Carson, which is a family name on my side. We'll see...
On to Vietnam and the BIG NEWS there! I'm going to save the lengthy story and just post the warnings that were issued by our government, for you to read. It APPEARS that Vietnam is shutting down. For how long, we don't know and we also don't know if we'll be able to complete our adoption from Vietnam. Even with the recent announcement our agency issued a statement that sounded somewhat optimistic and they still believe there is a "chance" we could end up completing our adoption from Vietnam. As for any of the details, we truly have NO clue, which is par for the course on this journey. We continue to put our trust and faith in the Lord and His plan.
Here are both the relevant announcements and they are better than any synopsis I could give:
http://vietnam.usembassy.gov/adoption_warning0408.html
http://vietnam.usembassy.gov/irreg_adoptions042508.html
So, it's been a busy day and a busy week!! :) We are in very good spirits, though we were disappointed by the announcement we are at peace with where God has us right us now. Ironically today while I was out driving around I found COMPLETE comfort in listening to a sermon surrounding, Acts 20. God new just where to meet me, HE is SOO good!!!! :)
ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND!!! BIG HUGS FROM THE LEESE FAMILY!!!
Robin & Brandon
So, first I will start with a RUSSIA update! We had a Russia conference call on Tuesday of this week with our Russia coordinator at FTIA, Inessa. It went very well. She was calling to go over how to complete our dossier...Well, she wasn't aware that I was still in a dossier FRENZY from just completing our Vietnam dossier (hehe). I'm an ole pro now ;-) Everytime she would say, "ok, so about this document"... I'd say, "done, done, done" :) Needless to say, I'm just about done with our dossier, the only thing left to do is our notaries and apostilles and then our I-600A specifically for Russia. She wanted me to wait until our home study was complete to get all of the above papers in order, so that the dates on the documentation is not far off. All of this to say, our home study should be completed along with all of our documentation (baring any unforeseen circumstances) in the next 4 weeks. At that point we are on the waiting list and our wait could be anywhere from a few days up to about 5 months. With that in mind...Many of the Russian adoptive families I have spoken with said they got their referrals as early as day THREE up to about 2 months!!!! So it could be much sooner than we anticipated. I'll keep ya posted! :) OHHHH, and we are thinking about a couple of new names....Hadley (the A sounds like the "apple") and also Carson, which is a family name on my side. We'll see...
On to Vietnam and the BIG NEWS there! I'm going to save the lengthy story and just post the warnings that were issued by our government, for you to read. It APPEARS that Vietnam is shutting down. For how long, we don't know and we also don't know if we'll be able to complete our adoption from Vietnam. Even with the recent announcement our agency issued a statement that sounded somewhat optimistic and they still believe there is a "chance" we could end up completing our adoption from Vietnam. As for any of the details, we truly have NO clue, which is par for the course on this journey. We continue to put our trust and faith in the Lord and His plan.
Here are both the relevant announcements and they are better than any synopsis I could give:
http://vietnam.usembassy.gov/adoption_warning0408.html
http://vietnam.usembassy.gov/irreg_adoptions042508.html
So, it's been a busy day and a busy week!! :) We are in very good spirits, though we were disappointed by the announcement we are at peace with where God has us right us now. Ironically today while I was out driving around I found COMPLETE comfort in listening to a sermon surrounding, Acts 20. God new just where to meet me, HE is SOO good!!!! :)
ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND!!! BIG HUGS FROM THE LEESE FAMILY!!!
Robin & Brandon
Monday, April 14, 2008
Russian Approval and Vietnam Referrals
Hello friends and family! I hope you all have had a nice start to your week. We are doing well but busy bees. I wanted to give you a brief update and let you know that we received our "official" approval today from FTIA to start our Russian Adoption! Yippee! I can hardly believe we are heading down this path but we are so excited!
On the Vietnam front, there were three referrals last week (2 girls and 1 boy). Again as always the children were beyond precious. It was so nice to share in the joy of the families who got their referrals. It was a very exciting week for Vietnam families!! :)
Last but not least, I wanted to let you all know that rather than trying to maintain two blogs we are going to continue with this one blog. We will combine Russian and Vietnam updates as crazy at it may seem and as long as the posts might be, I think it will be easier for me to maintain with balancing work and compiling our dossier.
Thanks again to everyone for all of your support!!
We love you,
Robin & Brandon
On the Vietnam front, there were three referrals last week (2 girls and 1 boy). Again as always the children were beyond precious. It was so nice to share in the joy of the families who got their referrals. It was a very exciting week for Vietnam families!! :)
Last but not least, I wanted to let you all know that rather than trying to maintain two blogs we are going to continue with this one blog. We will combine Russian and Vietnam updates as crazy at it may seem and as long as the posts might be, I think it will be easier for me to maintain with balancing work and compiling our dossier.
Thanks again to everyone for all of your support!!
We love you,
Robin & Brandon
Thursday, April 10, 2008
BIG NEWS!!!!
Hello all!! :) Well, it's been a busy week thus far and we have some news to share with you!!! This is somewhat of a long story but I thought you might like to hear about the journey to our recent decision.
As you may remember, the week or two before Easter we were made aware of a potential domestic adoption possibility of a baby girl. Unfortunately, that didn't work out for us but it did get us thinking about how ready we are for our family and how open we truly are to other adoption alternatives that we hadn't considered. After that, we started discussing IF we should pursue a concurrent adoption (meaning another adoption while we are amidst our adoption for Vietnam). Neither one of us felt STRONGLY about it. We BOTH realized we were absolutely ready to be parents right now but didn't want to run with our emotion. We have been praying about it and doing lots of talking and thinking. All of this to say...We contacted our adoption agency about 2-3 wks ago to see what other alternatives we have and our facilitator asked us if we had ever considered Russia. I told her, "yes" but we decided against it for various reasons. After talking with her, I felt more at ease about our concerns and thought I'd share what she told me with Brandon. We talked and started to both feel our hearts "might" be open to this as an option. We gave it about a week and then contacted her again with some additional questions...This time I explained to her that we felt strongly about having a diverse family so that our children would never feel like they were "different" or didn't fit in with us (being Caucasian). In our eyes, the more diverse we are as a family, the less likely the child is to grow up truly looking at the physical differences. She then explained that in Russia there were many children close to the Kazakhstan and China borders that looked very Asian and were likely a mix of Russian and Chinese or Kazakh. This of course made both Brandon and I perk up!!! At that point she told us that we might want to talk to the Russian coordinator. So, I called her. She was very informative. I asked her what I thought would be the "tough question"...."Would we be able to request that our child was of Asian decent?" I thought for sure the answer would be NO, so I was prepared for that. Much to our pleasant surprise the answer was, "YES". Brandon and I perked up even more and started to feel the doors opening more and more. Our last concern was timeframe. We didn't want our children to come home too close in age and in time. We wanted to know that our children would both have a good amount of time to adjust. So, our final question early this week was..."How much longer till our daughter comes home from Vietnam (meaning our referal). The response was one that we both expected but neither Brandon nor I was quite ready to hear. We were just hoping that we might have our lil one home in summer- fall of 2009. We were told that we would likely not get our referral for 17 more months and then we would not travel for 5 months after that....22 MONTHS! I have to say that I think that was the toughest moment for me during this entire adoption process. Reality set in. We are 14 months into this process and 22 to go. That shouldn't have been a surprise because we new what to expect based on how upfront our agency has been but it still was tough. I called Brandon and was in tears, I told him about the 22 months and he said, "don't be sad Robin, I take this as good news...This tells us it's time to move forward". What an AMAZING husband I have!!! We've both been pretty level headed during this process but when I caved, he was there to make sense of it and pick me up!!! I hadn't thought of that.
We've made our decision, we are going to adopt from Russia!!!! We are both VERY excited!!!! We are going to continue on with our adoption from Vietnam (our hearts are still very much there) and in the interim, we will adopt a lil one from Russia. The other tid-bit that I left out is that if we decide to adopt a boy, the wait is 3 months and if we decide to adopt a girl it's 3-6 months!!!! This seemed incomprehensible based on our timeline from Vietnam. We haven't made a decision yet as to a boy or a girl. I'm wide open to either and have left it up to Brandon. He's saying..."60-40 for a girl" But we'll see! ;-) So, stay tuned. It's unbelievable to us that we will very likely have met or have our child home before Christmas!!!!!
The other thing that occurred to me today is that our child has already been born! In Russia, the youngest you are referred a child is 10-16 months, which means he or she could be 4-6 months right now! He/she is very likely living in an orphanage right now. We are asking that you PLEASE-PLEASE keep our lil one in your prayers. I was thinking today, who is holding him/her, feeding, loving, changing, etc. That's a tough reality to get your head around. There have been some other amazing ironies that have taken place during this time that I'd love to share but for fear that you all might be falling asleep already, I'll save those stories for another time.
Last but certainly not least...Our paperwork returned from the Vietnam Embassy yesterday and I immediately Fed Ex'd it to our agency. It is now going to be sent to Vietnam for translation and log in. Just when I thought the paper chase was coming to an end....It's time for me to get back in the saddle and hit the ground running again. Paperwork, paperwork and more paperwork!!! :) But it's going to be worth every single minute of it!!!!
Everyone have a wonderful weekend!!! :) Sending big hugs your way!!!
Oh and P.S....Where else in the country can you live and have spring weather, daffodils blooming, green grass AND SNOW FLURRIES THIS WEEKEND!!!!!
As you may remember, the week or two before Easter we were made aware of a potential domestic adoption possibility of a baby girl. Unfortunately, that didn't work out for us but it did get us thinking about how ready we are for our family and how open we truly are to other adoption alternatives that we hadn't considered. After that, we started discussing IF we should pursue a concurrent adoption (meaning another adoption while we are amidst our adoption for Vietnam). Neither one of us felt STRONGLY about it. We BOTH realized we were absolutely ready to be parents right now but didn't want to run with our emotion. We have been praying about it and doing lots of talking and thinking. All of this to say...We contacted our adoption agency about 2-3 wks ago to see what other alternatives we have and our facilitator asked us if we had ever considered Russia. I told her, "yes" but we decided against it for various reasons. After talking with her, I felt more at ease about our concerns and thought I'd share what she told me with Brandon. We talked and started to both feel our hearts "might" be open to this as an option. We gave it about a week and then contacted her again with some additional questions...This time I explained to her that we felt strongly about having a diverse family so that our children would never feel like they were "different" or didn't fit in with us (being Caucasian). In our eyes, the more diverse we are as a family, the less likely the child is to grow up truly looking at the physical differences. She then explained that in Russia there were many children close to the Kazakhstan and China borders that looked very Asian and were likely a mix of Russian and Chinese or Kazakh. This of course made both Brandon and I perk up!!! At that point she told us that we might want to talk to the Russian coordinator. So, I called her. She was very informative. I asked her what I thought would be the "tough question"...."Would we be able to request that our child was of Asian decent?" I thought for sure the answer would be NO, so I was prepared for that. Much to our pleasant surprise the answer was, "YES". Brandon and I perked up even more and started to feel the doors opening more and more. Our last concern was timeframe. We didn't want our children to come home too close in age and in time. We wanted to know that our children would both have a good amount of time to adjust. So, our final question early this week was..."How much longer till our daughter comes home from Vietnam (meaning our referal). The response was one that we both expected but neither Brandon nor I was quite ready to hear. We were just hoping that we might have our lil one home in summer- fall of 2009. We were told that we would likely not get our referral for 17 more months and then we would not travel for 5 months after that....22 MONTHS! I have to say that I think that was the toughest moment for me during this entire adoption process. Reality set in. We are 14 months into this process and 22 to go. That shouldn't have been a surprise because we new what to expect based on how upfront our agency has been but it still was tough. I called Brandon and was in tears, I told him about the 22 months and he said, "don't be sad Robin, I take this as good news...This tells us it's time to move forward". What an AMAZING husband I have!!! We've both been pretty level headed during this process but when I caved, he was there to make sense of it and pick me up!!! I hadn't thought of that.
We've made our decision, we are going to adopt from Russia!!!! We are both VERY excited!!!! We are going to continue on with our adoption from Vietnam (our hearts are still very much there) and in the interim, we will adopt a lil one from Russia. The other tid-bit that I left out is that if we decide to adopt a boy, the wait is 3 months and if we decide to adopt a girl it's 3-6 months!!!! This seemed incomprehensible based on our timeline from Vietnam. We haven't made a decision yet as to a boy or a girl. I'm wide open to either and have left it up to Brandon. He's saying..."60-40 for a girl" But we'll see! ;-) So, stay tuned. It's unbelievable to us that we will very likely have met or have our child home before Christmas!!!!!
The other thing that occurred to me today is that our child has already been born! In Russia, the youngest you are referred a child is 10-16 months, which means he or she could be 4-6 months right now! He/she is very likely living in an orphanage right now. We are asking that you PLEASE-PLEASE keep our lil one in your prayers. I was thinking today, who is holding him/her, feeding, loving, changing, etc. That's a tough reality to get your head around. There have been some other amazing ironies that have taken place during this time that I'd love to share but for fear that you all might be falling asleep already, I'll save those stories for another time.
Last but certainly not least...Our paperwork returned from the Vietnam Embassy yesterday and I immediately Fed Ex'd it to our agency. It is now going to be sent to Vietnam for translation and log in. Just when I thought the paper chase was coming to an end....It's time for me to get back in the saddle and hit the ground running again. Paperwork, paperwork and more paperwork!!! :) But it's going to be worth every single minute of it!!!!
Everyone have a wonderful weekend!!! :) Sending big hugs your way!!!
Oh and P.S....Where else in the country can you live and have spring weather, daffodils blooming, green grass AND SNOW FLURRIES THIS WEEKEND!!!!!
Sunday, April 6, 2008
The paper chase!
Hello all! :) Well, I'm happy to report that we are seeing signs of BEAUTIFUL spring here in Indy!!! The daffodils are peaking out of the ground along with the beginning of our tulips!!! It's so exciting to see GREEN!!! I absolutely LOVE this time of year here. There are so many amazing flowers. Of course, with spring comes the desire for home improvements! About two months ago, "B" and I ordered a new family room (couch, tables, etc) and so over last weekend I decided we should paint before the furniture arrives. The family room looked so nice after painting, it turned into the hallway, and next thing we knew it...Our bedroom :) I was on a mission. I'm really excited it turned out nicely and just in time for my sisters to arrive in two weeks. I can't wait to see them!
Ok, so on to the latest information and boy is there plenty. As you may remember about 2 weeks ago we were told to begin our dossier. Well, the message was very clear that we would need to do it FAST. The message from our agency was..."As fast as possible". So, needless to say I was in overdrive running around like a loony. We had to get our criminal reports, medical records, home study, I-171, reference letters, etc, etc. In the adoption world they call this the, "paper chase". I got a first hand example as to why it is called that!!! WOW!!! Talk about busy!! After we gathered out documents we took them to get them notarized and then down to the Secretary of State in Indianapolis. Now they are at the Vietnam Embassy (via RUSH mode) and will return to us, all to get to our agency ASAP where they will then be reviewed and sent on to Vietnam for translation and log in of our DOSSIER. All of this is important because we still do not know what the true outcome will be regarding Vietnam closing come Sept 1st. There has been no more news on that front but many are speculating based on all of the rushing around we are doing. If we can get logged in to Vietnam before the POTENTIAL shutdown, we have been told there is a good possibility we could continue our adoption. So we are praying for that and for God to direct all of our steps. We hope to have our paperwork back from the Embassy sometime this week and then we will be overnighting them to our agency (FTIA).
Next bit of news....USCIS has issued an "UNOFFICIAL" statement saying that all children in Vietnam who are relinquished (turned over for adoption, NOT abandoned) will require DNA testing. This opens an entirely new set of concerns. As I'm sure you can imagine, Vietnam has a much different culture than the U.S. and there is a HUGE stigma to surrendering your child, especially if you are an unwed birth mother. There are many concerns about this and how it will affect relinquishing children but to be honest, I just can't think about it or be concerned. I am doing my best to keep my eyes FIXED on God and His plan for us. It's the only thing that gives me peace. There are SOOO many unknowns in International adoption, you could "WHAT IF" this to absolute death...We just chose not to. I have actually removed myself from all but one of our support groups because of all of the negativity. I feel like we have our own support group, in each other (Brandon and I) are friends, family, agency and adoptive parents we have gotten to know personally.
Now for the good news!! :) Our agencies update this week was positive once again and they have said that amidst all the changes and uncertainty they continue to process adoptions and move forward. More children have been matched with families and more referrals will be coming soon (yayyy!!!). That means we are likely still on target for our referral sometime in April-August 2009. Of course, we'll continue to keep you posted.
Last, we ask for prayers for the little girl (birth mom) soon to give birth to her baby girl. We don't believe that we will have the opportunity to adopt this baby girl but we still ask for prayers for her and her mom. She is going through what must be the most DIFFICULT BY FAR, time in her life!! Also, Brandon and I have been throwing around a potential concurrent adoption as well. This means we could possibly adopt another child domestically or Internationally while we wait for our lil girl to come home from Vietnam. We have been talking and praying about this for a few weeks now but we haven't felt God pulling us to take ACTION, so we are waiting and attempting to be patient. While we consider options we ask for prayer for God to open and close doors along this road and direct our paths and make them crystal clear. We don't want to live out OUR plan we want to live out HIS plan.
We hope this finds everyone doing well!!! We miss and love you all!!! Anyone who wants to venture up to Indy during this gorgeous spring weather, our doors are open and you are more than welcome!!! :)
PS- MANY HUGE THANKS to The Andries, The Sampens, The Beasley's, The Luedtke's and my family for TRULY helping us get our paperwork submitted TIMELY!!!! You all don't know how much your help meant to us!!! We COULDN'T have moved as quickly as we did without you ALL!!!!
BIG HUGE HUGS!!!! xoxo
Robin & Brandon
Ok, so on to the latest information and boy is there plenty. As you may remember about 2 weeks ago we were told to begin our dossier. Well, the message was very clear that we would need to do it FAST. The message from our agency was..."As fast as possible". So, needless to say I was in overdrive running around like a loony. We had to get our criminal reports, medical records, home study, I-171, reference letters, etc, etc. In the adoption world they call this the, "paper chase". I got a first hand example as to why it is called that!!! WOW!!! Talk about busy!! After we gathered out documents we took them to get them notarized and then down to the Secretary of State in Indianapolis. Now they are at the Vietnam Embassy (via RUSH mode) and will return to us, all to get to our agency ASAP where they will then be reviewed and sent on to Vietnam for translation and log in of our DOSSIER. All of this is important because we still do not know what the true outcome will be regarding Vietnam closing come Sept 1st. There has been no more news on that front but many are speculating based on all of the rushing around we are doing. If we can get logged in to Vietnam before the POTENTIAL shutdown, we have been told there is a good possibility we could continue our adoption. So we are praying for that and for God to direct all of our steps. We hope to have our paperwork back from the Embassy sometime this week and then we will be overnighting them to our agency (FTIA).
Next bit of news....USCIS has issued an "UNOFFICIAL" statement saying that all children in Vietnam who are relinquished (turned over for adoption, NOT abandoned) will require DNA testing. This opens an entirely new set of concerns. As I'm sure you can imagine, Vietnam has a much different culture than the U.S. and there is a HUGE stigma to surrendering your child, especially if you are an unwed birth mother. There are many concerns about this and how it will affect relinquishing children but to be honest, I just can't think about it or be concerned. I am doing my best to keep my eyes FIXED on God and His plan for us. It's the only thing that gives me peace. There are SOOO many unknowns in International adoption, you could "WHAT IF" this to absolute death...We just chose not to. I have actually removed myself from all but one of our support groups because of all of the negativity. I feel like we have our own support group, in each other (Brandon and I) are friends, family, agency and adoptive parents we have gotten to know personally.
Now for the good news!! :) Our agencies update this week was positive once again and they have said that amidst all the changes and uncertainty they continue to process adoptions and move forward. More children have been matched with families and more referrals will be coming soon (yayyy!!!). That means we are likely still on target for our referral sometime in April-August 2009. Of course, we'll continue to keep you posted.
Last, we ask for prayers for the little girl (birth mom) soon to give birth to her baby girl. We don't believe that we will have the opportunity to adopt this baby girl but we still ask for prayers for her and her mom. She is going through what must be the most DIFFICULT BY FAR, time in her life!! Also, Brandon and I have been throwing around a potential concurrent adoption as well. This means we could possibly adopt another child domestically or Internationally while we wait for our lil girl to come home from Vietnam. We have been talking and praying about this for a few weeks now but we haven't felt God pulling us to take ACTION, so we are waiting and attempting to be patient. While we consider options we ask for prayer for God to open and close doors along this road and direct our paths and make them crystal clear. We don't want to live out OUR plan we want to live out HIS plan.
We hope this finds everyone doing well!!! We miss and love you all!!! Anyone who wants to venture up to Indy during this gorgeous spring weather, our doors are open and you are more than welcome!!! :)
PS- MANY HUGE THANKS to The Andries, The Sampens, The Beasley's, The Luedtke's and my family for TRULY helping us get our paperwork submitted TIMELY!!!! You all don't know how much your help meant to us!!! We COULDN'T have moved as quickly as we did without you ALL!!!!
BIG HUGE HUGS!!!! xoxo
Robin & Brandon
Saturday, March 22, 2008
WHAT A WEEK!!!!
Hello friends and family! It's been an information and emotion filled week since last Saturday. This post might be a little long, so if you have time, grab a cup of coffee. Brandon and I are doing well, he is coming into his busy season once again for work. My job is going very well and all the critters are doing well. Although lil Miss Remmie has been earning her old nickname of the, "Tasmanian devil". She must sense that spring is close by. She's been running through the house like it's a play ground. All the doggies have been loving running around outdoors, swimming in our pond and tracking all of the fresh mud (from there feet) through our freshly vacuumed and mopped house!! :) Ahhhh, the joy of our four legged family. We just have to smile :) I continually tell Brandon that they are adequately preparing us for children :)))
So on to our weekly update....First, we are asking for prayer once again regarding a potential baby girl in our future. I'm not prepared to share details just yet but some news was shared with us last Saturday of a baby girl soon to be born and we are praying for this baby girls future right now! Our prayer has been that she goes to the PERFECT home that God has picked out, just for her. If that is our home, we will feel tremendously blessed but right now we are just praying for her birth mom and her future.
Regarding Vietnam and the state of affairs with adoption there, well it continues to look more and more "uncertain". There is once again SO much chatter regarding the potential shutdown on Sept 1, 2008. We have been given no definitive news on this but my gut feeling is now telling me that Vietnam will close down come September. With that potential shutdown their will be many families and children amidst the process and it will be left up to Vietnam to decide who will be able to continue the process of finishing their adoption. There has been "TALK" that "POSSIBLY" anyone who has a dossier logged in will be able to complete their adoption. Therefore, we were contacted by our agency yesterday and told to begin our dossier. As you may remember, we were not slated to begin our dossier until April 2009 at the earliest, so this came as a HUGE surprise. My thought is that our agency is doing this to help all "in process" families finalize their adoptions and bring their children home. This does not mean that our timeline has changed regarding our Vietnam adoption, it is still looking like approx 12-18 months away. With that, we ask for prayer for ALL in process families and children. Also, I have attached a petition that will be going to our Vice President when enough signatures are added. If you feel lead to sign it or pass it along we would be much appreciative. After you have signed the petition, it (the organization) gives you the option of making a donation...We want you to know that it is not required for your voice to be heard via your signature.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/AmericansforVietnamOrphans/http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/AmericansforVietnamOrphans/
Last but certainly not least, I have attached another website with very detailed information on what is happening regarding Vietnam/U.S. adoptions, if you are interested.
http://www.bringourchildrenhome.org/
We just want to thank all of our friends and family for their support. You truly have no idea how blessed we feel to have had so many of the people we know and love support us in this process. It can be truly taxing and emotional at times and we are so thankful for all of you and the genuine LOVE you have shown us. We truly feel blessed!!!
Many blessings to you all!!! HAPPY EASTER!!!!
Let us remember this weekend that yesterday Jesus gave his life on the cross and paid the ultimate price for ALL, so that we could have eternal life with our Father in heaven one day; if we only accept and embrace His gift of salvation.
Tomorrow we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord, (Matthew 28)
AMEN!
HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!!!!
Hugs,
Brandon and Robin
So on to our weekly update....First, we are asking for prayer once again regarding a potential baby girl in our future. I'm not prepared to share details just yet but some news was shared with us last Saturday of a baby girl soon to be born and we are praying for this baby girls future right now! Our prayer has been that she goes to the PERFECT home that God has picked out, just for her. If that is our home, we will feel tremendously blessed but right now we are just praying for her birth mom and her future.
Regarding Vietnam and the state of affairs with adoption there, well it continues to look more and more "uncertain". There is once again SO much chatter regarding the potential shutdown on Sept 1, 2008. We have been given no definitive news on this but my gut feeling is now telling me that Vietnam will close down come September. With that potential shutdown their will be many families and children amidst the process and it will be left up to Vietnam to decide who will be able to continue the process of finishing their adoption. There has been "TALK" that "POSSIBLY" anyone who has a dossier logged in will be able to complete their adoption. Therefore, we were contacted by our agency yesterday and told to begin our dossier. As you may remember, we were not slated to begin our dossier until April 2009 at the earliest, so this came as a HUGE surprise. My thought is that our agency is doing this to help all "in process" families finalize their adoptions and bring their children home. This does not mean that our timeline has changed regarding our Vietnam adoption, it is still looking like approx 12-18 months away. With that, we ask for prayer for ALL in process families and children. Also, I have attached a petition that will be going to our Vice President when enough signatures are added. If you feel lead to sign it or pass it along we would be much appreciative. After you have signed the petition, it (the organization) gives you the option of making a donation...We want you to know that it is not required for your voice to be heard via your signature.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/AmericansforVietnamOrphans/http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/AmericansforVietnamOrphans/
Last but certainly not least, I have attached another website with very detailed information on what is happening regarding Vietnam/U.S. adoptions, if you are interested.
http://www.bringourchildrenhome.org/
We just want to thank all of our friends and family for their support. You truly have no idea how blessed we feel to have had so many of the people we know and love support us in this process. It can be truly taxing and emotional at times and we are so thankful for all of you and the genuine LOVE you have shown us. We truly feel blessed!!!
Many blessings to you all!!! HAPPY EASTER!!!!
Let us remember this weekend that yesterday Jesus gave his life on the cross and paid the ultimate price for ALL, so that we could have eternal life with our Father in heaven one day; if we only accept and embrace His gift of salvation.
Tomorrow we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord, (Matthew 28)
AMEN!
HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEKEND!!!!
Hugs,
Brandon and Robin
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Weekly Update
Hello everyone! I hope you all had a good week and will be enjoying a relaxing weekend.
We received our weekly update from our agency on Friday. It had an encouraging tone to it. It was shared that our agency (FTIA) is continuing to match families with children. There were not any actual referrals but the matching is encouraging. There is news that JCICS had a successful meeting while in Vietnam recently. They continue to advocate for Vietnam adoptions to continue and for a new MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) which is set to expire on Sept 1, 2008 be rewritten to everyones satisfaction and be renewed before Sept. 1st. If it is not renewed, our agency along with many other organizations for adoption are encouraging Vietnam to allow those "in process" to continue. We aren't quite sure what the definition of "in process" will be at this time because it has not yet been defined but we continue to be hopeful and prayerful that the MOU will be renewed on or BEFORE Sept 1, 2008.
As we continue to wait and see what the weeks and months hold we look to James for encouragement:
James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
We received our weekly update from our agency on Friday. It had an encouraging tone to it. It was shared that our agency (FTIA) is continuing to match families with children. There were not any actual referrals but the matching is encouraging. There is news that JCICS had a successful meeting while in Vietnam recently. They continue to advocate for Vietnam adoptions to continue and for a new MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) which is set to expire on Sept 1, 2008 be rewritten to everyones satisfaction and be renewed before Sept. 1st. If it is not renewed, our agency along with many other organizations for adoption are encouraging Vietnam to allow those "in process" to continue. We aren't quite sure what the definition of "in process" will be at this time because it has not yet been defined but we continue to be hopeful and prayerful that the MOU will be renewed on or BEFORE Sept 1, 2008.
As we continue to wait and see what the weeks and months hold we look to James for encouragement:
James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Update dating back to last Friday, 3/7/08
Hello all :) Last Friday brought some amazing news for another family adopting from FTIA! They were referred an absolutely precious baby girl!!! I was able to see her picture and she is SO adorable!!!
Our agencies report last week (3/7/08) had a positive tone to it....They said that March should be a busy month with referrals resuming. This is also very exciting news!
We still haven't heard anything concrete regarding the MOU being renewed. There is still MUCH speculation among those adopting from Vietnam as to if we will experience a shutdown or not. Brandon and I have been fortunate not to get caught up in the speculation and I KNOW that comes from God and through much prayer. I belong to two yahoo groups for parents who are adopting (or would like to adopt) from Vietnam and there is continual frustrations and upheaval voiced daily among those adopting from Vietnam. I have made it a point to scan the posts before reading them, as to not get sucked into the ups and downs and drama of it all. As for concrete news, we did read what I've cut and pasted below regarding the current meetings in Vietnam (www.jcics.org - this is the joint council of childrens internationl services) There mission is: To advocate and protect the right of every child to a safe, permanent and loving family. They are involved in the current discussions among the US and Vietnam regarding renewing and rewriting the MOU. This is what they had to say on March 7th:
March 7, 2008
The Executive Committee of the Board of Directors is pleased to clarify Joint Council's position regarding the current Vietnam negotiations, specific to an earlier post issued on March 7, 2008:
Joint Council continues to advocate for all JCICS member and affiliate organizations with programs in Vietnam and those hoping to establish them. It is, however, important to bear in mind that Joint Council is not alone in this conversation. As we all know, there are multiple entities, governmental and non-governmental, involved in the on-going negotiations around re-establishing the MOA between the US and Vietnam. As a contribution to these negotiations, Joint Council offered the recently created Standards of Practice for Vietnam – a document all involved parties recognized as "a key element of elevating child welfare services...."
Joint Council encourages Vietnam's movement toward functional implementation of the Hague Convention and, pending that eventuality, strongly supports continuation of programs and agency licensure based on best practice as outlined in the Joint Council Standards of Practice for Vietnam.
Additionally, we have issued a post regarding the “rolling nature” of the COA/DOS list of Hague accredited agencies initially released on February 29, 2008. Our newest post can be accessed at http://www.jcics.org/Hague.htm. The Hague list of accredited agencies issued on February 29th was only an initial release. As we noted on March 3rd, many other Joint Council agencies will finalize their Hague Accreditation and be added to the list, both before and after April 1, 2008.
Again, Joint Council continues to advocate on behalf of all our member and affiliate organizations. Adoption service providers and prospective adoptive families are encouraged to contact Joint Council staff and the Joint Council Board of Directors with any questions regarding the “rolling nature” of the Hague accreditation process as well as for up-to-date information regarding Joint Council members currently pursuing accreditation.
March 7, 2008
This week Joint Council had the honor of presenting the Joint Council Vietnam Standards of Practice to the Vietnam Ministry of Justice (MOJ), Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) and to the United States Embassy in Hanoi. We are proud to report that all parties expressed their appreciation for and support of the collective efforts of Joint Council, its Member Organizations and non-member organizations in addressing the ongoing concerns related to intercountry adoption. All parties uniformly stated that the Standards are a key element of elevating child welfare services to a level consistent with the tenants of the Hague Convention and the hopeful continuation of permanency and humanitarian services to the children and families of Vietnam.
During numerous meetings with MOLISA and MOJ, their desire to implement the Hague Convention was reconfirmed. Joint Council understands that the MOJ, as part of aligning practices with Hague standards, will permit the continuation of adoption licenses for agencies receiving Hague accreditation by the U.S. Central Authority. While the timing and other specifics remain uncertain, Joint Council and the U.S. Department of State have requested clarification. In addition, Joint Council has strongly advocated for the following.
All adoptions in which a referral has been issued are permitted to continue through to the finalization of the adoption.
Recognizing that a list of Hague accredited agencies has been announced by the U.S. Department of State via the Uniform Notification Date (February 29, 2008), agencies accredited as of April 1, 2008 (the date the Convention goes into full effect in the United States) be used to determine the continuation of licensure by the Vietnam MOJ.
Joint Council supports the MOJ and its continuation of licensure for Hague accredited agencies. Our support of this initiative is based on both principles and practicality. Given Joint Council’s long standing support of a functional implementation of the Convention in the U.S. and other countries, we encourage Vietnam’s movement toward that end. Given the expiration of the current MOA between the U.S. and Vietnam in less than six months (on September 1, 2008), this decision by the MOJ is a strong indicator of Vietnam’s serious intent to continue permanency and humanitarian services via a new or amended MOA.
While some may see the continuation of licensure for only Hague accredited agencies as overly restrictive, Joint Council fully recognizes this utilization of Convention principles as a means of ensuring both best practices and a key element for the continuation of finding permanent, safe and loving families for the children of Vietnam.
Please know that Joint Council will continue to engage all stakeholders and inform you of events as they unfold.
Our agencies report last week (3/7/08) had a positive tone to it....They said that March should be a busy month with referrals resuming. This is also very exciting news!
We still haven't heard anything concrete regarding the MOU being renewed. There is still MUCH speculation among those adopting from Vietnam as to if we will experience a shutdown or not. Brandon and I have been fortunate not to get caught up in the speculation and I KNOW that comes from God and through much prayer. I belong to two yahoo groups for parents who are adopting (or would like to adopt) from Vietnam and there is continual frustrations and upheaval voiced daily among those adopting from Vietnam. I have made it a point to scan the posts before reading them, as to not get sucked into the ups and downs and drama of it all. As for concrete news, we did read what I've cut and pasted below regarding the current meetings in Vietnam (www.jcics.org - this is the joint council of childrens internationl services) There mission is: To advocate and protect the right of every child to a safe, permanent and loving family. They are involved in the current discussions among the US and Vietnam regarding renewing and rewriting the MOU. This is what they had to say on March 7th:
March 7, 2008
The Executive Committee of the Board of Directors is pleased to clarify Joint Council's position regarding the current Vietnam negotiations, specific to an earlier post issued on March 7, 2008:
Joint Council continues to advocate for all JCICS member and affiliate organizations with programs in Vietnam and those hoping to establish them. It is, however, important to bear in mind that Joint Council is not alone in this conversation. As we all know, there are multiple entities, governmental and non-governmental, involved in the on-going negotiations around re-establishing the MOA between the US and Vietnam. As a contribution to these negotiations, Joint Council offered the recently created Standards of Practice for Vietnam – a document all involved parties recognized as "a key element of elevating child welfare services...."
Joint Council encourages Vietnam's movement toward functional implementation of the Hague Convention and, pending that eventuality, strongly supports continuation of programs and agency licensure based on best practice as outlined in the Joint Council Standards of Practice for Vietnam.
Additionally, we have issued a post regarding the “rolling nature” of the COA/DOS list of Hague accredited agencies initially released on February 29, 2008. Our newest post can be accessed at http://www.jcics.org/Hague.htm. The Hague list of accredited agencies issued on February 29th was only an initial release. As we noted on March 3rd, many other Joint Council agencies will finalize their Hague Accreditation and be added to the list, both before and after April 1, 2008.
Again, Joint Council continues to advocate on behalf of all our member and affiliate organizations. Adoption service providers and prospective adoptive families are encouraged to contact Joint Council staff and the Joint Council Board of Directors with any questions regarding the “rolling nature” of the Hague accreditation process as well as for up-to-date information regarding Joint Council members currently pursuing accreditation.
March 7, 2008
This week Joint Council had the honor of presenting the Joint Council Vietnam Standards of Practice to the Vietnam Ministry of Justice (MOJ), Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) and to the United States Embassy in Hanoi. We are proud to report that all parties expressed their appreciation for and support of the collective efforts of Joint Council, its Member Organizations and non-member organizations in addressing the ongoing concerns related to intercountry adoption. All parties uniformly stated that the Standards are a key element of elevating child welfare services to a level consistent with the tenants of the Hague Convention and the hopeful continuation of permanency and humanitarian services to the children and families of Vietnam.
During numerous meetings with MOLISA and MOJ, their desire to implement the Hague Convention was reconfirmed. Joint Council understands that the MOJ, as part of aligning practices with Hague standards, will permit the continuation of adoption licenses for agencies receiving Hague accreditation by the U.S. Central Authority. While the timing and other specifics remain uncertain, Joint Council and the U.S. Department of State have requested clarification. In addition, Joint Council has strongly advocated for the following.
All adoptions in which a referral has been issued are permitted to continue through to the finalization of the adoption.
Recognizing that a list of Hague accredited agencies has been announced by the U.S. Department of State via the Uniform Notification Date (February 29, 2008), agencies accredited as of April 1, 2008 (the date the Convention goes into full effect in the United States) be used to determine the continuation of licensure by the Vietnam MOJ.
Joint Council supports the MOJ and its continuation of licensure for Hague accredited agencies. Our support of this initiative is based on both principles and practicality. Given Joint Council’s long standing support of a functional implementation of the Convention in the U.S. and other countries, we encourage Vietnam’s movement toward that end. Given the expiration of the current MOA between the U.S. and Vietnam in less than six months (on September 1, 2008), this decision by the MOJ is a strong indicator of Vietnam’s serious intent to continue permanency and humanitarian services via a new or amended MOA.
While some may see the continuation of licensure for only Hague accredited agencies as overly restrictive, Joint Council fully recognizes this utilization of Convention principles as a means of ensuring both best practices and a key element for the continuation of finding permanent, safe and loving families for the children of Vietnam.
Please know that Joint Council will continue to engage all stakeholders and inform you of events as they unfold.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Roller coaster ride, anyone???
Here is the days latest tid bit of info. It's a confusing process to those not involved but this does a pretty good job of summing up what is currently going on with the U.S. and Vietnam. A friend that I have met through International Adoption (also adopting from Vietnam) passed this along to me this morning.
I continually ask myself how anyone could EVER go through this process with out true FAITH in God!
http://www.adoptionintegrity.com/
Love and hugs to everyone! Have a great day today!!! :)
Robin and Brandon
I continually ask myself how anyone could EVER go through this process with out true FAITH in God!
http://www.adoptionintegrity.com/
Love and hugs to everyone! Have a great day today!!! :)
Robin and Brandon
Saturday, March 1, 2008
March should prove to be informative
Good Morning everyone! Anyone ready for Spring to arrive??! Ok, family and friends in Florida & Georgia can stop laughing. We've had what feels like a longer than usual winter and I'm ready for some HOT SUN!!! :) Hence our upcoming trip to FL!!!
Well, I know it's been a few weeks without an update but I just haven't had much to report b/c we haven't heard much. We did get a glimmer of info that will help put things into perspective regarding the MOU and where that could lead us. Below I have cut and pasted information that was released from Children's Hope International to families in their Vietnam program. It's a great explanation of where we (and everyone else adopting from Vietnam) are right now.
Key note of the US State Department warning:
The 2005 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), required by Vietnamese law to authorize adoptions between the United States and Vietnam, expires on September 1, 2008. The US State department is warning families just now applying to agencies for the Vietnam program. Due to the timing of the process, a family now applying will not receive a referral or submit their completed adoption paperwork to Vietnam prior to the MOU expiring in September. If there is a short moratorium (in English this means shut down, all of this adoption lingo gets confusing), during which the two countries come to a new agreement if necessary, the impact could be minimal to our families and another agreement may be signed soon thereafter. Hanoi Quarterly US Embassy Meeting: Thuy, our main representative in Vietnam, attended the quarterly US embassy meeting in Hanoi for all adoption agencies. The new I-600 procedures were discussed for agencies whose families had not yet traveled under the new I-600 (immigration form for internationally adopted children). A group of US officials will travel to Vietnam in March to discuss the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Vietnam government. In March, written letters may be exchanged between the two governments to resign the MOU which expires this year. If the written letters are not exchanged in March, then the MOU will expire on September 1, 2008, and agencies will no longer be allowed to submit new dossiers after this time. Therefore, more details concerning the MOU will be coming soon. (I bolded this section in black b/c this tells us in a nutshell that if they (the U.S. and Vietnam) don't get things resolved this month adoptions will cease come September 1) For us that would mean our process is halted (whether it be temporarily or permanently)
The above info tells us that we will know where we are, one way or another during the month of March. We are not concerned or nervous about the pending decision because we have all of our faith in the path the Lord has lead us down. We have discussed that maybe He has lead us down this path to detour us on another route, we just don't know but we are faithful and certain that NO MATTER WHAT, we are in the right place right now. We are praying about this and asking everyone to please join us in prayer. As always, the toughest part of this process is the waiting. We know this will all turn out the way it's suppose to, but we really struggle DAILY with the WAIT (patience in this process is certainly not my strong suit) So, we ask for prayers of patience! :)
On a much lighter note, I'm still SHOPPING!!!! (haha) I have a picture of the latest lil peanut outfit for you all to see (above). This one is honor of my hubby....Duckies!!! (And if you promise not to say anything.....Shhhh, I even got a pair of camo overalls- hehe)
Well, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!! I think I just saw the SUN peak out from the clouds!!! Looks like it might brighten up enough to be a horsey riding weekend!!!!
Hugs, love and kisses!!!!
Rob & B
Monday, February 4, 2008
Shopping!!
Hello all! As expected, things have been rather quiet the last week and I anticipate not much news for 2-3 more weeks on any new referrals. There has also been silence regarding the status of Vietnam adoptions and probably will not be any new news regarding whether or not the Memorandum of Understanding (between the U.S. and Vietnam) will be renewed for a few months. So for now, we are hopeful and waiting.
So, I couldn't help myself (I really do try ;-) I was walking by Gymboree and saw this adorable little sailor dress and melted!! I could just picture it on our little princess with a cute lil red bow in her black hair. Of course, I brought it home to show Brandon and he thought it was adorable.
This long gestation of ours leaves entirely too much time for shopping!!!! (hehehe :)
Enjoy your week!
Love, Rob & B
Monday, January 28, 2008
Prayers Requested
Hello everyone! I hope you've all had a good start to your week. We have had some nice, mild weather here in Indy today. Well, you're probably wondering why I'm sending another update so early in the week. Information was passed on to us today that I wanted to share with you all. The adoption community and family's adopting from Vietnam got some nerve racking news. The U.S. government issued a warning this afternoon, urging people not to file for adoptions from Vietnam (at this time) and that reads as follows:
http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3939.html
Of course, we were not completely shocked because we had heard some speculation surrounding this issue. We know that this could POTENTIALLY (but not definitely) negatively affect our adoption. Brandon and I are both concerned but we have faith that God is in control and His will, will be done...Wherever that may take us. We ask that our friends and family will PLEASE pray for the children of Vietnam, the families currently in process of adopting from Vietnam and for the officials responsible for initiating this very big decision.
Again, today we are reminded ever so much:
James 1-2:5
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all, without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Hugs to everyone! :)
Robin and Brandon
http://www.travel.state.gov/family/adoption/intercountry/intercountry_3939.html
Of course, we were not completely shocked because we had heard some speculation surrounding this issue. We know that this could POTENTIALLY (but not definitely) negatively affect our adoption. Brandon and I are both concerned but we have faith that God is in control and His will, will be done...Wherever that may take us. We ask that our friends and family will PLEASE pray for the children of Vietnam, the families currently in process of adopting from Vietnam and for the officials responsible for initiating this very big decision.
Again, today we are reminded ever so much:
James 1-2:5
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all, without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Hugs to everyone! :)
Robin and Brandon
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Tet- Vietnamese New Year
Hello, this week and the next few weeks to come will be fairly quiet (we believe) in regard to referrals of lil ones. It is now time for Tet- THE VIETNAMESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION!! During this time, everyone in Vietnam will be focused on this celebration and adoptions will likely slow down during this time period. I have cut & pasted an explanation (below) of Tet for those of you who are not familiar. This was a huge learning experience for Brandon and I as well. This is our first experience with Tet.
Tet, which means the first morning of the first day of the new year, is the Vietnamese New Year. The celebration lasts for 7 days. Like the Chinese, the Lunar New Year is one of the most celebrated holidays. Tet starts on February 12 in 2002. According to the Vietnamese Zodiac, 2001 is the Year of the Horse. Preparation for Tet starts weeks before New Year's Day. Homes are cleaned to get rid of bad fortune associated with the old year. Families paint their homes to give it a new look. Everyone gets new clothes and new shoes. Pay your debts and resolve differences between family and friends. A special ceremony called Le Tru Tich is held at the mid-night hour (Giao Thua) on New Year's Eve. The ritual involves firecrackers and gongs and other festive items that make loud noises to usher out the old and welcome the new. Like the Chinese, Vietnamese people are very careful about what they do on New Year's Day. The events on New Year's Day determine your luck for the rest of the year. Therefore, everything and everyone you are in touch with on New Year's Day should symbolize good fortune. Don't visit people who are in mourning because they are associated with death. Children should not fight or cry on New Year's Day. Homes are decorated with Hoa Mai, a yellow blossom that represents spring. Family members exchange gifts and pay homage to the Kitchen God. They also visit local temples to pray for prosperity and good health. During Tet, Vietnamese families plant a New Year's tree called Cay Neu in front of their homes. A bamboo pole is often used as a Cay Neu. All the leaves are removed from the tree so that it can be wrapped or decorated by good luck red paper. Legends have it that the red color scares off evil spirits. On the seventh (the last) day of Tet, the Cay Neu is taken down. This is the last ritual of the New Year celebration.
Last but not least a little story.... Brandon and I went out to dinner on Friday night and then went to a store where Brandon picked up the CUTEST shirt. My back was to him and he tapped me on the shoulder and held this PINK t-shirt up in front of my face that read, "I LOVE DAD!!- (HE BUYS ME THINGS) hehehe! We both got the biggest smiles on our face and I gave him a huge hug as he said, "We're getting this one!!" :))) This continues to be one of the most AMAZING journey's for both of us. We are learning daily about what it is to love & live in faith.
James 1:2-5
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Tet, which means the first morning of the first day of the new year, is the Vietnamese New Year. The celebration lasts for 7 days. Like the Chinese, the Lunar New Year is one of the most celebrated holidays. Tet starts on February 12 in 2002. According to the Vietnamese Zodiac, 2001 is the Year of the Horse. Preparation for Tet starts weeks before New Year's Day. Homes are cleaned to get rid of bad fortune associated with the old year. Families paint their homes to give it a new look. Everyone gets new clothes and new shoes. Pay your debts and resolve differences between family and friends. A special ceremony called Le Tru Tich is held at the mid-night hour (Giao Thua) on New Year's Eve. The ritual involves firecrackers and gongs and other festive items that make loud noises to usher out the old and welcome the new. Like the Chinese, Vietnamese people are very careful about what they do on New Year's Day. The events on New Year's Day determine your luck for the rest of the year. Therefore, everything and everyone you are in touch with on New Year's Day should symbolize good fortune. Don't visit people who are in mourning because they are associated with death. Children should not fight or cry on New Year's Day. Homes are decorated with Hoa Mai, a yellow blossom that represents spring. Family members exchange gifts and pay homage to the Kitchen God. They also visit local temples to pray for prosperity and good health. During Tet, Vietnamese families plant a New Year's tree called Cay Neu in front of their homes. A bamboo pole is often used as a Cay Neu. All the leaves are removed from the tree so that it can be wrapped or decorated by good luck red paper. Legends have it that the red color scares off evil spirits. On the seventh (the last) day of Tet, the Cay Neu is taken down. This is the last ritual of the New Year celebration.
Last but not least a little story.... Brandon and I went out to dinner on Friday night and then went to a store where Brandon picked up the CUTEST shirt. My back was to him and he tapped me on the shoulder and held this PINK t-shirt up in front of my face that read, "I LOVE DAD!!- (HE BUYS ME THINGS) hehehe! We both got the biggest smiles on our face and I gave him a huge hug as he said, "We're getting this one!!" :))) This continues to be one of the most AMAZING journey's for both of us. We are learning daily about what it is to love & live in faith.
James 1:2-5
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Saturday, January 19, 2008
2 more referrals this week!!
Phewwww is it cold here this morning! It's a WHOLE 6 degrees here in lovely Brownsburg!! :) I'm about ready to venture out and visit Boomer at the barn. NOT before I put on 12 layers of clothing, of course. I can't even believe I'm going! The things we do for the ones we love ;-) I hope many of you are cozy and warm when reading this.
The FTIA families received some more GREAT news this week!! There were two more lil ones referred to adopting families!!!!! A baby boy and a baby girl!! We were able to see pictures of the baby girl, she is 7 months old and looked like she was well cared for. She is a beautiful, pudgy lil one :))) So with these two angels being referred to their families, there have been 7 this month!! This is just SO exciting for everyone involved!!! It really revs our engines in regard to helping us feel more "in the moment". We have gone through so many ranges of emotion but the most recent one we struggle with is, embracing our time line. The process is so long that it's hard to plan and we don't know exactly how old she will be when she comes home so it makes it challenging to plan.
I asked our coordinator with FTIA when she thought we would begin preparations for our dossier and she said, anything could change but she didn't foresee us working on our dossier until April 2009. That would indicate a potential referral about 2-4 months after that. So for all of our friends and family that are curious as to our time line, this will give you a better idea.
We received some additional news this Friday regarding the adoption process. Previously, when you received your referral, you traveled to your child about 1-2 months later. Now, based on new safeguards implemented by USCIS and the Vietnamese government, it's 3-5 months. That's a tough thing to conceive of! You have seen a picture of your child at that point but can't be united with her for 3-5 months. Another reason this is important is because it makes the age of the children coming home older. Previously, the lil ones being referred were 3-6 months and now they believe this new process will mean that most of the children coming home will be 9-12 months when the travel home.
So, that's about it for updates. It's been another great week!! :) As always, we ask that you please keep our lil girl in your prayers.
Much Love,
Robin & Brandon
The FTIA families received some more GREAT news this week!! There were two more lil ones referred to adopting families!!!!! A baby boy and a baby girl!! We were able to see pictures of the baby girl, she is 7 months old and looked like she was well cared for. She is a beautiful, pudgy lil one :))) So with these two angels being referred to their families, there have been 7 this month!! This is just SO exciting for everyone involved!!! It really revs our engines in regard to helping us feel more "in the moment". We have gone through so many ranges of emotion but the most recent one we struggle with is, embracing our time line. The process is so long that it's hard to plan and we don't know exactly how old she will be when she comes home so it makes it challenging to plan.
I asked our coordinator with FTIA when she thought we would begin preparations for our dossier and she said, anything could change but she didn't foresee us working on our dossier until April 2009. That would indicate a potential referral about 2-4 months after that. So for all of our friends and family that are curious as to our time line, this will give you a better idea.
We received some additional news this Friday regarding the adoption process. Previously, when you received your referral, you traveled to your child about 1-2 months later. Now, based on new safeguards implemented by USCIS and the Vietnamese government, it's 3-5 months. That's a tough thing to conceive of! You have seen a picture of your child at that point but can't be united with her for 3-5 months. Another reason this is important is because it makes the age of the children coming home older. Previously, the lil ones being referred were 3-6 months and now they believe this new process will mean that most of the children coming home will be 9-12 months when the travel home.
So, that's about it for updates. It's been another great week!! :) As always, we ask that you please keep our lil girl in your prayers.
Much Love,
Robin & Brandon
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Great News to start off 2008!
The news we've been waiting for since August 2007!!!
FABULOUS news hit us last Thursday (January 3rd) when we returned from our time away!! We opened our mail to find out that we had gotten our I-600 Pre-approval from USCIS!!!! WOOO-HOOOOO!!!! The very next morning 1/4, I called our agency to share the good news. They asked us to fax over the paperwork, we put our check in the mail and just like that, we were OFFICIALLY added to the waiting list for VIETNAM....Another step closer to bringing our angel home!!!! We could not be more excited than we are. The excitement honestly has not worn off since the 4th. We can hardly believe that we are on, "THE LIST"!!! So what do we do from here???? I bet you guessed it....We wait and wait. When we are about 3-6 months away from receiving a referral for our little girl, FTIA will ask us to start working on our dossier. This will be about 2-4 months of extensive work preparing our packet for the US government, Vietnam and FTIA. This process never ceases to amaze us but it doesn't change the excitement in our hearts for the day we meet our little girl. You may be wondering where we are on, "the list"...We are approx #78 overall and about #60-65 requesting a baby girl. What does this translate to??? Our agency placed approx 20-30 children this past year, so you can see how the math works out. But, it does appear that the process to adopt from Vietnam is getting more and more mainstreamed and with luck, will pick up.
As if the news of us being added to the wait list was not good enough, we got even better news!!! There were 4 referrals made on 1/2/08!!!! That was amazing!! THEN, there was another referral for a baby girl on 1/11/08...That is 5 so far this year!!!!! WOO-HOOO!!!! Along with that great news, the agency sent out an email to family's adopting saying there would likely be 2 more referrals before the month of January ends!!!! What an unbelievable way to start the year!!!! We're so excited and we'll be sure to keep you posted. I hope to be writing more frequently this year to keep everyone in the loop.
Love, hugs and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Robin & Brandon
FABULOUS news hit us last Thursday (January 3rd) when we returned from our time away!! We opened our mail to find out that we had gotten our I-600 Pre-approval from USCIS!!!! WOOO-HOOOOO!!!! The very next morning 1/4, I called our agency to share the good news. They asked us to fax over the paperwork, we put our check in the mail and just like that, we were OFFICIALLY added to the waiting list for VIETNAM....Another step closer to bringing our angel home!!!! We could not be more excited than we are. The excitement honestly has not worn off since the 4th. We can hardly believe that we are on, "THE LIST"!!! So what do we do from here???? I bet you guessed it....We wait and wait. When we are about 3-6 months away from receiving a referral for our little girl, FTIA will ask us to start working on our dossier. This will be about 2-4 months of extensive work preparing our packet for the US government, Vietnam and FTIA. This process never ceases to amaze us but it doesn't change the excitement in our hearts for the day we meet our little girl. You may be wondering where we are on, "the list"...We are approx #78 overall and about #60-65 requesting a baby girl. What does this translate to??? Our agency placed approx 20-30 children this past year, so you can see how the math works out. But, it does appear that the process to adopt from Vietnam is getting more and more mainstreamed and with luck, will pick up.
As if the news of us being added to the wait list was not good enough, we got even better news!!! There were 4 referrals made on 1/2/08!!!! That was amazing!! THEN, there was another referral for a baby girl on 1/11/08...That is 5 so far this year!!!!! WOO-HOOO!!!! Along with that great news, the agency sent out an email to family's adopting saying there would likely be 2 more referrals before the month of January ends!!!! What an unbelievable way to start the year!!!! We're so excited and we'll be sure to keep you posted. I hope to be writing more frequently this year to keep everyone in the loop.
Love, hugs and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Robin & Brandon
Friday, December 7, 2007
Finally it's fingerprint time!!!!!!!! Another step closer....
Hello everyone! As you all may remember, we have been waiting for our fingerprint appt from USCIS (immigration). They apparently are back logged b/c of Guatemala's upcoming shutdown for adoptions. The appts typically take 2 weeks from the time your home study is submitted. In our case, it took just a touch longer (haha), alot longer! Anyway, our appt is scheduled for Monday the 10th. Unfortunately, we will not be able to attend that appt b/c Brandon is having surgery. So, we are going to have to go the following week. Once USCIS performs our 20th set of fingerprints (haha) then we wait 2 weeks (hopefully) for the prints to be processed and to get our pre clearance. THEN, we "OFFICIALLY" will be added to FTIA's formal wait list for Vietnam. I asked where approx that puts us and it looks like somewhere in the 80's. To put that into perspective for everyone, our agency has placed approx 20-25 children this year. Most agencies are falling somewhere in that arena for placements of children from Vietnam. That is about all we know right now. Unless the process speeds up (which it can and it can also slow down) we are looking at around 24 more months.
Keep us and our little girl in your prayers! We pray that she is will be healthy, well cared for and that she will know and love the Lord!!! :)))
Until next our next update....MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!
Keep us and our little girl in your prayers! We pray that she is will be healthy, well cared for and that she will know and love the Lord!!! :)))
Until next our next update....MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
The Rumor Mill
A little venting for me today....So apparently there is a rather large rumor going around on the message boards that Vietnam will be closing THEIR doors to Intl adoption from the U.S. Here is the post that I received from our FTIA yahoo group today:
Hi Everyone,
It seems there is talk on the various listservs that VN will be
shutting down and halting adoptions next March. I contacted Rachel,
and she asked if I would let everyone on our listserv know that this
rumor is inaccurate and just that - a rumor.
The bilateral agreement between the US and VN will be expiring next
August, and both countries are working on renewing the agreement.
Rachel stated that we will be updated with more details on Friday.
Of course this makes me rather nervous b/c this is precisely what happened to the families adopting from Guatemala prior to the shutdown (rumors). So, please keep us, other adoptive families and more importantly THE CHILDREN in your prayers. It would be terrible if this did ever come to fruition.
Hugs and love,
Robin
Hi Everyone,
It seems there is talk on the various listservs that VN will be
shutting down and halting adoptions next March. I contacted Rachel,
and she asked if I would let everyone on our listserv know that this
rumor is inaccurate and just that - a rumor.
The bilateral agreement between the US and VN will be expiring next
August, and both countries are working on renewing the agreement.
Rachel stated that we will be updated with more details on Friday.
Of course this makes me rather nervous b/c this is precisely what happened to the families adopting from Guatemala prior to the shutdown (rumors). So, please keep us, other adoptive families and more importantly THE CHILDREN in your prayers. It would be terrible if this did ever come to fruition.
Hugs and love,
Robin
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
STILL WAITING and other updates....
Since the first part of October not much has changed for us, other than waiting. I'm a touch on the frustrated side right now. We anticipated being on the waiting list by now for our little peanut but we are not. We have had everything completed on our end but just found out about a week and a half ago that our home study agency had not mailed our home study to USCIS (immigration). USCIS is the agency responsible for scheduling our preapproval (I-600A and I-171). Well guess what, they can't schedule that without our home study in their hands. The home study was couriered over to USCIS in IN., on the day that I spoke to our home study agency. So, we pretty frustrated, to say the least. It typically takes about 2 weeks from the time the agency submits your home study to the time USCIS schedules your fingerprint appt. Then you go get your fingerprints (Brandon and I), then it takes them 2 weeks to process that, then 2 weeks to get that paperwork to our adoption agency (FTIA). So, we are looking at 4 more weeks before we are on the waiting list at FTIA. HOOO-HUMMM! I am once again reminded why you must have faith in this process and that God is in complete control and things will happen in His perfect time. So, I will keep you all posted as to when we are officially on the list.
Also, more big news, our adoption agency has closed the doors to applications for the Vietnam program. They did this to accomodate all of the waiting families. They are not going to open the doors to additional adoptions from Vietnam until the process begins to speed up. We are fortunate that we are grandfathered in based on our application being received prior to this decision.
Last and certainly not least, we had the Hope Gala on Nov. 3rd. FTIA had the World of Hope Gala to raise money for orphans in Vietnam. 100% of the proceeds of this annual event will be going to orphanages, to caregiver training, education in Vietnam, etc. Brandon and I had the joy of volunteering that evening and again it brought us much closer to a daughter that seems so far away, not just in distance. We were so amazed at the turnout, as it was the first year of this annual event. The support given to the children was amazing. It's difficult to put it into words, but it was a very special evening for everyone involved.
Well, I guess that is just about it for now....I hope to be writing again soon to say we have our fingerprint appt!!! :))))
Also, more big news, our adoption agency has closed the doors to applications for the Vietnam program. They did this to accomodate all of the waiting families. They are not going to open the doors to additional adoptions from Vietnam until the process begins to speed up. We are fortunate that we are grandfathered in based on our application being received prior to this decision.
Last and certainly not least, we had the Hope Gala on Nov. 3rd. FTIA had the World of Hope Gala to raise money for orphans in Vietnam. 100% of the proceeds of this annual event will be going to orphanages, to caregiver training, education in Vietnam, etc. Brandon and I had the joy of volunteering that evening and again it brought us much closer to a daughter that seems so far away, not just in distance. We were so amazed at the turnout, as it was the first year of this annual event. The support given to the children was amazing. It's difficult to put it into words, but it was a very special evening for everyone involved.
Well, I guess that is just about it for now....I hope to be writing again soon to say we have our fingerprint appt!!! :))))
Monday, October 1, 2007
The latest...
Well, I will pick up where I left off last time. We mailed in our I-600A paperwork (preapproval for Vietnam) just about 2 weeks ago. ASC sent us the rough draft of our home study a little over a week ago and I made some revisions to it and emailed it back. Once the final copy is done, they will send us a copy, a copy will go to our agency (FTIA) and then one to pair with our I-600A paperwork. When all of that is received by the "powers that be" here in Indiana, then we get our I-171...This is our official fingerprints for adoption. It's one of about 100 sets of fingerprinting we have to do in the process. I can honestly say that I think I might feel like a felon once this is done (hehe). Once all of the above is completed, THEN we get added to the wait list at FTIA. It appears our # will be approx. in the 60's, somewhere, in terms of families ahead of us for a baby girl. To put that into perspective....There have been approx 10 referrals of children since January. Theoretically, that means we will have our beautiful little girl in about 6 years ;-) (wink-wink). We've been told that the process will begin to pick up as Vietnam gets their new systems in place and protocols regulated. We try to keep in mind that Vietnam shut down for 3 years for unethical practices both by both the Vietnamese and Americans. So, to ensure that those practices remain under control, they are continually modifying and changing policies. They have recently implemented a few that appear to be a step in the right direction. It is anticipated that the process will begin to speed up and we are prayerful that it will.
As for the job hunt, that has been off and on over the past few weeks. I have had several interviews but nothing that I felt was a, "great fit", so I am continuing to keep my eyes open and we shall see.
Last but not least, I spoke with Rachel, our coordinator at FTIA about when she thinks I can begin working on our dossier. (side note- our dossier is what we complete when we are approx 4-6 months away from a referral) Rachel said that it probably won't be for 12-15 months :( The sad part about that is, you can't adopt a baby without a completed dossier. Soooo, that tells us that we are (BEST case) 16 months away from a referral and (WORSE case) 2 years. So, we will wait. That leaves us lots of time together and lots of time to think. We have been pondering little girl names....We like, Kendall. We also like, Emerson (calling her Emmie or Emma) Faith. I'm guessing with the wait we have, we'll come up with JUST A FEW more :) I've also purchased a few lil baby girl outfits. I know, we don't know when she'll come home but I figure if I buy 12 months and up, I'm pretty safe! Vietnamese babies are smaller than American babies. Plus, I can't help it :) I got her camouflage overalls with pink buttons for her daddy!!! I just couldn't resist! Of course I got her a pink hat to match.
Well, that is it for now...I'll let you know when we have our official number on the wait list.
Love and hugs to all!
As for the job hunt, that has been off and on over the past few weeks. I have had several interviews but nothing that I felt was a, "great fit", so I am continuing to keep my eyes open and we shall see.
Last but not least, I spoke with Rachel, our coordinator at FTIA about when she thinks I can begin working on our dossier. (side note- our dossier is what we complete when we are approx 4-6 months away from a referral) Rachel said that it probably won't be for 12-15 months :( The sad part about that is, you can't adopt a baby without a completed dossier. Soooo, that tells us that we are (BEST case) 16 months away from a referral and (WORSE case) 2 years. So, we will wait. That leaves us lots of time together and lots of time to think. We have been pondering little girl names....We like, Kendall. We also like, Emerson (calling her Emmie or Emma) Faith. I'm guessing with the wait we have, we'll come up with JUST A FEW more :) I've also purchased a few lil baby girl outfits. I know, we don't know when she'll come home but I figure if I buy 12 months and up, I'm pretty safe! Vietnamese babies are smaller than American babies. Plus, I can't help it :) I got her camouflage overalls with pink buttons for her daddy!!! I just couldn't resist! Of course I got her a pink hat to match.
Well, that is it for now...I'll let you know when we have our official number on the wait list.
Love and hugs to all!
Friday, September 7, 2007
Final in home visit
So lots has happened since I last wrote...Or at least we feel like alot has happened :) We completed our final home study (in home)visit. We really enjoyed both of the social workers we have worked with. I can honestly say ASC made us feel so comfortable. Our social workers were very thorough in getting to know us, yet very pleasant. They helped guide us in determining what age group of child(ren) would be best for us and so we made our final decision. Once we determined what age group we are comfortable with, it is written in our home study which is eventually sent to Vietnam to assist in finding our daugther. We decided that if we did not get a sibling pair, we would be open to a child 0-16 months but the younger, the better. So, we will leave this in Gods hands and see where He leads us. Over the past few weeks we've been gathering documents, reference letters and getting our I-600A ready to be sent off. An I-600A is basically your preapproval (government) paperwork to adopt from a specific country...In our case, Vietnam. We have all of our documents in the envelope, addressed and ready to be mailed, we are just waiting on one piece of paperwork we had to send off for, to arrive in the mail. Once that arrives and our reference letters get to ASC, we should be added to the, "waiting list" :)))) That is when we will pretty much sit back and wait until it's time to complete our dossier. Our adoption agency (FTIA) will prompt us to begin our dossier when the time is right. We anticipate that will not be for 6-12 months...Though we will keep you posted.
Now that we are certain we have a pretty long wait ahead of us, Brandon and I have decided that it probably wouldn't hurt for me to go back to work full time. This way, I won't be pacing the house in my spare time, while we wait ;-) I'm looking forward to it b/c it will keep me busy! This time away from sales and working part time at Starbucks has really allowed me to complete all of the necessary paperwork that I wouldn't have had time to complete in our previous situation. I've purchased several book pertaining to adoption and Vietnam, so I will be doing lots of reading as I begin the hunt for a Pharmaceutical sales position. We're excited and we'll keep you posted as we learn more about our wait and the process unfolding.
Hugs to all,
Robin and Brandon
Now that we are certain we have a pretty long wait ahead of us, Brandon and I have decided that it probably wouldn't hurt for me to go back to work full time. This way, I won't be pacing the house in my spare time, while we wait ;-) I'm looking forward to it b/c it will keep me busy! This time away from sales and working part time at Starbucks has really allowed me to complete all of the necessary paperwork that I wouldn't have had time to complete in our previous situation. I've purchased several book pertaining to adoption and Vietnam, so I will be doing lots of reading as I begin the hunt for a Pharmaceutical sales position. We're excited and we'll keep you posted as we learn more about our wait and the process unfolding.
Hugs to all,
Robin and Brandon
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