It All Started...

I started the process by doing Alot of research of talking with people and by using the Internet. I found lots of yahoo groups and various websites with LOTS of information. Everyone said the most important thing to find is the agency...so that is what I did first.

After alot of research I found a agency that I thought had it act together and I decided to adopt from a new program in the country of El Salvador. I joined the yahoo group that was with the agency and then one that was outside the agency but was for people adopting in this country. There was so much information, it was a bit overwhelming.

On 5/21/07 I sent in my application...I was so excited that I was finally on my way.

On 5/25/07 I received the call that I was approved...wahoo!

On 6/11/07 I mailed the agreement and started to do all the paperwork.

6/11/07 Sent in the I600A application.

By July, I started to read several posts about the country and how because El Salvador was a new program and the government was having issues getting their adoption process in order, that it would likely be 4 years before I was able to actually adopt. So many people that I read about were already years out waiting and waiting, with no end in site. I decided after speaking with my agency that I would look into other countries. After several conversations with the agency, I decided to do more research on the agency and which one was better in what country.

At about the same time, I read quite a bit about Russia and all the accreditation issues that they were having. When speaking to my agency, they did not have the accreditiaon and that led me to seek one that did. I found several and narrowed it down to two and met with the local one and spoke on the phone to the PA agency. I really liked the PA agency and the agency I was using, used the PA agency themselves in Russia. They were also on the State Dept website. So I started doing some research on them and found only good things.

I called them and what a difference in just speaking to them. They answered more questions for me in one day than any did throughout the entire process.

I was worried about using an out of state agency, but after speaking to alot of people, found out it is very normal.

I got some referrals to call and they said nothing but good things.

I signed with them on 8/2/07 and they said I should have a child within a year of signing! Now with international adoption - NOTHING is guarnteed...but I sure can hope!

After doing a flurry of paperwork and more research on my HomeStudy agency and signed one on 8/8/07.

I had my first Homestudy meeting with the Social Worker on 9/10/07 - I was nervous but it went fine. It was here at the house and she was very nice. It went quicker than I thought!
The second one was on 9/17/07 and we met at the Pohick Reginal Library in Burke and then the second one was on 9/25/07 at the same place. They went good and she told me at the end of my last one that she saw no issues in my being a Mom and that she would approve me! Yay!!!

I had a 10 week course on Adoption Parenting that I did through my Adoption Agency via online, and then once that was done then the HS would be submitted.

That leads me up to the current time...all is done...I am just been waiting on the approval of my Mom's fingerprints. They are considered Unclassified or Idenified. We have been going back and forth with the HS Agency trying to figure out what we need to do. She has had them done twice for the INS (both have not cleared) and now 3 times for the FBI (they did pass the state).

It has been since about November that we have been in limbo waiting on the fingerprints and it is really getting frustrating...they really make it very hard to adopt a child. There are so many children waiting for a good home and so many wonderful people trying to adopt them and it is just a very SLOW process.

I will be going tomorrow to get a money order for the third prints and send them off...pray this is the last thing we have to do and then we can send our HS to the INS.

Keep me in your prayers...