Process Update Nov-08

This Christmas season is a bittersweet one for me. I have two children that I am not able to be with. I know they'll be spending Christmas with many friends and their loving nannies, but I miss them.

Our process update was as we expected: "Your dossier is currently in Parquet. There are currently 13 dossiers in this office and 5 dossiers have received approval." After last month's update: "I have not received specific information on your dossier. As far as I know your dossier is still in Parquet," I contacted our liaison. Due to some issues with changing their email addresses, I didn't get any answers back until last week.

I had been concerned because we know other families whose dossiers had been rejected at Parquet because they have biological children or are under 35 and had not gotten Presidential dispensation. Their dossiers are now being sent back to IBESR until they receive dispensation. When we were in IBESR for 10 months, and we understood part of the hold-up was because of having to get dispensation, so I wanted to hear that we for sure did receive it. We were assured that our dossier does have the dispensation, that there have been no other challenges from Parquet regarding our dossier. So, we're just waiting on the slow, out-of-order processing in this office.

Since 5 dossiers from our orphanage have been released in the last few weeks (and we rejoice with the two families (3 dossiers/children) that we know are in this category - don't know the other two), we know things are working. We pray for continued efficiency in this office, and for our dossier to be released very soon - this week even!

Also, since I went to Haiti in July and signed our I-600, US Immigration is able to start their orphan investigation. A key part of this is interviewing our children's birth parents to ensure that they are unable to care for them (meeting the US' definition of orphan), and that they legitimately brought them to the orphanage with the plan to relinquish their parental rights and have a family adopt them. Sometimes a DNA test will be requested if they don't believe that they are the biological parents. This would cost us a little more for these tests, and take more time - although since this can be happening while the processing is continuing on the Haiti side of things, it right now is not delaying anything.

Given the chaos in Haiti this year (food crisis, riots, hurricanes), I was concerned with the time it is taking contacting Elijah's mother and Josephine's father and get their interviews scheduled and completed. Sometimes birth families do not keep in contact with the orphanage, so if they move, it is difficult to track them down when the time comes. Our liaison assured me that our processor/birth-parent locator do know where both birth parents are located. Josephine's father recently started a new job, and does not want to take time off work to go to the interview. They are working with him to find a time that will work. Elijah's mother is now in the countryside and has not come to the orphanage at their request. They'll be sending someone again to speak with her about this. Praying things work out for both birth parents to make the interviews soon, and for them to go well, with no DNA tests requested.

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As far as the time line until E & J come home, we still don't know. I appreciate everyone's concern and asking how things are going and when we think we'll have them home. However, it is a difficult question to answer. Not only because the waiting is hard for us, but because we just don't know. It's hard to tell at this point. We are in Parquet. This year, families that have received Parquet approval had been in this office for anywhere from 2 months until 12 months. I don't know how I could bear 12 months, and of course was hoping for 2 months! We've been there for 4 1/2 months now. After Parquet, it can take 3-6 months to get through Judgement, 2nd Legal and Archives, and apparently a new step of verifying the archive signatures, before getting into MOI. Then MOI has been taking 3-6 months as well. After MOI, they'll print the passports, which can take a week to a month or two, depending on whether their printer is working and they have a supply of paper. Once passports are printed, our completed dossier is sent back to US Immigration where they'll approve the I-600s, schedule the Visa appointments, and then issue the Visas - I think all of this can take about a month (or so).

There are so many steps, and so many IF's, starting with the big one of when we get out of Parquet, then how long it takes to get into MOI, then how long in MOI, then how long for passports and visas. IF we get out of Parquet this month, and we're on the short end of both 3-6 month time frames, and passports/visas take only 1 month, we could have them home in July or August. I really didn't want to believe that this process would take 24 months to get them home, especially when we started we were told 8-15 months. But, that's what it's looking like. Our dossier was in Haiti at the end of June and our referrals were in order at the end of July last year.

Please pray for a miracle. I'd love to have them home at the beginning of summer. That (in my mind) would be ideal, so we could have lots of outdoor time during my 12 weeks off work to spend with them and get adjusted. Kaylen could spend time with us over summer break, we could save money on daycare, and we could go places and do fun things... However, I know that God's timing is perfect, and He will bring them home when He knows it is right. I pray for His grace and mercy, for speed in this process, but most of all for me to accept what it is, and not get discouraged in this process. I need all the encouragement I can get during this Holiday season.