Referral!!!

Well, "soon" turned out to be 3 business days. We got a call from our agency on Wednesday with our referral information. I think she tried to call around 8:30 our time, but I had a meeting from 8:30-9:30, so I missed her call. She called Jock, and told him she had our referral - but they decided they'd better wait so I could be on the call too. So he called and texted me to call him back and had to wait almost an hour. I checked my messages as the meeting was starting wrap-up, and saw this:





<---This was my response.



I called him as soon as I was out of the meeting, and he called our agency back. He apparenlty told our agency person that she could give him the info and he'd pass it along to me. She said, "Are you sure?!?" and he realized that was a bad idea. He did ask if it was for one or two children, and it's for 1. I asked them to give me about 5 minutes to get back to my desk, as I was as far away as possible in the next building over for the meeting. She called both of us and conferenced us in together, to give us the details. Then she said she would sent them to us via email - she had them ready to go, and they'd come in 3-4 emails, because there was a lot of information.

We received a very complete social/family history on the child, the child's birth certificate, parent/child DNA test results, a medical report complete with measurements and lab results, and a psych report on the child with developmental information. Also included were about 20 photos taken since arrived at GLA, and a recent video so we could see a bit of the child's development in action. (I don't know if this is a difference in working with an agency, or just a difference in the organization in the orphanage personnel/paperwork, but I'm very impressed with the amount and quality of the information we received. With our last adoption we received a one-page document at referral with very brief answers on social history, DOB, and labs, and one photo - and no birth certificates until after they were home!)

Oh sure, like I would be able to concentrate on my work the rest of the morning! I tried, but not very successfully. I was able to get some things accomplished that afternoon though, after I spent lunch going over the information we'd received. My manager, not knowing much about the adoption process, asked jokingly how long she has to get one of my coworkers up to speed on my projects. Ha! I told her a year or a year-and-a-half.

Jock and I also went over the information at home that evening, after the kids were in bed. We didn't think there was any question, but we did keep praying over that stack of papers and photos over the next few days. Saturday we printed the referral acceptance paperwork and headed to the bank to get it notarized. Then we had to head to a basketball game, so it'll go in the mail Tuesday, since Monday is a holiday. I assume it'll arrive in Michigan yet this week, and maybe take next week for it to be forwarded back to the orphanage. Then it'll start through the Haitian government adoption processes.

So, I know, you just want the details...

It's a boy!

He is 16 months old right now, and his name is James (for now - we will likely change it when he arrives home). We're told he often can be found with a goofy, mischievous grin on his face - Jock said, "He'll fit right in!" He was brought to the orphanage in late June, so if you search GLA's blog, you'll find a photo of him and his mama there. It sounds like he had a fever the day he arrived, so that's not a very good photo of him.

Here are a couple better ones, taken in november:
We are praying the adoption process moves along quickly.