Fund Raising Website is up and running!

Took some time today to build a website to keep track of our fund raising efforts. You will also be able to order the 'Bring Anya Home" necklace on this site too!

http://www.bring-anya-home.com

Check it out!!

let the fund raisers begin!

This weekend officially kicks off our fundraising efforts to Bring Anya Home.

My friend and jewelry designer (Ali Oesch - you should always wear her stuff!) has made this one-of-a-kind necklace for us to sell. Isn't it beautiful?! To understand this necklace, you need to know me fairly well. From reading this blog - you may have a pretty good idea who I am and what I am all about. Things I've said about this journey always include the words strength and truth.

The 3 stones represent me, Marty and Anya.


The Pearl is important, not only because I wear pearls every day of my life (in one form or another), but because it is the stone of Truth.

The little silver bead represents the strength of platinum, and our strong resolve, and strong faith to bring Anya home.

And of course, the clear teardrop in the center, representing the many tears we've shed over making Anya wait to come home...the big tear also represents tears of Joy for the end of this story.

All of this I came up with, so if you have a better story to put with the beads, I'd love to hear it!

Ali will make as many as 100 of these for us to sell. Can you believe that?! We will retail them for $38 - and make them available anywhere that will offer to sell them for us!

I know you are dying for one, aren't you? Well, I will have the very first of this limited edition 'Bring Anya Home' necklace with me this weekend at Camellia The Makeup Store in Heritage Square in Granger. There will be some other great things there this weekend too that we'll be selling to raise funds.

Welcome Home Ninmann Family!

Today, the Ninmann family arrived safely in Chicago....and their flight was 1/2 hour early!


Another one of our 'Irkutsk' friends (Jane) also met at the airport. It is so fun to met the people in person you've been communicating with for such a long time.


So - we get to terminal 5 - the international terminal at O'Hare. The kiosk says that Debbie and Brian's flight should be coming into gate A...there are only 2 gates, and they are about 100 feet apart, so we move to gate A. We find Debbie's Mom and Dad, Brian's Mom and mom's friend, and of course, the other Ninmann boy -JJ. We must have looked crazy - staring everyone down that was exiting the corridor from exit A. Brian is tall - so Debbie's mom and I are looking at every single tall person trying to decide if that was Brian. About 20-25 minutes into our search, I turn around - and there is Debbie! WHAT????


Apparently they had to go through the red line in immigration (too hard to explain...) which means they came out the exit A. Ugh! So much for the perfect photographic moment as the Ninmann family comes out of the dark corridor to the whoops and hollars of family and friends!


It was such an emotional relief to see Debbie, Brian and Nathan. Knowing what they have been through, and trying to imagine what it will be like when we're walking through that dark corridor with Anya - seriously, it's too much to think about sometimes.


I can't wait to talk to Debbie to get the low down on the whole experience. Debbie - I promise I won't bug you! I'll let you get a good night's sleep and unpack :)

Here are some photos of our day.

Chicago area Irkutsk Moms

Jane - Debbie - Me

(yes Mom, I am slouching down so I don't look like a wookie)

The Ninmann Family

Brian, Debbie, JJ and Nathan Genya

Nathan Genya was very excited about his welcome

home balloons and the pinwheel from Jane!

Fundraising

We have several fundraising efforts in process right now.

My good friend, Ali Oesch, who is the most talented jewelry designer I know - is making a 'Bring Anya Home' necklace - can you believe that? I cried, seriously...when she told me. It is going to be STUNNING and come with a story card. We hope to have these available next weekend...

Camellia The Makeup Store is having a Spring Trend Event next weekend, and they've graciously asked me to participate with them. As a fundraising effort, we will be selling 'Bring Anya Home' pashmina/wraps, and I will have some of Ali's jewelry there too. STOP IN!

Marisha from 4Her (boutique) gave us a great idea on a fund raiser. Marty is working on the major part of it - so stay tuned for more details!

small update

We got everything done that was requested of the Judge - it goes in the mail on Monday...and I was able to send the package DHL which is 3 days guaranteed!

My Mom spent Friday in Indianapolis running from the Secretary of State's office to the State Health Department to the Department of Child Services...I don't know what I would have done without my Mom this week! I was so busy with work, trying to get to Indianapolis to get this done would have pushed me over the edge for sure - so, THANKS MOM!

We're heading to Chicago tomorrow to meet the Ninmann's plane from Russia. I am so excited to see Debbie and Brian, and meet Nathan! Stay tuned for photos and video!

Please Pray

I have talked a lot on this blog about our friends, the Ninmanns. They have FINALLY left Irkutsk (after 8 weeks), and are in Moscow for the last leg of the journey.

Nathan and Debbie when they were sill in Irkutsk

Apparently there is some issue with their son's passport (the one they had to wait 3 weeks to get)...I guess his middle name isn't on the passport - so they are getting all kinds of grief from the Embassy. Now the problems are with OUR OWN government!

I don't know all the details, but I do know that they need our prayers! Please pray that whatever the issue is, that is is simply and quickly fixed. I can't imagine the frustration this is causing our dear friends! I am mad, confused, frustrated and in prayer for them!

I'll keep you all updated as to the progress with this - but please please, remember this in your prayers.

The New Russian passport system

There has been much discussion and thought on the new biometric passport process in Russia. Basically what this means for those of us in the adoption world is that what did take about a week now takes up to 4 weeks (generally, looks like 3).

I did some research, and found the following - attn: all Irkutsk PAPs! Read up!

http://www.russianadoptionhelp.com/content/blog/2009/03/russian-biometric-passports.html

http://babelfish.yahoo.com/translate_url?doit=done&tt=url&intl=1&fr=bf-home&trurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fms.gov.ru%2Fdocuments%2Fpassport%2Findex.php&lp=ru_en&btnTrUrl=Translate

should clarify

Thank you for your kind notes and offers to help...actually, there really is no one who can help. Anything that was ever done in any other part of Russia will be no good to us - and it appears that even following the document list that our friends, the Ninmann's, went to court with last month (in the same city) isn't a good plan.

One thing about Russia that you can count on - is to NEVER count on anything. I should know by now to now that I shouldn't get my hopes up on anything - ESPECIALLY when it comes to anything that has to do with documents and the Judge.

For some reason this reminds me of when I was getting my MBA. I had this horrible finance class, and a horrible professor who didn't speak English. I would ask a question like:

"Can you please help me through problem #2"

He would say, "Yes, thank you"

I would get a funny look on my face and say, "OK, well - it appears that we should be using the XYZ theory - but I can't find the starting point to get to the answer."

He would say, "Yes, thank you."

I would get a more irritated look on my face and say, "allrighty then, um, the answer I am getting is ABC, but I see in the key it should be XYZ, can you please walk through this with me - I am not understanding how to get to XYZ"

He would say, "Yes, thank you."

SO - assuming he understood what I was saying, I would sit there....silence....nothing....so I would follow up with "what page would I find the answer to this problem?"

He would say, "Yes, thank you."

I remember being so frustrated in that class, many times I would be up all night long in tears because there was no one who could help me. The one person whose job it was to help me - didn't understand a word I was saying.

This whole thing is kind of like that. The Judge doesn't understand that we don't have a Federal adoption law, she doesn't understand that Katherine A Friend is the same person as Kathy Friend, Katherine Ann Friend etc. I wish that I could get to the point of pity - that is what happened with the Finance prof - I felt sorry for him. I figured out other means to my answers in his class, and ended up with a B+ (still not sure how I pulled that one off).

TIMELINE
I should mention my timeline.

The documents need to be re-presented to the Judge by April 13. So - they need to be back to Irk by April 6 to be translated. Because it can take between 1-2 weeks to be delivered, we need to ship everything from here by March 23 (this will allow 2 weeks, worst case scenario). So, before things can be shipped, they need to be apostilled by the Secretary of State. Generally that will take one day to ship, and one day to process, and one day to ship out...it can be done all in one day, but that would require a 3 hour (one way) drive to Indianapolis...so - that would mean we need to ship things to the state by March 19th.

Today is March 13th...this is a weekend, not much can be done on a weekend. The 18th is completely booked with appointments....so that means I have Monday and Tuesday.

Assuming things can get shipped faster than 2 weeks (allow 1 week), then I have this full week.

I am very concerned about the police letters...I assume they want new state police criminal checks. This usually takes 7-10 days. You can't just show up and get it done...they mail it to you.

Joan - we'll need to get those stupid fingerprint cards done AGAIN - can that be done on the weekend?


DEBBIE AND JUDY - what did you do about the deed to your house? The Judge didn't accept the Quit Claim Deed to our house - did you show a deed?

NEED HELP!

Hi Friends, we just got the legal statement from the Judge - UNBELIEVABLE! I don't know how to answer most of this, and to be honest, I am so mad and upset right now, I am sitting here crying and shaking.

Basically, I have less than a week to get this done...after everything is done, it needs to go to Indy to be apostilled (add about 3 days), then ship to Irkutsk (which can take anywhere from 1-week to 2-weeks), and at least 5-6 days for translation (that is a generous time for translation)...right there is 3 weeks - UGH!

Since the blog is private now - I can post the entire statement. I am doing this so that you all can help me. I can't think clearly on this...some of you are Real Estate experts (LORI!!) and might be able to help. Note my comments in blue.

Legal statement

petition for adoption

- you need to add information that Anna was offered to Russian citizens for adoption but she was not chosen. (no big deal)
- You need to add your employment, positions and income (salary) for each of you.


apostiles for the state of Indiana:

the judge wrote that the apostiles of state of Indiana looked like it was a copy (no real stamp, no real signature).
Then she writes that the sentence that starting with May 1, 2003 all apostiles from the Indiana Secretary of State will have an electronically printed seal does not substitute a real apostile.
The judge suggested that we provide a copy of the Hague Convention that says that electronic apostiles can also be used by counties. ( articles 13, 14, 16, 18, 23 and 24) – conclusions and recommendations adopted by the special commission – the practical operation of the Hague apostile, evidence and service convention (28 October to 4 November 2003). Also I guess in 2003 the state of Indiana adopted an act regulating the use of electronically printed seal on the states’ apostiles. I think we will need a copy of the act.

Please note that copies of the act or Hague convention should be certified by a notary only.

Apostiles of California

The judge writes that the size of California apostiles (all NL documents) is not correct. We will give her a copy of the Hague Convention (article 13). Also for the Ninmans we applied to the Russian Consulate ( or Embassy) and they put a sticker on California apostile which said that the apostile was correct and it was issued in accordance with the Hague Convention. (already asked our California agency to help with this)

Marty’s passport photo was not of good quality for the judge. Make a new copy, so that Marty’s face was very clear. (this was the clearest copy imaginable, actually Jeanna at church made the copy, it was clearer than mine!)

Marty’s and Katherine’s employment letters (MasterMediaProductions) should be signed by the head (president or director )of the company. The position of Barry Hall – partner – has not satisfied the judge. So get new letters and get it signed by a president. (thing is, Marty is the president...so he can sign his own employment letter. In the past, since we are self employed, we had to get a letter from the corporate CPA attesting to the fact we are self employed....hummm...Barry was the corporate CPA)

the letter from the real estate agency – Rockwell which speaks about sq.m and price does not say who the discussed house belongs to. Add your full names to that document.

a letter from Elkhart County Assessor, sighed by Doug Thornton – this letter does not state timing of the house’s purchase, the basic reason of owning (will, inheritance, purchase and etc) and how it is divided between you both (equally, if not – give details).

the judge does not accept the quit claim deed ( she probably does not understand this, frankly speaking I do not understand it either) – she asks for a legal document that shows your full ownership of the house. She says that this document ( quit claim deed) does not say what you own exactly, it does not say that it is a living house, it does not say how it is divided between you both (equally?), it does not say what your ownership right is based on. It does not say when Marty obtained this right for the 1st time. (not sure what to do about this - help!)

For example, the French and Isreali families provide a 30 page Purchase Agreement which states all facts and details of the deal, including price, descriptions of the parties, all conditions, descriptions of the house and etc. (no can do, Marty built this house, he didn't purchase it from anyone)

If it is not the case we may need some sort of clear explanation from Elkhart City Recorder concerning quit claim deeds. Please take into account that in Continental Law (most of Europe) all these documents are very precise and detailed. This is what the court is expecting. May be the Elkhart City Recorder can again confirm what you own, how you obtained that right, your parts in this house, your property should be called a living house.

new police letters with your full names

we need a new letter from the Elkhart Superior Court, composed in the same way it was done previously, in August 6, 2007 (signed by David Bonfiglio) (it was detailed and it addressed all aspects that the judge was asking). The new letter that you have just provided is not really good.
medical reports… the judge wrote that the medical reports do not have the official (heraldic) stamp of the hospital. There’s indeed one official stamp of the South Bend Clinic at the last page of each report, it was imprinted in the paper, I did not see it myself but later I did find it. (of course, there is no such thing as an official hospital stamp in the United States, and the medical lic board isn't going to call something an official stamp that isn't required by all clinics.)

Coordinator comments: make new medical reports, even with the same dates. Use just one apostile for each report as it is rather difficult to use the medical report with several apostiles attached. The organization of each report is brilliant, as you have enough space for each specialist and all stamps are clear to read. Now, leave more space again for the official stamp, as you will need to ask for this stamp to be put for each specialist (in the head doctor space). I think may be you can use one page for one specialist, so you will have 8 pages, 8 official stamps.

Then, I suggest ask the Indiana health board to write a separate letter saying that that particular stamp is an official (heraldic) stamp for that Hospital.

11. Children’s Bureau (no idea on this...need to send off to INdy)


The judge writes that the explanation letter concerning Children’s Bureau ( of January 20, 2009) is not signed by the head of Indiana Department of Child Services.

What I suggest is – try to get the similar letter with more focus on the function to do home studies for adoptive families. I guess it would be impossible to get it signed by the head of the department. In this case we will need a letter showing the delegation of authority (from the head of the department) to sign the documents to the people who signed that explanation letter.

The judge also asked for a copy of the law that would state that the Indiana Department of Child Services is entitled to issue licenses to child placing (adoption) agencies and that Indiana Department of Child Services may write some sort of explanation letters explaining the competence of the adoption agencies and type of work they can do. The license itself is very short and it does not really state what functions Children’s Bureau has, and the judge wants to make sure that Indiana Department of Child Services does not exceed its authority by explaining what Children’s Bureau can do. Try to get only relevant pages of the law, we won’t able to do translations on time if has many pages.

Concerning Nightlight Christian Adoptions …

The judge would like to see a confirmation that California based agency ( NL) may approve a family living in another State (state of Indiana, in your case).

or California based child placing agency may approve a home study done by an agency located in another state. In your case the judge would like to make sure that all commitments signed by NL in regard to you and Children’s Bureau were correct and legal.


we need a new commitment to provide post placement reports from you – the one you sent is good but you need to add a sentence to it – that you will give a possibility to Children’s Bureau to monitor the living conditions and upbringing of Anna (her full name).


we a need a new Embassy letter (with your full and correct names).


the judge requested to see Indiana Adoption Law. (we did prepare this, but apparently it was not presented to the Judge...no one else has had to do this, they only had to submit the relevant parts of the law)

I did not give the judge the copies of the law which were attached to the attorney’s explanation as I thought there were confusing with all details in it. So the judge asked for a “full” Indiana Adoption Law. I do not think we will have an ability to translate tens of pages of the law, so may be you can again provide these copies. The copies need to be certified by a notary. Also we may need copies of the law where the specific requirements for adoptive parents are outlined. For example, you need to be an Indiana resident, aged 18 or older, married for at least 1 year and etc… to be approved as prospective adoptive parent.

Also the judge asked for a US Federal Adoption Law. I am not sure that there’s one. May be we can give INS regulations? (there is no such thing, I did ask our California agency about this, if I need something else from the INS, I am going to lose my mind!)

Please note that if your names are mentioned in any new documents - they need to be full, as in the passports. (they say Katherine Friend or Katherine A Friend, not Katherine Ann Friend - are you freaking kidding me??? As if she doesn't know that is ME!)

funny things

Now this this blog is private, you might find that I'll speak a little "free-er" than I normally do. ...and I just heard some of you say to yourselves "what possibly could she say that she hasn't already said"?

Who knows.

I just want to share a funny thing that people keep saying to me. I am sharing this especially for Debbie and Judy (because I know they've gotten this too).

Random Person: "Wow, there is some big reason this adoption has taken so long"

Me: "I know..."

Random Person: "Maybe you are supposed to start an adoption agency or help adoptive parents or something"

Me: (trying not to laugh uncontrollably) "Help my friends in Irkutsk, yes, but as a business - or something I deal with every day? Um, NO!"

No offense to all you PAPs or APs out there, but you have to admit, we can be a real emotional unreasonable bunch. The only thing worse that I can think of would be working with Brides...yikes! But PAPs are worse - there are more hormones involved.

I prefer to think that the big reason in all this is to save us or Anya from something - and whatever that thing is (or was), we might never know. Maybe someday I'll roll this story into one of the talks I do...which if funny - can't you just see my one-sheet:

Kathy Friend, wardrobe coach - fashion expert
Kathy can provide your group or organization with informational and
inspirational talks on:

• Finding your Style
• Dress To Your Business Card
• Finding your Passion (for teens)
• Fashion in Russia
• How to plan for a 7-8 week trip to Irkutsk
• Keeping Busy while on the Adoption Road

Anywho - I hope to be able to update you all with news in the next day or so!

right thing at the right time

I was reading my friend's (Debbie) blog tonight, and she posted the following. It so clearly speaks to the situation several of us are in right now - I wanted to share it with you:

God Limits All Evil

It’s not so very hard to believe in a kind and loving God when your health is good, when you have enough money, and when people are being nice to you. I can’t blame you if your faith is shaken when it looks as though your life is going from bad to worse.

When the angels fly over a children’s hospital, they can hear a steady stream of anguished cries from fearful parents geysering up to heaven.Have you ever felt as though you were going under with troubles? Do you ever feel as though nothing is working right for you? King David knew that feeling. Pursued, outnumbered, exhausted, he wrote, “Help, LORD, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished. …

Everyone lies to his neighbor” (Psalm 12:1,2).But your life is not out of God’s control. He sees everything going on in your life, cares about you, and acts at just the right time to set limits to what you must endure.

That same psalm says, “‘Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,’ says the LORD. ‘I will protect them’” (verse 5). God always gets the last word, and his last word is, "I love you. Help is on the way."

Update

I have just a minute but want to post a quick update.

Documents were presented to the Judge today. The meeting was over 2 hours long. Both the new judge and the old judge were there. Old J. had a log to say about our documents...not we wait for 2-3 days until we get the legal statement. This is a legal document that will tell us what she is requesting in terms of additional information / documentation. The hope is that at that time, she will also call for Anya's documents to be prepared (that is a good sign, and that is a HUGE milestone when that happens)...so - keep praying!

More details later - need to run to church!

I171-H HAS BEEN APPROVED!

I can't believe it. at 4:35 today, I got a note from the Chicago field office of the USCIS that simply said "Your I-171h was approved and forward to Russia."

I think they approved us just to shut me up. I don't really care - whatever the reason, it is DONE DONE!

Although the timing isn't what we needed, our hope is that our friends in Moscow at the Embassy are able to fax something to our coordinator in Irkutsk for the appointment today. I am sure a faxed copy of a current letter, with confirmation of the letter being sent is better than a copy of an old approval from 2007.

Thank you all SO MUCH for your prayers. I'm not sure what time our dossier is being presented to the Judge, but I am sure our friends (the Ninmann's) who are still in Irkutsk will hear news before we well...and I am more than confident that Debbie will email me when she knows ANYTHING.

Today is also the day the Ninmann's should be hearing if their son's Passport is in - this means they might be able to book flights home today! YAY!!!!

With that, the blog goes private tonight. Stay tuned for the last chapter of the story!

blog goes private in t-minus...

Sometime in the next few days, this blog will be private. If you want to keep seeing what's up in this crazy adoption story, you need to let me know! If you've already sent me an email, or posted a comment to let me know - you will be getting and email invitation.

With our dossier being presented to the Judge in Irkutsk on March 11, the time has come for us to make the blog private.

When the story is over, we'll open up the blog once again for everyone to read...we hope that will be late Spring / early Summer.

Prayers and such

Our friends, the Ninmann family - who have had a successful court hearing but are still in Irkutsk. They have custody of their adopted son, Nathan, but are on week-7 in Russia. They are waiting for Nathan's passport for them to travel. We don't know how long this process takes (the process was recently revamped, and no one seems to know how long it takes, 2weeks? 3weeks? Please pray that God intervene in this process, and that Nathan's passport appear SOON!


Our friends, the Holmes family - they have also had a successful court hearing, and just arrived home last week. We're praying that the transition for their adoption son, Harry, continue to be good, that Skip (the brother) also adjust well, and that Judy and Mike (mom and dad) are able to get some much needed rest.

...and for us, prayers and fund raising
It is uncomfortable talking about money -especially with friends and some on this blog we don't even know. The facts are that money is a very real part of adoption. I know there has been some 'jabber' out there about my transparency on the money thing. That's me...I'm pretty transparent. Could we afford to do this if the economy didn't tank? Yes. Did we have a back up plan in place 'just in case'? Yes. Has the amt. we've spent to-date exceeded what we ever thought we'd spend? Yes. Is what we'll need when we head back to live in Russia for 7+ weeks more than we thought? Yes. Does any of this matter? No. What matters is Anya. She is what ALL of this is about.




We're praying for the financial aspects of our situation. The facts are bleak, the economy is poor, and the need is great, and quite honestly - overwhelming. Having said that - let me assure you that I KNOW GOD IS IN CONTROL, I know we have not come this far to have it all fall apart just because the incompetency of the USCIS or because the economy is crappy and we're broke.


Our dear friend (and fellow Irkutsk family), Lisa Young, has offered to help. She is going to act as our 'point person' on a fund raising effort that will continue throughout March and April. If you would like to help, want to pray specific needs for us, if you have a great fund raising idea or know of a fast grant, please email Lisa at LNYoung1 at a o l dot com.



FIRST FUNDRAISER
The first fund raiser will be Friday, March 27 and Saturday, March 28th at Camellia The Makeup Store in Heritage Square in Granger. I'll be there as part of a 'spring trend event' - all of the proceeds from the sale of my services that weekend will go to the adoption fund.


I'll also have Spring scarves for sale (pashmina type) and maybe some jewelry from Ali Oesch - all of which will go to the adoption fund.

Proof they don't know which way is up

Well, I have spent the morning on the phone and sending emails to everyone in their brother who might be able to help.

The Embassy made a call to Chicago to "set them straight" this morning - this is great news!

Talked to Donnelly's (our Congressman) office - they are going to make an inquiry for us this a.m. This will be the second inquiry from a Congressman (the other came from Congressman Souder's office).

Then I got an email from the CIS (Citizen and Immigration Services) in Chicago that said "Your file will not be review with no the home study and as of this morning your home study has no arrive to this office." I am resisting commenting on the brutal hack job of the English language in this note...so I will just say ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

We've sent 3 complete original homestudies...before I go completely crazy, get in a car and drive to Chicago, I am waiting to hear from our homestudy agency with some details on when they sent the most current version on the HS. I've sent one to them 3 times (and have a signature as proof that it was delivered)...

Here is the kicker...here is what I got from the SAME PERSON 3 days ago, I'm NOT kidding:

The home study was received the last week of February was reviewed.

Are these Labor Pains?

We're still working with the United States Citizen and Immigration Services office in Chicago to get our I600A approved. I am seeing an amazing side of our government in action.

No phone number.

No one to talk to.

No fax number.

Only an email that is checked one time a day.

Today the USCIS came up with something else that needed to be included in our homestudy. The shocking thing, is that we submitted (almost identical) documents this time, as we did in 2005 for approval...and never had a problem in the past.

We're working with 2 Congressman's offices, the Embassy in Moscow, Catholic Charities, and both of our agencies to get this done.

We could use your prayers on this - it is a bureaucratic frustration to the n-th degree!

We need for the USCIS to approve our petition first thing in the morning on Friday (tomorrow) to allow enough time to get word to the Embassy in Moscow - so they can produce the letter we need to get to Irkutsk - the letter needs to be in Irkutsk before Wednesday (which is Tuesday, our time).

NO PRESSURE! ...but such is my life in the past few months. This is my every day - and people wonder why I am a little touchy, a little on edge, seem a little stressed. Mystery solved!

Cool or complete geek?

Today I talked to 3 different adoption agencies, 2 Congressman offices, emailed USCIS 3 times, faxed a note to the CIS, and communicated with the Embassy in Moscow. Does that make me the coolest kid on the block, or the geekiest?

I found out that yes, the competent employees at the Chicago USCIS are requiring us to complete the checklist for the Hague countries. Basically, when you adopt internationally, you need approval to do so from the USCIS. there are 2 forms - the one you use depends on which country you are adopting from. One is for Hague countries, and the other is for non-Hague countries.

Seems simple, right?

Well, Russia is not a Hague country. But the USCIS is making us adhere to the Hague country requirements. According to the agency the most-in-the know: "Most CIS offices are totally uninformed about the difference between Hague and non-Hague countries, and are wanting all h/s to be in the Hague format."

Nice.

What does this mean? Our social worker had to pull a rabbit out of a hat and redo our home study today. She worked with another person at another agency who is an expert in Hague country requirements...between the 2 of them, they figured it out and faxed it off to USCIS.

In the mean time, I am going to make some kind of formal complaint via our Congressman about this. We as tax payers, pay these people's salaries - we pay for them to know what they are doing! I shouldn't have to fight a battle to prove that Russia isn't a Hague country for cryin' out loud!

Our Congressman's office has been great. Our contact there called me today and said "Kathy, I've been thinking about this all last night and all day today, something about it doesn't sit right in my spirit. We need to stay involved until the end".

And yes, I still do have hair...however I have picked off all of my nice fingernails.

it's always something, isn't it?

I am not kidding, I just get done worrying about one thing, then something else pops up!

Now, it's the INS approval from the USCIS...

We've been approved for the past 4+ years. The approval expired, so we had to completely redo the whole thing. We resubmitted everything that is required - and they ask for more. We supplied that - I asked to day what the status was, and here is what I got:

"The home study received the last week of February was reviewed. A Request for Evidence has been issued due to missing elements on the home study. Please patiently await the Request for Evidence Form in the mail."

So I replied back with:
"Thank you for the reply. We are in a serious time crunch as our documents will do to the Judge in Russia on March 11th (which is the 10th our time). Is it possible for you to please tell me what is missing or what you need clarification on? We don't have the luxury to wait on the mail. Without this approval, the Embassy will not be able to issue a mandatory letter for our file. Without that letter, we will not be able to obtain a court date. What can be done?"

I got this:
"call your agency"

So, I did - and they have not received anything from the USCIS.

Nice.

So I call our Congressman's office. Nice lady tells me that 'something doesn't sound right', and she suggests I call this "adoption expert" in Ft. Wayne at Catholic Charities. So I did. Had to leave a message, and haven't heard back.

Are you KIDDING ME?!

I talked to our social worker - she is floored, and has no idea what in the world they might want. She thinks maybe they think it is necessary for us to apply for an I800 (which you need in some countries, but not in Russia), or maybe they think we need another form (that you need if you are in Illinois, but Indiana residents do not need this).

And of course, there is no phone number where you can call these job-lovers at the Chicago USCIS. The only way to contact them is via email - and they only respond to email one time a day.

Need second bottle of Maalox! Please send other antacids!