short update

I just had a feeling we'd have some kind of issue with the Visa.

It's a long convoluted story, but it appears that what is required to get a business visa, with the purpose of the business listed as 'adoption' varies embassy to embassy. No, I am not kidding. The Embassy we are trying to get a visa with (Washington) said we need some invitation letter from Ovir (like the Russian immigration services). Well, this letter takes 30-45 days to get. In talking to our guy in Irkutsk, this letter isn't generally required by other Embassies in the world (well, of course not!). So I called the Houston Embassy, and they said they did not require that.

Now, I am not going to take what Houston said and get all excited. I am going to call back tomorrow and talk to someone in charge to be sure. In the meantime, our passports etc. are 'in hold' with this visa processing company in Virginia.

I will figure it out tomorrow - it's just paperwork.

date

For those who weren't at the concert last night, I guess I should fill you in on the news.

We have a court date! February 16th at 10am

One month from today...

As with all Irkutsk adoptions, the paperwork issue going into court is a completely stressful situation. There are some technical problems with Anya's documents (which is why our date is a month away, and not 2 weeks away). We need your prayers that all of those little issues are worked out in a way that pleases the Judge.

I will be forever grateful to our guy who has been working so hard for us over there. This past week, he has truly gone above and beyond. Most of the problems with Anya's documents are the fault of the original orphanage she was in, and/or the Adoption Center. He has intervened on our behalf, driving to remote villages and solving problems.

We also heard that because we're American, we should plan on our court hearing going for at least 2 days -here is the 'neat' thing. We can't expect that those 2 days are (for example) a Tuesday / Wednesday. There could be 3 days, 5 days, 7 days, 10 days in between those 2 dates. Yippe (insert appropriate sarcasm here). This could potentially add another week to our stay. PRAYING this isn't the case, and God goes before us to bless the entire process...and that a miracle happens and we are able to complete the court process in one day. (honestly, I don't even care if that is a 10 hour day!).

Over the next few weeks, I'll post more updates on our progress.

We are truly blessed by your constant prayers for our process and for our little girl!

that anxious belly feeling

Do you know what I mean? That nervous...but not nervous, feeling in the pit of your stomach? It's like an energy - one that won't let you sleep, or let you take a deep breath.

Well, that is me.

We're supposed to get a firm court date tomorrow. That is the one piece of information we need in order to book airline tickets. It's like the first domino to fall.

I know we won't hear anything yet tonight...even tho it is tomorrow in Irkutsk. I think most meetings with the Judge happen around 10am...and I am not paying attention to the fact that RIGHT NOW it is 11am in Irkutsk.

I didn't schedule anything for tomorrow - just in case.

I am refusing to not "what if".

So, that's what's going on today.

God's Plan is ALWAYS better than mine

So, where do I even start?!


I mean - nothing is ever easy. I know that - especially with adoptions, and this adoption in particular. I KNOW THIS, I embrace it - I have LIVED it for over 5 years.

But the past 24 hours might take the cake.

Yesterday night at about 8pm, I got online to complete the shipping label for the DHL package that was to be shipped to Irkutsk today. Today I planned to go to Indianapolis to the State House and get everything done that needed to be done - and get the documents in the mail. January 11th is the deadline the Judge in Russia has given us on these last few documents - which means I wanted to get everything there by the 5-6th.







Well, DHL.com wasn't playing nicely with others. Wouldn't let me log in. So I call the 800#, and when the lady answers, I decide to ask her about transit times with the holiday weekend instead of helping me with the log in issue. Why? It was God.

She proceeds to tell me that the delivery date for something mailed to Irkutsk today would be January 13th...JANUARY 13TH! (did I mention that everything was being presented to the count on the 11th?)


Hence starts freak out #1.




I quickly find out that my only option with DHL is to ship through a TSA Authorized business shipper, and even if I find one of those - there is no guarantee because of customs. TO get it through customs, I would have to hire a Broker...and no one could tell me how to hire a broker.


The nice DHL woman also suggested we hire a courier - that would ONLY cost about $3,000 - $4,000.







So I call FedEx. Basically, they told me the same story, but they were giving me a delivery date of January 18th (it's getting worse)




Thus begins freak out #2


I seriously went crazy at this point. I don't cry. I am not a very emotional person. The Fed Ex lady obviously could tell by the tone in my voice that I was desperate. She told me about a service called "Next Flight" - this is only open to authorized shippers who hold a Fed Ex account. After figuring out all of the requirements, and getting everyone involved all over Twitter and Facebook - we found a Plan A, B and C. This wasn't a cheap option, but it was workable.



Then God stepped in and took control.


I should have known that He would have a better plan. An easier plan. A perfect plan.






Our friends that live in Irkutsk told us that they knew of a man that lives in Maine who was flying to Irkutsk on Monday...this Monday! This means he would be arriving in Irkutsk the morning of the 6th. THE 6th! All I would have to do would be to overnight the documents to him in Maine!



I called him - he is VERY VERY nice, and will put the documents in his carry-on baggage to make sure nothing happens to them. Did I mention he is a VERY VERY nice man?



From where I sit, the Jackson's and Mr. Keef were little pieces of Heaven to me.


So - shipping situation handled. Off to Indianapolis.

I go to the State Police Department. I've done this criminal check thing about a million times in the past. I know the drill. You go to the office, you pay $10 and get what you need.

Well, they changed the drill...apparently sometime between when I called last week and when I walked in the doors this afternoon. The secretary told me the check would take 2 weeks, and would have to be mailed to me.

Insert freak out #3 here

It's a long story, but let's just say it got done - I cried in public, had a stranger offer me a Kleenex, and it cost me $30, but it's done...and there is an Indiana State Police Officer who got a nice lunch today.

FREAK OUTS OVER

Thank God.

I am ever so grateful for several things:

1. Good friends who read my random Tweets and Facebook updates, and are always so willing to jump in the middle of my drama to help
2. For Mr. Keef - praying safe travels for him
3. For one of my dearest friends, Stacy - who I always bomb in on when I am in Indianapolis. She is a little dose of reality for me...and tonight was no exception
4. Blessed with crazy random connections to get stuff done...thanks to Jackie Walorski for helping us this round (and yes, this is a political plug - VOTE FOR HER!)
5. For the goodness and perfect plan of God!

So the next time I freak out, will someone please remind me that God has it under control?

the call - well, the email

After 5 years, 4 months and 3 weeks…

After 5 trips to Russia,

After working with and through 2 agencies, 4 Judges, 3 lawyers, the Secretary of State, Embassy and DHL…

After unmentionable sums of money, energy, frustration, anger, humiliation, praise, glee and prayer

OUR DOCUMENTS HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE JUDGE IN RUSSIA…and we will have a court date the end of January.

I’m not kidding.

Ever since the news hit my email in-box yesterday morning, I have been in this constant dialog with God. The conversation is going something like this:

Me: “really? Really? REALLY?”

God: “yes”

Me: “Are you serious, really?”

And so we take this last step in the process to bring Anya home, knowing tat God hears our prayers…and remembering that HE is in control. Yes – we take this step with a nervous shake in our legs – but HE is in control!

God has answered our prayers, because we have trusted Him – completely. He has already shown us that HE is in control and all of the little (and big!) details, and it will all work out for His glory. For that, we are already praising God!

NOW WHAT

There are a few documents we need to update by January 11. By few, I mean 5…only 5 little things (that we’ve done before a million times, but are now expired). Once these documents are submitted to the court, a firm date will be given. Right now, we’re looking at the week of January 25^th.

There is a lot to do, plans to be made, money to be gotten, freaking out to be had. But, it’s all good!

WE ARE GOING TO BRING OUR LITTLE GIRL HOME!

I promised an update

There was a meeting with the Judge (which Judge, not sure...new, old, older, interim) on Monday.

The message we got from our guy in Irkutsk is that he spoke directly to the Judge about our case - and asked her to help set a court date ASAP.

Please keep praying - this is potentially a big deal...or potentially not. After 5 years of dashed hopes, and 5 years of saying "we hope by Christmas" - I don't get too excited about anything.

When we know more...so will you!

the waiting game

Our documents were resubmitted to the Judge again this week. There are some vacations, new Judges, old Judges, bla bla bla drama that we don't want to get hung up in - so our guy in Irkutsk rushed to get things submitted quickly.

I am assuming we won't hear anything more until the end of next week.

the docs are in the mail...again

Quick update...

THE DOCUMENTS ARE IN THE MAIL

Not going to bore you with all the drama that came with actually getting in the car to get to Indianapolis, to get the documents to the Secretary of State's office to get them in the mail. But I will tell you that my Mom and I celebrated with a great dinner at PF Chang's!

Documents should be delivered tomorrow (Friday), hope to know more next week. Stay tuned!

Pics of Anya, paperwork updates and more

Wow, there is a lot going on.

First - paperwork. I have been working on updating some documents that had errors on them. Not a big deal, but trying to decipher what the Judge means when she says things in the legal statement like "there is an error on the document showing the license". OK, which document, which license (seriously, we've provided at least 12-15 different agency and professional licenses).

Got a note from Tami, or friend in Irkutsk today. She offered the following info on Anya, as observed by Luda:

Luda said that Anya is a really nice girl. She is outgoing and visits very well. Luda said that Anya knows almost nothing about God. She is learning in the Bible study, but this is totally new to her. I believe Luda said that the first lesson they had was that God made you very special, and you are special to God. The next lesson explains more about God and who He is. Then they have a lesson about sin and what it is. Slowly they introduce about Jesus coming to be the payment
for our sins, and about accepting Him as personal Savior.

This makes me happy - to know that she is learning WHO God is. Can you imagine? Even children who do not go to church in our country, know who Jesus is and who God is - generally. Can you even fathom a world where the words 'God' and 'Jesus' aren't a part of everyday language?

Tami also said:

From what Luda has explained to me, Anya's group lives in a "home-style" apartment. That means they eat, sleep, and live in the same little area. Luda said that there are 2 bedrooms for girls and 2 bedrooms for boys in Anya's group. Anya has one other girl in her bedroom. Of course, the kids go to school each day. Luda said that Anya's group leader often locks the door to their "apartment," so that the older kids can't come in to bother the little ones.

This is so good. I have been very worried about the older kids with Anya.

Here are some pics of Anya:

Things continue to move....

Last week, I told you the plan was for our case to be taken to the court above this Judge's head. I wasn't freaked out - worried or otherwise upset about this. Really...it didn't phase me. Which is kind of strange.

As we were talking back and forth with our guy in Irkutsk, we began to pray...and pray HARD. There were some decisions to make, some financial things to consider; so we just put it all in God's hands.

Our guy in Irkutsk got a call from the Judge requesting a meeting. odd. The Judge has been refusing appointments and meetings - and SHE is calling a meeting?

Long story short, the Judge told our guy that our case is very VERY close. The Judge encouraged us to make these minor technical changes to our documents.

We felt that this was a clear message - we need to press on with this Judge.

We're really feeling like this is the end of the road. We are nearing the end of this storm - waiting for God's miracle.

more junk

I am having a hard time reading through the entire legal statement we got yesterday.

Let me first qualify something:

• This is not the end of the road, but rather a more forceful direction. Because of that, it is good.

Having said that - I will share that I feel completely defeated. Everyone else who has adopted from Irkutsk has done so with a lawyer who is acting as an agency, or directly with an agency. We are doing neither. Because of that, when something is wrong with a document, it's all me - it's my fault.

Admittedly, I have a hard time seeing my own errors with paperwork when I know what it is supposed to look like and say. With the hundreds of documents we've submitted, I will also admit I have gotten lazy; just want to get it done.

So, we're moving forward. Well be wiring more money to Russia in the next few days to pay for this new lawyer. We're asking for your prayers - we don't have what is required, however I know God is all over this - so I am trying to not worry about it. It'll happen.

Heading to Supreme Court

Just got off the phone with Alex Irkutsk. He is our coordinator. He got a call from the court this afternoon. He was told that our file was not accepted, however he was not given a reason. And yes - according to Russian law, a reason MUST be given.

The court also said that a legal statement was written on September 30th, however Alex was not notified of this until today (Oct 9). This in and of itself is against Russian Law. He was also told that the statement would not be ready to be picked up until Monday.

So we're done. We're hiring a shark lawyer in Russia to appeal the Judge and take our case above her head. According to Alex, he feel s that this judge is asking for things that don't exist, and she doesn't understand...therefore isn't accepting our case. Which is not a reason to not grant a court date.

Alex also feels that the Judge is bias against us (gee, do ya think), so the appeal will include a request to have another judge hear our case.

Know we are not the only family in this current situation. There is one other family who is the same boat with us. It's good to not be alone!

Right now we need prayers. Prayers bigger than I can even verbalize.

update of sorts

I guess I should post something. I've been quiet for far too long.

As you know, we had a deadline to get some documents to the Judge a month ago. Well, the documents were apostilled wrong (apostille is basically, a certification from the Secretary of State)...so I had to redo them...in 4 hours on a Friday. That was fun!

Well, the new deadline for those documents was September 28th. The Judge has 5 days to respond to those changes. We should hear something this week...but in Russia time, that means next week.

Our hope is that the Judge will call for Anya's documents to be prepared. When this happens, it is a 2 month mark until a court date (basically). If the Judge finds that she want more crazy documents to be prepared, we will take our case to the Supreme Court.

After over 5 years, over 12 COMPLETE dossiers later, I am DONE with paperwork! There is nothing more that I can possible send to this Judge.

We've been calling Anya every 2 weeks to talk to her. My sweet friend (Larissa) who is Russian, has been helping us. Even tho it is hard to really hold a conversation with a 7 year old on the phone, it's good to hear her voice. We asked her what her favorite subject is in school...her answer...jumping. Yes, jumping!

She always asks (about the first thing she says) is 'when are you coming to take me home'. That is such a hard question to answer - for so many reasons. Mainly because I don't understand it...how in the world is a 7 year old going to understand it!?

Our missionary friends that live in Irkutsk have a nanny, Luda. Luda was raised in the same orphanage that Anya is in. Luda visited Anya the other day. So good to hear a real report of someone who visited her. Luda will be taking Anya to a Bible study once a week (if THAT isn't answered prayer, I don't know what is?!).

Well - that's all I know. I hope my next post is wonderfully fantastic news!

some the madness!

So, I have been tracking our package with the updated documents. We had about 10 days to come up with the Judge's latest requests...we did it. The documents got to where they needed to be...and then we got the call. The Secretary of State's office had messed up the apostille (certification) of all of the documents.

I'm not kidding.

I called the SOS's office to see what could be done, and it seems that they can't just give me new forms and seals, they need the original documents. Makes sense, I guess.

So I had the distinct pleasure of redoing EVERY SINGLE DOCUMENT today. The good news is that I am going to be in Indy on Monday anyway, so I can get them re apostilled.

The bad news is that this means we are forced to get an extension from the Judge. We've never had to do this before, and I don't know how this is going to make us look. I am a little concerned about it all.

Will keep you all posted!

now that I've calmed down...

Last Monday, we got another legal statement from the Judge in Russia...yes, ANOTHER statement. I 've lost track of how many this is, maybe 6 or 7? It is still beyond me what in the world there could be to say about our documents...that hasn't already been said.

But apparently there is plenty to say - 10 pages worth!

When I heard there was 10 pages, I didn't take it well. I actually ignored it, and pretended like it wasn't happening for a few days.

Now that I've calmed down, have had a chance to think about what is really being asked - it is manageable. Most of the 10 pages are things that need to happen with our coordinator in Russia. There are 15 things we need to take care of...and of course, we have about 5 days to take care of it.

Some of these things are crazy. In our homestudy etc., there is a description of our home. The description states our house has X number of rooms. So the Judge wants a photo of every single room. Pictures of the bathrooms, my messy office. FINE! I'll do it!

The Judge says that she can't read the documents because of the way some of the things were apostilled...apparently the staple covered a word or two. FINE! I will redo that for the billionth time.

The Judge also made a comment that some of the notaries signed the documents saying "signed and sworn before me"...the Judge's comment was 'who is me'. Are you kidding? FINE! I will redo those too.

Our marriage licence from Florida is a certified copy. As I am sure you all know, certified copies have someones signature. The Judge want some kind of verification of the person's authority to certify this license. Now mind you, none of the other things that are certified copies seem to be requiring this, just the one thing that is from Florida. FINE! I will figure it out.

There are some issues with our homestudy agency, and wording in what they have provided. FINE! I will kiss up to the agency who is so sick and tired of dealing with us and this mess. I will drive to Indianapolis, incur another $300 to have documents changed, I will try to obtain certified copies of the agencies license going back to 2005. FINE!

Basically, from here, this is what will happen:

1. We give all of the requirements to the Judge before Sep. 21 deadline.
2. If the judge rejects papers saying we did not meet her requirements, then we appeal immediately

Ya - I guess I am still irritated about this document thing...but I'll do it.

the outcome of Perspective and an update

I thought I would update you on a few of the things mentioned in the Perspective post. So many of you have been praying...I want you to know that your prayers are working!

• My friend who found herself as the caregiver for her father. Well - a miracle has happened. Nursing homes that generally have a wait list of 10-12 months suddenly had an immediate opening. Her father had to qualify in several areas in order for her to be able to afford care like this - and he qualified in every category. PRAYERS ANSWERED!
• My friend with the teenage daughter with cancer. Yesterday, I was very worried about her. Her blood counts were not good...not good at all. I prayed over this all last night and today. For some reason, I was praying for her number to be 675 (which is funny, because I don't even understand anything about blood counts etc.). Well, today, her counts increased SEVERAL hundred, and were 675! Now, if they can get her fever down, and keep it down for 48 hours, she can go home! PRAYERS ANSWERED!
• My friend with the bum knee is back to her normal self...running and kind of jumping :) PRAYERS ANSWERED!
• My fashioney-friend who was having health issues has found the root of her problems. PRAYERS ANSWERED!

There are so many other prayers that have been answered recently. A friend who is adopting in Russia has a court date on September 10th. I am SO happy for her, and can't wait for the end of her journey.

We got some news about the adoption this week. Things are moving - not fast, but they are moving. The Judge has done enough wrong that is documented now that we have a strong case to be able to appeal and complain to the Russian Supreme Court. I don't know if we will have to do that - but am glad we have whatever we need to be able to do that.

We got a note today telling us that indeed, Anya has been moved to the new orphanage...the new place is in Shelechov (the same town). It was strongly suggested that we come for a visit to meet the new director.

The thing with Russian adoption is that there are basically 2 people who determine your fate. The director of the orphanage, and the prosecutor. Funny, huh? The director can make your life miserable, shop your child out to Russian families who are looking to foster a child (i.e. get government money)...or, the director can love you, and see that you and your child are a perfect family. Luckily - the later has been our experience. I don't know this new director, and it is freaking me out. If God knows that I need to go...then I am confident that He will make a way for me to go.

So that's all I know for now. I am trying to not be consumed by what is happening in Russia that I can not control or influence.

more news

After the last note that our documents were accepted by the court, I wanted to know what the next step is. This is a question that I seem to ask all the time, and rarely get an answer to. This morning - here is what I got:

Kathy, hi,
I called the judge's assistant yesterday asking for a response to the documents I sent last week. The assistant said that I should get a response this week. This is excellent news. We seem to be making progress.

I am realistic, and fully understand "Russian Time", so I am not holding my breath to hear anything before next week.

I am trying to not be too optimistic, trying to not read too much into anything...just praying, praying my heart out!

big step forward

Well, not sure what to make of this.

Last week, we got a note from our coordinator in Irkutsk that said we need to take things to the next level. Basically, this means filing a complaint against the judge, and taking our case to the Supreme Court. At one time, the thought of having to do this would almost cripple me with fear...now, it seemed to empower me.

The problem was in the Judge accepting documents. She wasn't doing it...for us, or anyone else. In the past, all of our documents were being mailed (I posted about this a while ago). Now, the Judge was saying she wasn't going to accept things that are mailed -that we had to make an appointment specifically to deliver documents -thing is, she was taking any appointments. This is all clearly against Russian law - this gave us a firm solid grievance against her.

My plan was to call our Russian coordinator tonight, and talk through the game plan. Then I got an email that simply said:
I just wanted to tell you that I had made one more attempt to submit your documents to the court. The file is in the court now.

Maybe the Judge was notified if she didn't accept the documents, that we were taking things above her head - of course, she doesn't want to look foolish or incompetent to her superiors...maybe this is why she accepted our stuff. Whatever the reason - I don't care. We're not in this to make friends and keep the peace, we're in this to get Anya home.

We will call sometime this week to get more details. But for now - this is great news, and a BIG step forward. I believe that our prayers are bring heard, and God's hand continues to move in this situation.

I'll keep you updated with any more info!

the next step

I wasn't sure what to make of the next step in this adoption process. One minute we're told that the Judge told us to resubmit in July - and the next minute we're told that we have an option: submit in July, or wait until September. (ya, waiting WASN'T an option!)

One thing that I've learned (either through experience or maturity) is to not get upset over the things I can't control. So when our coordinator said he was going to resubmit our documents this month, and when I pressed for a specific date and didn't get one...I let it go. I've also learned that when I press for answers, sometimes I don't get the REAL answer :)

As typical - once a week, I sent the obligatory status update request email to our coordinator. Generally I don't get any reply - which is in keeping with all things Russian (if there is no news, there is no reply). This week, I got a reply. It said simply that a reply from the court can take up to 4 weeks., then a few hours later, we got another reply that we are currently waiting for a reply and expect to get a statement from the Judge any day.

Call me cautiously optimistic - but 'any day' has a different definition in Russia than it does here. So I would think we should know more by the end of the month.

back on my knees

I think there is a plan. I don't know - but I think it's a plan.

We were given the option to resubmit our documents this month, or hold everything until September. Holding everything until September seemed crazy to us (I can't even say it - or type it - without making a crazy face)...so, our documents are being resubmitted to the court in Russia in the next few days.

The way things work - documents aren't delivered in person. For some reason, that never seems to work - so documents are mailed. Apparently when they are mailed, there is a signature - and that signature is proof of acceptance. Sounded like our stuff would be mailed soon...but 'soon' in Russia means a few weeks.

I'm back on my knees again over this. In some ways, it doesn't seem like anything has changed since February. In other ways, it seems like a ton of progress has been made in the past 5 months.

So for now...we pray.