The Tegeler Times: Another Hurdle Jumped

Today I finally received the email I have been waiting for - the DNA results are complete! Hooray! The woman who relinquished Levi is truly his birthmom. So, it looks as if everything is a go! Now, all we need is for the results to travel quickly to HCMC and then on to Hanoi for preapproval. Once we have that, it is 2-3 weeks for travel time. I am hoping for 2 weeks. I will definitely be putting in a word that I will take the earlier time. I have been packing things little by little for the past month or so, so it shouldn't take me long to be ready to go.

My Thankful List

salvation through Jesus Christ
my beautiful daughter who is beautiful from the inside out
a referral of an adorable little boy named Levi
a letter of intent before the September 1st deadline
God spared my daughter from serious injury when hit by a car in Colorado
a wonderful year with my "exchange daughter" from Estonia - Mari-Liis
my faithful companion for the past 6 years - Millie - my springer spaniel
the peace and joy that comes with surrendering everything to the Lord
safety through all the storms that have passed our way
my supportive family
my incredible church family
a sump pump that continued to work for 10 weeks of water and sand seepage
birds singing and bugs chirping
neighbors and friends who lend a hand in your time of need
being able to sleep withe the windows open
a new deck to enjoy summer when it stops storming so much
the sound of children playing outside on a warm summer night
heat when its cold and air conditioning when its hot
the blessing of a great job
church picnics
chocolate
beautiful sunsets over Lake Michigan
summer vacation
beautiful blue skies and warm (not hot) summer days

Adoption Timeline

July 2006 We decided to pursue adoption.
December 2006 Preliminary Application completed
January 17, 2007 Preliminary Application approved
January 20, 2007 Formal Application started
March 20, 2007 Formal Application sent to Dillon
March 26, 2007 Formal Application approved
April 5, 2007 Home study begun with Lutheran Social
Service
April 17, 2007 I-600A completed and sent in
April 23, 2007 Filing date for I-600A
May 12, 2007 Fingerprinting completed at U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Services in Chicago
June 1, 2007 Home study completed/draft received by
Dillon
June 19, 2007 Home study approval from Dillon
August 15, 2007 Advance Processing Application forwarded
to American Consulate or Embassy at
Hanoi, VN
September 11, 2007 I-171H received by Dillon
February 2008 Dossier completed
March 13, 2008 Dossier authenticated
March 17th week - Dossier sent to Vietnam
April 10, 2008 - Dossier logged in in Vietnam
July 31, 2008 - Received referral
Aug. 1, 2008 - Accepted referral
Aug. 2, 2008 - Acceptance papers sent in
August 7, 2008 - Paperwork sent out from Dillon to Vietnam
August 19, 2008 - Letter of intent filed on our behalf (We're
Official with the Vietnamese government!)
September 11, 2008 Re-fingerprinted with CIS
September 11, 2008 Step 8
October 14, 2008 Step 9
October 20, 2008 I-600 submitted for pre-approval
October 28, 2008 I-600 receipt from the consulate
November 24, 2008 DNA testing requested
Week of December 1, 2008 Levi's birthmother found; agreed to DNA testing
December 15, 2008 DNA appointment scheduled for January 16th
January 2nd - Homestudy update, physicals, and fingerprinting for state police background check
January 16th DNA appointment for Levi and his birthmom
January 19th DNA samples arrive at the Lab for testing
February 2nd DNA samples arrive at the Consulate in HCMC
February 13th Pre-approvAL
February 16th GNR date of March 2nd
February 23rd leave for Vietnam
March 2nd GNR
March 6th visa in hand
March 7th arrived in Chicago
March 8th home as a family of 3

The Tegeler Times

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Another Hurdle Jumped

7 comments:

My Thankful List

Blog Archive

background

Philippians 4:4-7

About Me

Rachel

Levi's Referral Picture

Millie

Can Tho, Vietnam

The Time in Vietnam

Hanoi

Followers

Adoption Timeline

Blogs I Like to Check In On

Links