Thursday, July 31, 2008
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Ups and Downs
I know it's been a couple of days since I have posted last. It has been an up and down week for us and for many in the adoption world. This weekend two families finally were able to travel to Vietnam to bring home their children. Hooray!! I am so excited for them!! A couple other families got I600 approvals or found that they were closer to traveling. One couple, who I believe had their dossier logged in the day before us, received a referral of a little boy this week. Those were the ups for my forum friends. But then there were the downs as well. Two of them found out that they have to have the DNA testing done on the birth mother and the child they are going to adopt. This will delay the timing for going to Vietnam to get their children. One of my blog friends, who is with another agency and has been waiting for an extremely long time for a referral of a little girl, found out this week that their agency will not be issuing anymore before the September 1st deadline. My heart aches for these families. There are no words to express my sadness for them. I would just ask that those of you reading would please pray for them. Pray that God will give them wisdom and strength and peace and patience and direction.
As for us, I am not sure whether or not we will get a referral before the deadline. We would actually have to get a referral this week in order to be far enough in the process to continue through (I think). I am still hoping and praying that they will choose to grandfather in all dossiers already logged in. But even so, I keep telling myself that God has a plan. He knows the child(ren) He has for us and the timing for that to happen. I just have to wait on Him. I have decided that whatever happens, I am going to use this time to raise the money that I will still need when I get to the point of getting a referral. Therefore, I need your help! I am looking for some fundraising ideas. If you have any that you are willing to share, would you please post them or email them to me.
As for us, I am not sure whether or not we will get a referral before the deadline. We would actually have to get a referral this week in order to be far enough in the process to continue through (I think). I am still hoping and praying that they will choose to grandfather in all dossiers already logged in. But even so, I keep telling myself that God has a plan. He knows the child(ren) He has for us and the timing for that to happen. I just have to wait on Him. I have decided that whatever happens, I am going to use this time to raise the money that I will still need when I get to the point of getting a referral. Therefore, I need your help! I am looking for some fundraising ideas. If you have any that you are willing to share, would you please post them or email them to me.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Thankfulness
As I sit here this morning reflecting on the past weekend, I am so thankful to God for the way that He always provides for us. My heart is filled with thanksgiving. Yesterday morning, after realizing that the power steering was out on my car, I was feeling rather discouraged about everything. I was tired of being home alone, really wanting to see Rachel and make sure she was okay, a little discouraged about the adoption situation, and wondering how I was going to pay to have the car fixed and pay for all the medical expenses coming my way. But God is soooo good! He has already provided answers to almost all of these situations. Rachel is home and doing fine. My neighbor has looked over my car and has already made the way for this to be less expensive than I initially thought. These are just a few of the answers He has already provided. Why do I doubt Him? Oh, how foolish I am sometimes.
The words of a song that we sang last week at church has kept playing over and over in my head all week and has helped me to keep my peace and sanity in the midst of all this craziness. The words are as follows:
One thing I know that I have found
Through all the troubles that surround
You are the Rock that never fails
You never fail.
One thing I know that I believe
Through every blessing I receive
You are the only One that stays
You always stay.
You never change
You're still the same
You are the Everlasting God
You will remain
After the day is gone and things of earth have passed
Everlasting God!
It is my prayer that everyone reading this today knows the peace of our Everlasting God who never changes, who never slumbers, who never fails. If you have never asked Him to come into your heart to live and to take charge of your life, I encourage you to do so soon. He is the only One who can give us peace in the midst of the storms that rage all around us. I have certainly found this to be true over and over in my life.
The words of a song that we sang last week at church has kept playing over and over in my head all week and has helped me to keep my peace and sanity in the midst of all this craziness. The words are as follows:
One thing I know that I have found
Through all the troubles that surround
You are the Rock that never fails
You never fail.
One thing I know that I believe
Through every blessing I receive
You are the only One that stays
You always stay.
You never change
You're still the same
You are the Everlasting God
You will remain
After the day is gone and things of earth have passed
Everlasting God!
It is my prayer that everyone reading this today knows the peace of our Everlasting God who never changes, who never slumbers, who never fails. If you have never asked Him to come into your heart to live and to take charge of your life, I encourage you to do so soon. He is the only One who can give us peace in the midst of the storms that rage all around us. I have certainly found this to be true over and over in my life.
Friday, July 18, 2008
New posting on the JCICS website
Well, here's the latest news. It doesn't sound the most promising but I do have to tell myself that our God is a God of miracles. What happened to Rachel today is proof of that. He sees far into the future and though I don't understand and am uncertain, He knows exactly what is in store for us. He knows the child(ren) He has chosen for us and He knows when is the best time to bring them into our home. Jeremiah 29:11 reminds us that He knows the plans He has for us - they are good, to prosper us, and to give us a future and a hope. This applies to Rachel and I and to the child(ren) He will bring into our lives.
July 18, 2008
The U.S. Department of State has released the following statement on their website:
Prospective adoptive parents and adoption service providers should be aware that the Vietnamese Department of International Adoptions (DIA) suspended the acceptance of new adoption dossiers on July 1, 2008. The DIA will continue to process cases received prior to July 1, 2008. The bilateral adoption agreement, required by Vietnamese law to authorize adoptions between the United States and Vietnam, expires on September 1, 2008. Prospective adoptive parents who have been matched with a child (received a formal referral) by September 1 will be allowed to process their adoption to conclusion. Dossiers that have not received a referral by September 1 will be closed and returned to the adoption service provider.
According to the DIA, a referral occurs when DIA sends a letter to prospective adoptive parents informing them that both DIA and provincial authorities have agreed to the match of a specific child. Any case where this letter has been sent to the prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) before September 1 will be considered as having a referral and will be processed to completion. DIA has reported that there are more than 1,700 applications pending as of July 1, 2008. According to DIA estimates and prior adoption trends, it is likely that referrals will be completed before September 1 for approximately 50 percent of these applications. The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam, will process to conclusion all adoptions that meet the Government of Vietnam’s criteria and deadlines.
The United States is strongly committed to processing legitimate intercountry adoptions from Vietnam. We have indicated to the Vietnamese our interest in negotiating a new agreement. An important goal for the United States is that any new agreement must establish enforceable safeguards and a transparent process which ensures that the children and families involved in the adoption process are protected from exploitation. The Government of Vietnam shares this concern. Both countries acknowledge that more needs to be done to address deficiencies in the current system. It is not possible, at this time, to predict when a new bilateral adoption agreement may be negotiated and signed.
U.S. field investigations continue to reveal incidents of serious adoption irregularities, including forged or altered documentation, cash payment to birth mothers (for other than reasonable payments for necessary activities such as administrative, court, legal, translation, and/or medical services related to the adoption), coercion or deceit to induce the birth parent(s) to release children to an orphanage, and children being offered for intercountry adoption without the knowledge or consent of their birth parents. During the month of June 2008, five children were reunited with their families after investigations by the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam revealed that the birth parents had not consented to their adoption. In July, Vietnamese media reported that police in the northern province of Nam Dinh arrested three people, including two communal health officials, for alleged child buying and creating fraudulent documentation purporting that these children had been deserted. These children had also been illegally offered for intercountry adoption; the investigation is ongoing. Vietnamese officials have informed the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi that similar investigations are occurring in other provinces.
Prospective adoptive parents who have a pending dossier with the Government of Vietnam should be aware that documents relating to adoptions in Vietnam, such as birth certificates, abandonment reports, relinquishment agreements, and investigative reports are generally issued by orphanage directors, local People’s Committees, Provincial Departments, and the Department for International Adoptions (DIA). The facts asserted in these documents are not verified by the issuing officials. Attempts by U.S. officials to verify the accuracy of these documents frequently uncover evidence of fraudulent or inaccurate information. Therefore, documents issued by the authorities listed above, and any other documents containing information not verified by the issuing authority, cannot be considered adequate evidence of the facts claimed. They may be used in conjunction with primary and contemporaneous secondary evidence, or must be independently verified by U.S. officials in Vietnam, before they can be considered valid for immigration purposes. (http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciprocity/reciprocity_3705.html)
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and the Department of State have instituted procedures to verify that children identified for placement meet the requirements of Vietnamese and U.S. law, before the child has been adopted under Vietnamese law. Information about these procedures is available from USCIS or through their website http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis. The Embassy strongly advises prospective adoptive parents not to travel to Vietnam until they have received notification from the Embassy that their case is ready for final processing and travel is appropriate. Parents should contact the Embassy immediately if anyone, including their adoption service provider, encourages them to travel to Vietnam prior to receiving this notification. The Embassy can work together with adoption service providers, Vietnam’s Department of International Adoptions, and local authorities to resolve issues such as the scheduling of a Giving and Receiving Ceremony.
July 18, 2008
The U.S. Department of State has released the following statement on their website:
Prospective adoptive parents and adoption service providers should be aware that the Vietnamese Department of International Adoptions (DIA) suspended the acceptance of new adoption dossiers on July 1, 2008. The DIA will continue to process cases received prior to July 1, 2008. The bilateral adoption agreement, required by Vietnamese law to authorize adoptions between the United States and Vietnam, expires on September 1, 2008. Prospective adoptive parents who have been matched with a child (received a formal referral) by September 1 will be allowed to process their adoption to conclusion. Dossiers that have not received a referral by September 1 will be closed and returned to the adoption service provider.
According to the DIA, a referral occurs when DIA sends a letter to prospective adoptive parents informing them that both DIA and provincial authorities have agreed to the match of a specific child. Any case where this letter has been sent to the prospective adoptive parents (PAPs) before September 1 will be considered as having a referral and will be processed to completion. DIA has reported that there are more than 1,700 applications pending as of July 1, 2008. According to DIA estimates and prior adoption trends, it is likely that referrals will be completed before September 1 for approximately 50 percent of these applications. The U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam, will process to conclusion all adoptions that meet the Government of Vietnam’s criteria and deadlines.
The United States is strongly committed to processing legitimate intercountry adoptions from Vietnam. We have indicated to the Vietnamese our interest in negotiating a new agreement. An important goal for the United States is that any new agreement must establish enforceable safeguards and a transparent process which ensures that the children and families involved in the adoption process are protected from exploitation. The Government of Vietnam shares this concern. Both countries acknowledge that more needs to be done to address deficiencies in the current system. It is not possible, at this time, to predict when a new bilateral adoption agreement may be negotiated and signed.
U.S. field investigations continue to reveal incidents of serious adoption irregularities, including forged or altered documentation, cash payment to birth mothers (for other than reasonable payments for necessary activities such as administrative, court, legal, translation, and/or medical services related to the adoption), coercion or deceit to induce the birth parent(s) to release children to an orphanage, and children being offered for intercountry adoption without the knowledge or consent of their birth parents. During the month of June 2008, five children were reunited with their families after investigations by the U.S. Embassy in Vietnam revealed that the birth parents had not consented to their adoption. In July, Vietnamese media reported that police in the northern province of Nam Dinh arrested three people, including two communal health officials, for alleged child buying and creating fraudulent documentation purporting that these children had been deserted. These children had also been illegally offered for intercountry adoption; the investigation is ongoing. Vietnamese officials have informed the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi that similar investigations are occurring in other provinces.
Prospective adoptive parents who have a pending dossier with the Government of Vietnam should be aware that documents relating to adoptions in Vietnam, such as birth certificates, abandonment reports, relinquishment agreements, and investigative reports are generally issued by orphanage directors, local People’s Committees, Provincial Departments, and the Department for International Adoptions (DIA). The facts asserted in these documents are not verified by the issuing officials. Attempts by U.S. officials to verify the accuracy of these documents frequently uncover evidence of fraudulent or inaccurate information. Therefore, documents issued by the authorities listed above, and any other documents containing information not verified by the issuing authority, cannot be considered adequate evidence of the facts claimed. They may be used in conjunction with primary and contemporaneous secondary evidence, or must be independently verified by U.S. officials in Vietnam, before they can be considered valid for immigration purposes. (http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciprocity/reciprocity_3705.html)
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and the Department of State have instituted procedures to verify that children identified for placement meet the requirements of Vietnamese and U.S. law, before the child has been adopted under Vietnamese law. Information about these procedures is available from USCIS or through their website http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis. The Embassy strongly advises prospective adoptive parents not to travel to Vietnam until they have received notification from the Embassy that their case is ready for final processing and travel is appropriate. Parents should contact the Embassy immediately if anyone, including their adoption service provider, encourages them to travel to Vietnam prior to receiving this notification. The Embassy can work together with adoption service providers, Vietnam’s Department of International Adoptions, and local authorities to resolve issues such as the scheduling of a Giving and Receiving Ceremony.
We Serve a God of Miracles
Today we had a bit of a scare. Rachel is in Colorado Springs with the youth group for the Desperation conference. The group was crossing a busy street and Rachel got "bumped" by a car. She went up onto the hood of the car and then fell onto her bottom when the car came to a stop. She rolled to move away from the car. Some guys in a truck behind the car got her over to the side of the road quickly and our youth pastor was there instantly (having run faster than he ever has, according to him). There was a lady who was a nurse on the seen who immediately checked her pulse and her eyes. The police and ambulance also came. She didn't appear to have any broken bones or concussion but our Pastor and youth pastor decided it was best to take her to the hospital to get checked out anyways. She is really pretty scraped up and will probably be bruised but God is so good. She could have been hurt far worse were the angels of God not watching over her. He is truly an amazing God!!
Of course, I wanted to get in my van and head to Colorado Springs immediately, but I know that she is in good hands. She told me to just stay home and to tell her grandparents not to worry because she is fine - a little sore but otherwise fine. One of the other female youth workers that has stayed with her the entire time said that Rachel has been amazing through the whole thing in the way that she handled it. I am so proud of her!! She is a blessing from God! She spent the evening at the hotel resting and soaking in a bath with Epson salts. I hope she can find some comfy pillows to sit on/lean on on the long bus ride home.
Of course, I wanted to get in my van and head to Colorado Springs immediately, but I know that she is in good hands. She told me to just stay home and to tell her grandparents not to worry because she is fine - a little sore but otherwise fine. One of the other female youth workers that has stayed with her the entire time said that Rachel has been amazing through the whole thing in the way that she handled it. I am so proud of her!! She is a blessing from God! She spent the evening at the hotel resting and soaking in a bath with Epson salts. I hope she can find some comfy pillows to sit on/lean on on the long bus ride home.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Miscellaneous
It's been a few days since I posted. We spent a good part of last week visiting family up north. I got to see each one of my brother's children play baseball while I was there. They are all quite talented in this area. Natalie can run as fast as anything. Way to go, Jadin! In the two innings he pitched, he struck out 5 kids! And Hazel can play any position well, from what I saw.
On Wednesday, Rachel and her cousins spent a good deal of time swimmming in my mom's friend's pool. I got some great pictures. You can see them in the slide show I've included. They sure are goofy sometimes!
Yesterday Rachel started working at the nursing home. She is already enjoying her job and has some "favorites". She is an activity therapist, so she gets to play games and talk to the residents a lot. I think it will be a great way for her to be able to appreciate what this generation has to offer.
Hooray!!! One of the families from our agency finally received approval to travel to pick up their son. They have been waiting a very long time and it was so good to hear that everything is finally falling into place for them. I pray that others out there who are waiting and have been waiting a long time will receive referrals and approvals to travel. God is faithful and we just have to believe that He has a reason for the wait, even when it seems very difficult at the time. Someday we will be able to look back and maybe understand.
We found last week that there are 10 families still waiting on a referral with our agency. We are one of those families, although I don't know where we stand in that list. I just pray that a new MOU will be worked out between Vietnam and the United States so that the September 1st deadline will not be an issue. There have been some positive steps in this direction. Let's just hope that they continue.
On Wednesday, Rachel and her cousins spent a good deal of time swimmming in my mom's friend's pool. I got some great pictures. You can see them in the slide show I've included. They sure are goofy sometimes!
Yesterday Rachel started working at the nursing home. She is already enjoying her job and has some "favorites". She is an activity therapist, so she gets to play games and talk to the residents a lot. I think it will be a great way for her to be able to appreciate what this generation has to offer.
Hooray!!! One of the families from our agency finally received approval to travel to pick up their son. They have been waiting a very long time and it was so good to hear that everything is finally falling into place for them. I pray that others out there who are waiting and have been waiting a long time will receive referrals and approvals to travel. God is faithful and we just have to believe that He has a reason for the wait, even when it seems very difficult at the time. Someday we will be able to look back and maybe understand.
We found last week that there are 10 families still waiting on a referral with our agency. We are one of those families, although I don't know where we stand in that list. I just pray that a new MOU will be worked out between Vietnam and the United States so that the September 1st deadline will not be an issue. There have been some positive steps in this direction. Let's just hope that they continue.
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