William & Charis

Today was a big day for us.  For more than a month now, we have been tracking down documents, collecting references, and making copies to complete our dossier.  Every detail had to be consistent and number had to match.  And, then every document had to be notarized…three times!  It wasn’t that difficult, but it took quite a bit of time and was seriously tedious.  But, today, it is finished!  We have finally submitted our dossier to the adoption agency.  (Pic is of Charis with our adoption paperwork after getting the final stamp at Kentucky’s state capitol.)

What’s next?  Good question.  As far as we are concerned, now we wait.  The dossier has to be shipped to Washington DC to collect a few more stamps.  Then it will be shipped to Ethiopia where it will be translated.  Eventually, we will be matched with a child (and that child’s paperwork), and together we will work through the court process.  So, we wait.

We have no real idea how long any of this will take.  We could be matched with a child in as little as 3 months, but we could be waiting as long as a year.  It all depends on what children are “paperwork ready” on that side of the ocean.  Obviously, we are hoping for the shorter time, and we expect to know something in at least 4-6 months.  But, we wait.

Please, pray with us that this process will proceed smoothly and quickly.  There are literally millions of children in Ethiopia that need to be adopted, but the process has to run its course.  Please pray that unnecessary bureaucracy will not hold up our adoption.  Pray that  the courts and government agencies will work well together.  And, please pray with us that our child is kept safe and warm and loved until we can bring him/her home.