Updates

Yes it is true that I did not post once the whole month of July.
Partially because I was gone from 7/11 to 7/31 and partially because I didn't have much new news, but always have thoughts of things to post.

(I'll have to post later about the Riley Family reunion- my mom is one of 13 children and they are always so much fun. We also attended the second annual golf tournament in memory of my dad. This year the funds went to Ukraine missions.)

Ok- onto the updates!!

We found out that our case was resubmitted to PGN with our PA on 7/5!! That is good news. We hadn't heard anything so we were concerned and thinking that we were still waiting for our case to be resubmitted- so it was wonderful to hear we were already in for four weeks!

We are praying to hear that we are out of PGN by the end of the month (or sooner would be just fine with us!)

PGN Clarification

I had a few people email me or ask more about the PGN process and what it means in terms of when Samuel comes home. (For those of you following the outline I posted back in May, we are at Step 16. See http://roadtosamuel.blogspot.com/2007/05/process-overview.html)

I had initially thought we would be in PGN by end of July and then moved up to hoping we would be in by beginning of July. And so to go in on June 15th is exciting!! So far then, we have moved along quicker than "average", whatever average means:) But it does seem that some cases move quickly at one point in the process and then hit bumps later...and others that have so many obstacles getting started and then sail along. And then of course ones that seem slow going the whole way through. (I am on our agency's discussion board and can attest to the heartache and uncertainty of the process, it is not for the faint of heart)

PGN is similar to an Attorney Generals office- and is the last process that our case goes through. When it is done with PGN- you will hear a big shout that we are out!

So that is great news- what is a little harder to handle is that the time frames for being in PGN vary ridiculously!! I won't even tell you the range that we heard while we were in Guatemala.

But on average, it seems cases are in 2-3 months. It is unusual for someone's case to go through without any kickouts. I believe our agency says on average a family has 3-5 kickouts (those don't have to be at separate times, we may get one kickout for 3-5 "previos"- things that need to be fixed.) There is one family on our agency's board that went through in six weeks without any kickouts. And another family that just got out last week after six months.

So let's say we go through in six weeks- that means we would be out of PGN on July 27th. And would travel about a month after that to bring Samuel home (or however long to have his birth certificate and visa issued). So he could be home end of August.

If it takes three months (or 12 weeks)- we would be out on Sept 7th (which would be his 7 month bday!!) And home mid October.

If it takes....ok I'm not going there!

Which is actually kind of reassuring to me to see that we are on track for what we posted earlier. I think we had said the earliest we could have him home would be August and that more likely Oct or Nov.

Does that help?

I wish we had a date we could say he will be here. We often get asked that...and it is hard to keep saying I don't know. But keep asking because someday I will be able to tell you- our Embassy appointment is on Wed at 8:15am!! (It does seem they are all early in the morning)

Thank you once again for praying for us and cheering us on. I cannot wait until the day when Samuel gets to meet each one of you.

PGN- We Are In

The email came this morning saying we were submitted to PGN on June 15th.

We were entered without our PA- which some attorneys do in hopes of speeding up the process. I had heard of that, but didn't know our attorney would do that.

(The thought is that the file is going to be kicked out for something. By submitting without PA, when the file is kicked out, the attorney can fix those issues and resubmit with PA. The hope is that the file is being reviewed while the wait occurs for PA.)

If that doesn't make sense, you can just say "Whooo Hooo" they got into PGN. That's what Rob decided this morning after I was explaining the pros and cons of going into PGN without PA- bottom line, it's good we are in PGN. It may speed up what our case would have been, or it may be the same time frame....but we are in- the last leg of the journey!!!!

One more day closer to Samuel.

Rob was born in Pittsburgh......

PA!!




Ok that was my attempt at a clever way to announce that we received PA.

I was on my way back from lunch with a friend when Rob called me. (After all my obsessive hourly refreshing of my email...Rob is the one to see it first.) It said "a pre-approval has been issued for the above mentioned adoption case. You may pick up the pre-approval at Window 10." That made us want to head back down to Guatemala to be at Window 10 first thing Monday morning....but I suppose we will leave that to the attorney to pick up.

So we now wait for our case to enter PGN.

(I guess when I'm feeling really impatient about something, I should just post it on the blog.)

Happy Friday night.

4:30 Blues

I have been noticing that since being back, every weekday about 4:30pm I start getting sad. It is connected to the realization that another day has gone by without an update or news on our adoption process. Usually emails from our case worker come first thing in the morning or around 4-5pm.

I've been hoping for either an email saying we have PA (those have actually been coming on Saturdays) and even more so this week, an email with a medical update. We typically get those once a month, after Samuel has had his x month checkup. He turned 4 months on 6/7 and yet no update. Of course we were there with him when he turned 4 months, so I know it was most likely the next week that he went to the doctor. I'm not anxious for pictures, but just for something to document how he is doing.

I suppose it stems from a whole week of watching his every breath. Of knowing all that he was doing. And the last I saw was on June 8th, him leaving in a taxi with the foster family. Did they make it to the bus ok? How was their five hour journey home? Did he have to adjust back? Does he miss us?

It is so much harder to wait now that we have experienced his presence.

Come on PA and come on Medical Update.

Waiting for PA

The next step on the paperwork journey is Pre Approval (PA). This is issued by the US Embassy in Guatemala. It allows us to enter PGN- the final leg of this journey. (See my post below for all the steps. We are on step 15.)

Recently the US Embassy gave notification that PA would begin to take up to 60 days (measured from when DNA results are matched and at the embassy). We are on about Day 53.

The wait feels like it has intensified since being with Samuel for the week.

I don't want to forget what it felt like to hold him and what he smelt like and how he giggled when he took a bath.

Please pray for PA to come soon.

Happy Fathers Day

Happy Fathers Day to all of you fathers and to all of you who father in many ways.

Happy Fathers Day to Rob- the father of Samuel. I can not wait to see you day to day as a father- all of your dreams of parenting and guiding and talking and shepherding. You are an amazing man, an amazing Dad. How many babies will grow up knowing all about theology and heat transfer? And how many will have a dad who is so enthusiastic about life- who loves to celebrate each milestone? You have already written volumes to your son. I don't know if he will ever see all the words your have written to him and on his behalf. But I do know he will see how those words are lived out in your life. And he will be impacted. What is that Lewis quote, "the pain now is part of the joy later. Or the joy now is part of the pain later". I suppose both are true in the journey of being a dad. Thank you for not letting go of either.

And of course I can't think of Fathers Day without thinking of my dad. It is bittersweet as I think of Samuel...and that in this life he will not know my dad. I promise he will grow up knowing lots of stories of his grandfather. There are a lot to tell. Your grandfather, your abuelo, was a man full of life and passion. He gave of himself to relationships and coffee and Sunday night basketball. He loved your abuela since he was only 18....and he cherished his only daughter. Because of the love and security he gave his daughter, she grew into a woman who could endure such loss and still hope for you. She grew into a woman who could tenderly accept the love of the world around her, and trust something bigger than herself to protect from it's harm. His life here ended too quickly, too unexpectedly. But he died in the way he lived- running up and down the basketball court, sharing his faith and showing the world how much he loved his family.

Fathers leave us with many marks- some of harm and some of grace. Thank you Father that my experiences have been gifts, legacies that I will carry on. And even more than that, thank you that you are a redeemer and in those places of harm and abuse that so many in my world have known, you can step in and be a tender Father- and one who will fight for our healing.
Happy Father's Day to you too.