Cutting Adoptions

For the last week we have been waiting to find out what the outcome will be for the memo posted on VOM earlier in the week. Stating that MOWA was going to begin cutting adoptions but up to 90% starting on March 10th. This would mean that they only write 5 letters per day. You have to have this letter to pass court. We just got off the phone with the International Coordinator for Bethany and she confirmed that they have indeed implemented this new rule.

Truth be told we really don't know what this means for us. We have heard that there are still discussions within the government (because MANY don't agree with whats happening). We have been told that this could be just a desperate plea for more staff in the MOWA office. But as it stands now only 5 cases a day will be processed.

This is extremely disheartening. And yet we are STILL waiting for a court date. Court Dates were given out last week to families we were submitted with. We were told we WOULD get a date in 2-3 weeks, well we're now past 3 weeks. So again our case just isn't the 'norm'.

So once we do get a date we really are not sure what will happen. We have been told to still attend the court date and just assume that we will not pass (because of the letter we need from MOWA). At that point we will have to wait for them to write our letter. The amount of time we have to wait for that letter is what is in question. The memo stated that they would cut adoptions by 90% so if they will only approve 5 cases per day that means they WERE approving up to 50 a day. So there is a potential for a HUGE backlog of cases needing a letter.

Please pray that this rash decision will be discussed and handled in a way which doesn't hurt the kids waiting to go to their forever homes! We're in this for the long haul. We will do WHATEVER it takes to get her home but we're just ready for things to start flowing a little more smoothly. So also if you'll just pray for encouragement for us and strength to continue on.

I have to also say I have the best friends a girl could ever hope for! Bethany, Crystal, Kelcy thank you so much for checking in on me and praying with me all the time. I love you girls!!!!

Please pray, spread the word and ACT!
As you may have heard, Joint Council recently released a Statement regarding the announcement by the Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs plan to reduce intercountry adoption by 90%. We do not have a lot of detail on why or if this is going to be temporary or permanent. JCICS has issued the following Call to Action in hopes that MoWA will reverse this decision.

Please help! by doing the following:

1)Sign the petition to the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Meles Zenawi – and pass it on!

2)Have you adopted from Ethiopia? Please send us up to 3 photos and 50 words or less with what you would like the Ministry to know about your child – we’ll compile the information and send a book to the Ministry of Woman’s Affairs. Send your photos and stories to advocate@jointcouncil.org by Sunday, March 12, 2011 to be included. Please note that sending photos and stories gives Joint Council unrestricted right to use the information you provide.

3)Share…Please send this Call to Action to family members, other adoptive parents, and everyone you know! Post, forward and share your adoption stories via Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. Make sure you include us in your posts so we can all hear your stories! Here’s links to our pages: Facebook, Twitter and our blog.

4)Stay informed: Get up-to-date information regarding the situation in Ethiopia by signing up to receive information from us: click here to do so, make sure you choose “country and issues specific information” and “Ethiopia.” And don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and our blog!

5)Help ensure our advocacy can continue: Joint Council is a non-profit and receives no government funding. Please join us in ensuring more children live in safe, permanent and loving families. Donate today!

Update!!!

Today we got update #2! I heard my special ring for our social worker and my heart skipped a beat, hoping that she was calling with a court date?! But the update is GREAT!
A is doing good. When we received our first update (3 months after referral) she had lost 6lbs. That's a lot of weight for a little girl to loose. So our hearts were very happy to see that she has gained back 1 1/2 lbs. She is getting her 3 regular meals everyday plus she is on a supplemental feeding to help with her weight gain.
In the update they said she is "a very beloved baby in the orphanage". It makes me so happy to know that the nannies are loving on her=)
Each update gives us a little better glimpse into what her personality is like. She seems very sweet and gentle from what we have heard. We just can't wait to meet her in person! Come on court date!!!!!!!

On a side note... During these very rough weeks we had been going through I was reading to the kids the children's version of Pilgrims Progress. The Lord was using that book a ton to minister to my heart. One scene in the book was when Christian gets caught by giant Despair. He is held there for a long time before he finally escapes. When he finally does escape and gets back on the Way of the King he is exhausted and weak as he continues his journey to the Celestial City. This is EXACTLY how I was feeling. Beaten up, worn out, exhausted and numb.
I was able to go to our women's retreat this past weekend. The theme was ' A Heart set on Pilgrimage' from Psalm 84:5. I know it wasn't a coincidence! In the book, when Christian is on his journey to the King he goes through some VERY dark and scary places. He can't understand why the King is allowing this or that to happen. But as he travels further down the Way of the King he can see the purpose more clearly. It doesn't make those times any less scary or difficult but it does help him when he comes to the next dark place (and he will come to another dark place) to remember what the King brought him through already.
I was sharing all this with my girlfriends during one of our breaks and when we came back in for another session guess what was laying on the table?=) As a gift to all the women everyone received the book Pilgrims Progress! Our God is so good! So faithful to come and mend our broken hearts and set us straight on The Way of the King!!!!

Bethany Joy

Taking a break from our regular scheduled programing to brag on one seriously cute chubby 18 month old=)

Finished the picture book

I'm thinking it was because of the good news we had today. I finally got the desire to finish A's picture book. We get to leave this book with her during the time we have to leave her after the first trip till we pick her up for good.
It's a fabric book so she can't tear the pages=) I'm praying that she will enjoy these pictures as much as we are enjoying the pictures of her!!!

Good news!!!!!

I FINALLY have good news to report!!!! Talked with our social worker today and our case has been submitted to court!!!! YEA YEA YEA YEA!!!!!!!!!!!
Now we wait 2-4 weeks to get a court date...but i'm totally okay with that=)
Just so happy to be out of the nightmare wait!!!!!!!!!!!!

4 months

I almost hate to post anything at this point. My blog has been so sad for months now. But so we can keep people up to date on whats happening and also to chronicle our journey to A....here we go....
What should have been a few weeks waiting to get submitted has now turned into 4 months of waiting still with no hope of when our case will get submitted.
And here we head into another week..............

I made friends with lots of other families on the Bethany Boards and two of them are currently in Ethiopia and working on our behalf. One of the families is asking around about our case and whats holding us up and the other is taking pictures and videos of A for us. I'm so thankful for all the support we have been given from people we have never even met in person! Please pray that Monday (late Sunday night) answers will be given to help us determine what is happening with our case.
We also have a conference call scheduled with HQ here in the states to see what we can find, but that isn't until the 22nd.

We are working at 'counting it all joy' during this VERY hard time. Who knew having patience and endurance worked into you could be SO incredibly painful!