Off to Trenton, NJ

I am off to Trenton to get copies of the boys birth certificates and the adoption documents Apostilled. Hopefully this will be the last time I have to visit Trenton for a very long time.

Wish me luck!
Stephanie

One Day Glitch

We have a one day glitch. It seems that our documents sent in April (to Krasnoyarsk) are no longer valid for our region. Hence, my documents were wrong and I could not get to Trenton yesterday. We are hoping to have them tomorrow and then off to Trenton we go for Apositlling (s that even a word?)

Anyway, in the meantime, we have been BUSY!!!!!!!!!

Keep your fingers crossed we get the docs tomorrow.

Another Step ....

What saves a man is to take a step. Then another step. It is always the same step, but you have to take it. ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand and Stars, 1939, translated from French by Lewis Galantière

Another Step taken. We have received our paperwork from our new Home study Agency (HAPS) and hopefully we will be in Trenton, NJ getting everything Apostilled. I am hoping to keep to our timeline (1) Tuesday 26th, drop off docs to get Apostilled, (2) Wednesday 27th, pick up Apostilled docs, (3) Put Apostilled docs overnight into UPS mail to CHI, (4) Thursday 28th, CHI receives and reviews, (5) Friday 29th, CHI put in mail to Russia!!!!!

Each little step that we take keep bringing us closer and closer to bringing Cassidy home. I have a running joke with our CHI rep (Anna) - I keep reminding her that my wedding anniversary in on August 30th, and a really good gift would be a court date. So, everyday I sent her a little email with the new countdown reminder!!!! HA HA HA.

Anyway, this weekend my mother and I continued our quest for the CUTEST clothes for Cassidy. We are slowly building her closet up (as you can see below). We found a pair of pink Uggs - How cute!!!! I hope they fit her -


I will continue to keep you all in the loop. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Stephanie

Another Pebble avoided....

Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain. ~Author Unknown

WOW - another pebble passed, unfortunately, many more are on the horizon. Today is our Homestudy update (with a new social worker). We had to start fresh with a new social worker and a new report (due to our old agency closing down). HAPS assigned us a new social worker last week and already we are scheduled for the meeting. HAPS is really on the ball. They said we would move quickly and we are. As a matter of fact, they said that we should have our paperwork completed by the end of the week. I am so happy that things seem to be going along well.

What does all of this paperwork mean? Well - It means that as soon as this documents package is back to Krasnoyarsk we can get our Official Court Date. That is hopefully the next "BIG" news that I can post.

Until then, keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Stephanie (and Dennis)

When it rains......

IT POURS!!!!

We just found out today of another glitch in our adoption process. Our homestudy agency (Adoption House) closed it's doors 2 weeks ago - and NO ONE BOTHERED TO CALL!!!! We only found out by accident because I was emailing with our local social worker. As if that was not enough, we were in the middle of homestudy update. Our new CHI rep Anna has been looking into everything for us. She is trying to get the nitty gritty on what Krasnoyarsk will need from us with this change.

But, for every rain shower, there is a rainbow. And for us, that rainbow comes in the form of Homestudy & Adoption Placement Services (HAPS) in Teaneck, NJ. They are going to be taking over our Homestudy and see what he can salvage from the old files. Dennis and I are both looking forward to working with them.

We will continue to keep you posted.
Stephanie & Dennis

A quote to end today's post -

Never think that God's delays are God's denials. Hold on; Hold fast; Hold Out. Patience is genius. (Comte de Buffon 1707-1788)

Lots of Prayers....

We ask that everyone say lots of prayers for our friends adopting in regions close to the Georgia borders (especially Astrakhan). With this conflict in the region, we (Dennis and I) are preparing ourselves for the worst. The US Government has not yet issued any restrictive travel for the Russian Federation, however, I fear our agency will postpone adoptions (due to the conflict) because of the need to travel in and out of Moscow frequently.

We are thankful that Cassidy Mariya is NO WHERE NEAR the conflict, but it does not mean that we will not be impacted from it.

I will keep you updated as I hear anything. In the meantime, please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers.
Stephanie (and Dennis)

Small Update

Some minor changes have been occurring. First, we are losing our CHI rep Marti. She is moving on but we wish her the best!!! She has been very helpful, and I hope that our new rep is as efficient.

Secondly - Things have been changing in our agency and they have been for the better. We found out that we are now able to speak directly to our representatives in our regions for documentation updates. This will eliminate "the phone game" with the middle man (as long as we cc the middle man). So, hopefully we will get more answers quickly. We have wonderful reps (Oleg, Dasha & Sveta) in the region.

Lastly - We are sending our package out to Cassidy today. We had a friend of mine at work translate a letter from Mommy & Daddy so that the caregivers can read it to her. We are also enclosing a bunch of stickers and small items (our package can't be over 1/2" thick). Hopefully she will continue to remember us and know how much we miss her and can't wait to bring her home!!!!!

As always, I will update as I can. Keep praying for us.
Stephanie (and Dennis)