Prayer Request & Week 10 in USA.

Fritzlin continues to do very well with all the major changes that come with living in the USA.

 Lots of interesting things to do:

• Open-house and 4th of July parties
• 10 church visits so far. Children's church
• Visits with family- including Fritz's second forster family. Plan to meet with his first foster family next week. 
• Medical visits: eye doctor, dentist, health department, labs. ALL GOOD!
• Swimming, library, garage sales, restaurants
• Lots of new foods and different types of ice cream.
• TV shows...not enough TV time but we figure that is typical for 7 year olds.
• Visiting Lake Michigan

We even have managed to complete first grade math and are very close to finishing up hand-writing and reading.

Our agency and other experts tell us that because of the way the paperwork was filed and visa given that Fritzlin IS an American citizen. 

BUT....because we also live outside of the USA there is a grey area. 

We have been asked to submit additional documentation. At this time if nothing changes Fritzlin will not be getting a Certificate of Citizenship.

We are not totally clear what that would mean in the future.

We have all the papers needed to get Fritzlin's American passport but if then he would receive a green card things would be very complicated.

So while he is an American....getting the paperwork to prove it, his Certificate of Citizenship, could be 'challenging'. 

We hope to be able to return to Haiti shortly after Eli and Anna start college classes on September 4th. 

I'll post here for adoption specific issues and rare updates.

To follow Friztlin's adjustment and our family, click the tab at the top of this page labeled 'Blog' to go to our normal ministry/family updates.

Thank you for your prayers. 

Flowers and thorns

Still waiting to hear that the final signature is on our chart and the pick up is arranged or occurred.

Waiting has not gotten easier with time or practice, for me.

Looking back to a few journal entries a year ago when the time grew short for our referral and being able to have Eli go on our socialization trip the emotions are easily similar as we rapidly approach the 1 year mark of waiting to exit IBESR and enter courts after meeting F.

Some days hope soars high and praise comes easier...but other days it takes every bit of concentration and intentionality to focus my thoughts on worship, praise and trust.

[Like flowers and thorns on the same plant-good moments and painful ones. Must try to focus on the flowers while acknowledging the thorns at the same time.]

While I don't believe in signs or clues, occasionally thoughts flitter through my mind...this date would be nice, this would work, why not this...what am I missing or what lesson haven't I learned that's holding us back?

Like if I could just figure out the game or one clue then we would be able to move to the next step. The right prayer or the right way to pray or worship...even though I know that my Lord doesn't work that way.

Encouragement comes from many different places: emails, prayers of friends, instant messaging with family, songs, books, or other.

Yesterday's encouragement came during my devotions. I Thess 3: 9-12. "How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? 

Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. 

Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you."

My prayers for us and F, "Clear the way Lord!"

Door first opened: 3 years 8.5 months
Paperwork first in the mail: 3 years 1 month
IBESR: 2 years 3 months
Waiting to get out after socialization: 11 months tomorrow
Last saw F: 5.5 months

I-600 families received a 3 month extension, until July 1st, for receiving an official referral before they would have to change over to I-800. We are beyond this step but our I-600 will expire in November.

Delay...missing paper.

The following is from an email we sent to a group of special folks who specifically are praying for our adoption. I find it interesting that the email from our social worker came in one minute before the encouraging one from our sister-in-law. 

"When I forwarded the email about our fingerprints being sent electronically to our social worker I once again asked if there was any word on our delay. 

With.., this has proved to be quite frustrating but we have provided them with your I600A approval approx. 4 times within the last three months. They have told us that this is the only thing preventing you from exiting. We provide it and then they request it again several weeks or a month later saying they don’t have it. We provide proof (a photo of the doc with the person’s signature that accepted it) but they still say they don’t have it. Our man, J, as well as a... staffer has provided it to them. It’s really getting to where J just carries it with him every time he goes there, just in case they need it again.

We’re expecting any day though, unless they come up with another reason we’re still waiting.

This paperwork (I600A) was turned in as well in May and our original copy in August. Please pray that this issue is resolved today and no other problems. My sister-in-law wrote today an email how she changed up her prayers for F. An adoptive parent reminded her that Satan does not want children adopted into Christ filled homes and will fight the process. Here’s part of her e-mail

I don't know why I have dismissed this idea in the past, well I guess I do, Satan loves it when we blame things on life or the system, when it is him.  He is constantly wreaking havoc.

So I am praying that he gets out of the way, that he stops putting things in the way of the officials and hiding your paperwork.  I am praying that he stops interfering with your family, and soon to be new son.

I hope this help you and encourages you.  This week lesson has been all about strapping on the belt of truth, girding ourselves in truth.  Remember God's truths, and fight back!

Praying that the hidden paperwork is found TODAY. [Note my sister-in-law doesn’t know yet about the paper being submitted 6 times] Praying for protection on each paper and signature in our chart. Praying for protection-physical, mental, and emotional- for each person involved in the process. 

Thank you for fighting with us.  Living in Haiti where Satan’s followers will celebrate this Friday that Christ died and was defeated. We are often reminded of his power but we know that the LORD WILL Be Victorious! Our God Reigns. He’s NOT dead or defeated!

Happy Easter, 

Cory, Kris, Eli, Anna, and F"

While I'm waiting..answered prayer!

Ten months ago we sat with the social worker for our second meeting during our socialization. Hopes ran high following the 15 month wait for our referral.

I would never have guessed that ten months later we would still be waiting for word that our case entered courts...sigh. More than double the average of other families.

Do not want to be facing a longer wait. Do not want to be in the middle of struggling how to get our I600 fingerprints renewed with the office in Port-au-Prince not responding to our email or phone message.

After a few months of peace or maybe indifference when I found my expectations muted and my hyper-vigilence of checking our emails frequently gone I find my hopes rising again with the spring breezes.

I know the Lord will move our chart in His timing...I also know that the next two weeks the IBESR staff has said they will be working to get referrals out to the I600 families. If these families do not get a referral by April 1st they will need to redo their paperwork for a I800 [Hauge convention] visa.

I'll admit to hoping that maybe our chart is in a pile of I600 charts and will be found [completed] and moved to the pick-up desk. 

While watching a video yesterday I found a new song of encouragement, John Waller's 'While I'm waiting'.

So while you pray for our fingerprint appointment, for our case to move from IBESR to courts would you also pray that we wait well...that we will continue to serve the Lord and worship Him wholeheartedly while we wait.

Edited to add: Just minutes after posting this we heard that we do NOT need a fingerprint appointment at the Embassy as they can resubmit our fingerprint data electronically. Praying that they know the truth and what we heard earlier about needing to have them redone was wrong. We should hear about our clearance in a couple weeks.

Year Two in IBESR ... done.

If you look to the side bar time-line you'll note that we only made one step forward in 2014, entering IBESR on January 14th as file number 42.

How I would love to write under 2016 January 14th, file # 42 exited IBESR.... but at this point only the Lord knows.

Really hoping we do NOT have to start year three.

Our house...waiting.

Can He open the doors and let us out of IBESR? YES!

Can He allow us to hear about exiting today? YES!

Will He?
Do not know but will continue to trust Him, praise Him and worship Him even if not!

We did not learn we entered IBESR back in 2014 until the end of January so I do not know how we spent the day.

I do know we prayed about our match, our paperwork and our 'children' because that has occurred daily since we started this journey.

We remain thankful that during the wait many caring people care for and surround F with love. Any news about him is precious and I'm thankful to hear bits and pieces now and then.

This week we heard he is ready to come 'home' and tells everyone he meets that he is going to his 'forever family'.

We think we are as ready as we can be as well...
So we do what we can do, continue to pray and praise.

Tired

While I'm thankful to see this morning that someone exited yesterday from IBESR I still wonder why not us?

Yes, they entered the same month we did, but they matched in September and bonded in October, so only a little over two months to exit.

 Eight months ago, the last signature for our referral was added to our chart. We matched and bonded in early May.


In 9 days we will be 2 YEARS in IBESR. [1, 257 days since the door opened to our adoption journey]

Honestly, I'm tired of waiting.
   Tired of praying to exit.
   Tired of wondering when F will come home.    
   Tired of not being able to make plans without
       having to add 'depending on our adoption
       timeline'.
   Tired of waiting to order kindergarten supplies.  
   Tired of speculating about F's homecoming.
   Tired of guessing when we get to see him again
       and how our interactions will look like now
       that he knows we are his family.
   Tired of puzzling over the delays.
   Tired of thinking about renewing paperwork or starting visa paperwork over again.

• I confess my weaknesses to my support team so that you can pray.
• I thank the Lord for our support team and F's team providing care of him and pouring love and attention into his life.
• I turn up the volume on praise songs and repeat my encouraging 'adoption play list' songs. 
• I choose to keep my eyes on the Lord. 
• To say I will wait on Him. 
• I ask for the strength and wisdom to wait well. 
• I will pray for His will. 
• I call on His strength to hold us up. 
• I request that F and all of us will remain full of hope and confidence in our heavenly Father. 
• I stand on His promises. 
• I request intervention and miracles. 
• We claim victory. 

This morning in church a young man shared a story and repeated this verse several times.

Psalm 50:15 "call upon me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you will honor me"

also saw this one this morning in a blog Psalm 71:14 "As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more. "

Lord deliver us. Lord we will honor you even during the wait. Lord help us to always have hope in You and praise You!

Praying for peace and progress.

Sunday we watched the dedication of two beautiful baby girls in church.

 The sermon scripture was Judges 13: 1- which talks about when Samson’s mother hear from the messenger of the Lord that she would be having a son. 

Needless to say, both of these events caused me to think again about F’s homecoming.

Thankful that despite many protests last week in Port-au-Prince we heard about a referral and an IBESR exit, indicating that the office did open.

Thankful for additional people letting us know that they are praying for a Thanksgiving miracle.

Requests:

• Calmness in Port-au-Prince, so that staff can travel to work and to work on cases. Election protests tangle traffic, shut offices, and keep people from appointments/work.
• For staff to focus on signing charts so that both referrals and exits can occur from IBESR, including our chart.
• Heath and protection for the staff so that they attend to their jobs and get work done.
• Resources for doing the needed work: people, supplies, time, energy.
• Protection for our chart. Nothing lost, stained, damaged. No mistakes that will add on time.
• Praying for wisdom and patience for the staff interacting and preparing F for this big change.
• Praying that F will not get frustrated with waiting and will continue to have hope about coming home soon.

Growing Hope

Yesterday our message in church focused on persistent prayers.

In the midst of protests causing issues in many parts of the country, including the capital where our paperwork waits to be released, we hold on to hope.

As the staff continue to prepare F for his new family, his hope also grows.

I'll admit to being a bit concerned...OK stressed with our Nov. 11 deadline looming ahead that we would not hear about our extension. Possible travel strikes in Port had been called for today-Wednesday, which could have closed down the Embassy.

I even considered sending a second e-mail with a more dramatic subject despite knowing that they requested patience 'If you have a pending case and are asking for an extension of your deadline to submit the final adoption documents or need a status update on your case, please take note that we answer our e-mail on a first-come first-served basis.  There is no need to send duplicate e-mails. '

Praise the Lord. Early this morning, 9:45 a.m. to be exact, we received our extension. Hopefully the last we will need.

We received two e-mails this week from different members of a small supporting church sharing how they studied in Acts about praying continuously for Paul's release from prison and how the angel took him out of jail. They stopped at that point to pray that F can come home soon. Praying for the chains to fall off and freedom be realized. 

Praying for peace in Port. 

Praying for F and those interacting with him daily.

Praying for the Lord to prepare each of us for the transition to our new family.

Thank you!

Waiting and praying

 As my parents and Eli look into booking tickets to visit for Christmas, I cannot help but pray that F will be with our family by then.

Hearing the voices of children daily outside our home reminds me to continue to pray for all the Haitian children waiting for adoption paperwork to join their new families.

I am tired of not hearing anything about our adoption, week after week.

I find it hard to put into new words the same requests in an attempt to keep the hope fresh.

As the days of the year continue to add up, I find my hopes for Christmas dimming while I continue to
pray for the Lord to work miracles.

Sadly some families who thought they were nearing the end of their long adoption journeys learned that they may need to return several steps backward and redo some of the paperwork.

This concerns the wording on their adoptions and the USA visa situation so people who did 'simple' adoptions starting back before Nov. 2013, and paperwork does not read 'plenary'.

Any bump in the road that causes cases to have to be resubmitted can provoke delays for the rest of the cases waiting to be dealt with by the same staff.

Thankfully, a few cases continue to move forward, and we rejoice with each family home coming and each family moving up a step in the process.

We continue to pray to exit IBESR and enter the court system. We continue to dream of Christmas as a complete family, knowing the charts, process, timing and each one of us remain in the Lord's Hand.

We pray for the staff and system.

We praise the Lord for allowing us to start this journey, to have met F and his foster families and friends. Praise the Lord for His love and promise to be with us and keep us.

Types of adoption cases in Haiti. Prayer

Because of the changes in the adoption process in Haiti, currently, three different groups exist going through the processes.

Some folks marking their adoption journey by many years, started before the law changed on November 15, 2013.  Because of this, they fall under old law status.

Some families, like ours, started the process and entered IBESR after November, 15 but before Haiti joined the Hauge conference on April 1st, 2014. This second set of transition cases are 'new law, non-Hauge'.

All charts entering the system after April 1st, 2014 need to be Hauge compliant.

As you can imagine having many cases that fall under different laws and different requirements add many layers of complexity to an already complicated and long process.

The workers reportedly are 'perplexed' and not moving many transition cases out of IBESR.

Thankfully some of the adoption agencies working with transition cases are talking together and working to clarify and help move the cases forward.

Please join us in prayer:

• for IBESR workers and the other steps to be able to keep the different requirements straight for the different types of cases and work in a timely, competent manner. 
• for the old law cases to move ahead and finally get to bring their children home.
• for the new law/non-Haugue to also move forward. Praying for F to be able to come home.
• for the USA visa process and passports to also be working through cases without long delays
• for the new families just starting the process waiting behind the transition cases.
• for all the children needing loving families who continue to wait in orphanages. 
• for the children who can't enter orphanages because there is no room.
• for the added expense to the orphanages who continue to care for children for years due to the protracted length of the adoption process.
• for the extra expenses for the adoption families who need to update paperwork expiring because of the long process. 

Thank you.

Still waiting...

Today marks our 15th month in IBESR waiting for a referral and four weeks since the 'keep your phones on' e-mail.

Two days ago marked the 'two months before we fly to the USA' date.

Trying to wait well with complete confidence in the Lord's plan and timing has me asking more and more people for prayer.

I'll confess I find myself frequently reminding the Lord that a referral this week before the bonding trip in the next four weeks would be great. No need to fly back to Haiti for the bonding trip and to postpone/ cancel church visits or appointments. Both Eli and Anna could easier go with us [if allowed by the orphanage]. No additional costs for changing our flights or tacking on an extra trip.

My head knows that the Lord sees the bigger picture, loves us, knows the plan and has the power to execute the plan as He sees fit. My heart longs to jump up and down with hope and joy more than sitting calmly at His feet praising Him while I wait calmly.

I like to pray as specifically as I can but after years of praying for our adoption process, I'm finding myself running out of ways to keep saying, asking, thanking the Lord for the same issues, needs, and wants.

I want to move to the next step. I want to bargain with the Lord to move things along. I want to know facts. However, more than all that I want HIS WILL.

A dear friend who's walked this walk wrote me this last week: "And for the adoption.  I know that your logistics are different from ours here.  But I think every adopting parent has hoops that look impossible and horrible and strike terror to the heart.  But I can't get away from the fact that he led you this far.  And he isn't the kind who takes you into the middle of the Red Sea that is piled up on both sides, walking on dry ground, only to pull a trick and let the water come crashing down.  No.  He will get you ALL THE WAY across.  You WILL hold your children.  He will finish what he started.  He will hold you up until it is done.  And then some more."

So pray for me.

Pray for us, to be content in the wait, knowing 100% that the Lord's way is best. He's actively interceding for our family and our child/children.

Pray that we can praise Him wholeheartedly, giving Him the honor and praise that only His deserves.

Pray we can keep our eyes on Him and not get distracted. That we can focus during our days on the opportunities before us to serve Him with love and joy filled hearts.

He cares for the flowers, animals and knows the hairs on each head. He loves each of us with an unconditional love. He cares for me, you and each life.

Thank you for joining us in prayer.

P.S. Someone on the Facebook group posted that IBESR may start up parent interviews again in May.

Need home study update.

Our updated paperwork just needs to be put into a large envelope and addressed, as the team will bring it to the USA and put it into the mail.


We used a Haitian notary to complete it before we started getting busy with the team.

We located an American social worker to come visit so that she can write a one page update for the original social worker who did our home study. Unfortunately for us, due to vehicle troubles she has not yet been able to drive up to visit.

Praying we figure out a way for her to visit soon or we'll need to start to look for someone else.

The paperwork needs to get to CA, assuming notarized, and the gold seal added before being sent in to the US government office.

Due by May 23.

Continue to wait for our referral. Think the step after accepting the match is to write a letter stating our intent to adopt the child/children and that will need to be notarized as well.

An Embassy meeting is scheduled to occur in Cap Haitian on March 19th. Many reasons we'd like to match by then but one would be so we don't need to travel the 6+ hours, overnight to get one letter signed at the Embassy....but will do it if need be.

After then we would schedule our two week bonding trip. Over one year ago we started the wait for our referral.

We continue to wait.

Last week the countdown to our USA trip started with the purchase of tickets for June 12th.

Trying to wait well, trusting in the Lord, in His plan.....but it is hard. Getting harder.

Please pray for us. Pray for us to have patience. To increase our faith. For the Lord to open the doors and make a way for our family to grow according to His plan. No delays from the devil.

[Photos-my new Amazon lily (Eucharist lily). Fitting as we just celebrated 20 years after our engagement in the Amazon rain forest of Brazil.]

Finger print renewal and more paperwork

Received our updated I-600a provisional approval, I-171H in the mail this week with the new date for our fingerprint expiration now reading, April 27, 2016.

Confirmed that no Haitian social workers work in northern Haiti and contacted the closest ex-pat social worker than we know of living in Haiti.

Will try to work out a time for her to visit in the next couple months and if we cannot get a date that works we will start to contact other social workers in Port-au-Prince.

This week we started to fill out updated information for our agency. Thankfully not as much as the first time around but still we pray this will be the last time.


Have the medical part already completed during our visit to LaGonave, including the needed TB skin test.

With major transportation strikes the last few weeks closing down parts of the country and Carnival this week doubt that much business will get done.

The opposition party threatens to renew and strength the transportation strike after Carnival if the government does not make the changes that they want.

Please continue to pray for:

•  the Haitian government
• for political stability
• for referrals 
• for our referral to come soon
• we can find a social worker for our home study renewal
• completion of our update paperwork
• that our bonding trip would not conflict with other scheduled events
• that we wait well and learn the lessons we need to learn
• for the additional prayer request on the side bar
• and mostly that the Lord's plan for our lives and those of our child [children] will be done. 

10 months in IBESR. No personal news.

Keeping busy with the book translation and school helps fill up the time between prayers and keeps me from pondering too deeply the process as we continue to wait.

Our file passed the 10 month mark in IBESR without any news.

I knew that we needed to renew our fingerprints sometime in January so early November I pulled the information to review it. The form can be used for different steps and confused me for a while. Thankfully the part that needs the updated home study will not be due until after late February and not in 2 weeks as we initially thought.

The two week deadline was only for contacting USCIS for an appointment to update our prints. They responded by e-mail the same day and directed us to the Haiti branch. That E-mail was not responded to in the ‘7 business days’ so we resent it today.

Not worried about it at this point as we started the ‘paper trail’ that proves we did start more than two months before expiration working to get the renewal done.

Praise! Heard of one mayor going to sign chart of an abandoned child. Pray for the mayor of the area served by God's Littlest Angles to go and sign off on 17 of their children's charts so that they can match with their families and get one step closer to home.

A recent meeting at the US Embassy on International Adoption and the Hague occurred. According to Dixie from God’s Littlest Angles it was very informative and interesting.

Main Points: [Full blog here and the previous blog]

Visa approval may now take 4-8 weeks after the USCIS approval of I-604 [used to be just days] as they look into the validity of the documents.

Looks like the director of the orphanage where the child is may get to sit in on the matching committee and have a voice in the match.

Children’s court: Sounds like Judge Gabard understands the process but Judge Marlene is not.

Family dossiers entered into IBESR after Oct. 1st will be treated as Hague Cases. These will not have the US Immigration Service doing Orphan Investigations as they will be done by the State Department and Adoption Section of the US Consulate.

Folks to pray for:
Adoption Chief [3 years] Ms. Chinwe Obianwu
USCIS field office Director Mr. Richard Polny [starts in Dec.]
Children’s Court Judges Judge Gabard, Judge Marlene
        Local mayors to sign off on abandonment cases.


Staff in Government departments: Justice [courts both Civil and Children’s] Immigration, Social Services [IBESR], Archives, and Mayor’s offices.

Referrals have started!!

Rejoicing with each family who's received a referral in the last couple of months.

In September at least one family a day from the Facebook group fasted and prayed for the process but disappointment hit at the end of the month with news of only 5 referrals.

October passed with only a couple at the end of the month. But already in November there is news of 10!!! Yeah! Praise the Lord.

Apparently the director had been gone for a couple weeks in October but is now back at work. Praying for many families to move up a step in the process before the holiday slow down next month.

Just read of the first Italian family getting a match!

No news from our agency. So we pray and wait.

Folks with other agencies report that they heard that IBESR will not be matching anyone with children until some time next year when they have a committee in place to do so. If this is true then we would be in that group. It could be possible that our agency submitted our chart with a suggestion of children without telling us-then we could match earlier.

Praying that if waiting children have all their paperwork in place they do NOT need to wait until some time next year for a committee to form and do matches. Especially those with medical issues, sibling groups, older children or abandoned children.

Ultimately the Lord controls when we match, with whom we match and with what orphanage. Trusting in Him!

Praying that we can wait well, praising Him, trusting Him. Praying that we're becoming the family our little ones need us to be. Praying we don't miss the lessons we should be learning during the wait.

Why the long referral wait?

Adoption consists of a complicated process that produces a lot of paperwork. [and just telling of this one step...a long blog]

Times of transition generally mean backlogs of charts and delays with the discussion and implementation of proposed changes. Haiti's transitional delays we pray result in a smoother system with reduced possibilities of abuse.

One of the big changes in Haiti's adoption process involves declaring a child's adaptability status prior to referral. This should prevent referral of children not meeting 'adoptable requirements' of Haitian and American governments.

In theory: A Haitian family meets with the social service team and makes an adoption plan. If after every possible effort to keep the family together, including education, and counseling the family stand firm on the decision to place the child up for adoption and IBESR agrees it is in the child's best interest, a one-month waiting period starts. After a full month, consent can be granted.

Abandoned children remain in an orphanage for at least 6 months while the family is looked for after which time IBESR can decide to make a referral for adoption. The mayor of the area where the child was found will need to appear in Children's court.

Child's Dossier - after IBESR declares the child adoptable these items need to be collected:

1. Passport Pictures
2. Birth Certificate
3. Attestation of signature on Birth Certificate or a copy from the National Archives
4. Legal relinquishment of custody by family/mayor if abandoned in family Court [this step can take 2-3 visits]
5. Death certificates and extracts from archives of biological parents if applies
6. Parent's marriage certificate if applies
7. Psychological evaluation
8. Medical evaluation
9. Laboratory tests
10. Social history

Now a referral can be proposed. The orphanage/creche directors will be asked to review the charts of waiting families. Once IBESR approves a potential match  the adoption agency will be given an official letter, and the family notified. After notification, the family will have 15 days to consider the match and accept or decline the referral. 

At this time, no one knows what will happen should a family not feel able to accept a proposed referral. 

As you can see there are many steps in the process and many potential areas for delays and problems. Praying for protection for everyone, every step, every paper, and every signature.   

Pray for us to be patient, wait well, and for our children while they wait too. Yesterday marked our 9th month in IBESR.  

No families without a 'soft' or 'pre-matched' admission to IBESR along with a proposed child have yet reported a match by IBESR on the Facebook group.  

We know that generally a child's development becomes more delayed for every month they live in an institutionalized setting, but we're praying our children will miraculously thrive.   

September Prayers Update

Very small wild flowers

Just passed the middle of September this week...keep praying.

In the Facebook group for Haiti adoptions the celebration for four new referrals continues as do the prayers that many more will follow in rapid sucession.

A new update from God's Littlest Angels can be seen here.
     -yesterday they received 17 dossiers for abandoned children in their care to take to children's courts for the mayor to sign, joining the 4 from earlier. [after this step families will receive referrals for these children]
     -other creches have also received dossiers.
     -no more lists of possible matches will be accepted by IBESR from the creches
     -no new dossiers accepted this month.

Praises:

• A few referrals made
• Children's dossiers released for the Children's Court Step
•  Visiting churches with our guests allow us to remind them to pray for Haiti's families and children in orphanages as well as for our children specifically.
• An update from our new international adoption coordinator in the USA. Nothing new to report but happy that it looks like we will be getting timely updates.

Prayer:

• Continued referrals
• Children's Courts to work in a timely fashion
• families and mayors to make their court dates
• Bonding trip dates-need to be coordinated with IBESR
• Release from IBESR of families already completed their bonding trip
• release of old law/ procedure families
• Improvement of efficiency, accuracy, organization of IBESR
• Progress for folks in the other steps that follow IBESR-courts, visas, passports
• All USA adoption agencies need renewed permission to work in Haiti.
• Working out of new fees for the new process and for the families needing to cover the increased costs
• Orphanages and creches taking care of the children
• Waiting families
• Transition to families

Thank you!

September prayers.

Tiny flowers on a weed in the yard. 

IBESR closed their doors to new dossiers for the month of September to have a chance to 'catch up on all the current cases'.  Praying they get a miraculous amount of work done!!

A Haitian lawyer commented on a Facebook group that the new procedure is so complicated 'a web' that IBESR would likely not be giving referrals for months yet.

But we serve a big, all-powerful God and pray for His compassion, pity, grace and mercy for the orphans knowing He can bring order and efficiency out of chaos.

We rejoice this morning with a women who after 18 months in IBESR waiting for a referral for a girl received it yesterday!!

Praying for families now in the process for 4-7 years. Praying for the truth to be known if they will not be able to complete the process or if they can for rapid movement. 

While we would love to pray specifically for our children by name, their families by name, know ages and location, look at pictures, we're honored to be praying for the Lord's will and His timing.

Praying for the USA adoption agencies working in Haiti. They had to resubmit their paperwork for licenses in August and may learn in October which agencies licenses were renewed. 

Blogged some specific requests in more detail on our family blog: September Challenge

Pick Me!!

Dragon Fruit blossom, they bloom at night. 

Remember the classmate who always wanted to be picked for a team or to give the answer in class.

That's how I feel when I think about our chart sitting in a room with hundreds of other charts. Pick me!!! Pick our family! Arms waving. Body wiggling. Voice loud. 

Then I think of the folks who passed the 1 1/2  or three-year wait mark…pick them and us!!  

Start making referrals. Pick someone!

When I read blogs or web pages encouraging folks to consider adopting because thousands of children continue to wait for a family I pray for those, like us who already agreed.

     We made that important discussion.

     We found the time and effort to fill out hundreds of pages of paperwork.

     We cleaned and organized and nervously invited the social worker into our home and lives to
           inspect and question for that all important home study. 

     We asked and reminded friends about reference letters.

     We sat in offices for appointments: medical doctor, the psychologist, finger printing, notary.

     We waited in post office lines, for phone calls, for e-mails and for the mailman.

     We cleaned and organized for home studies.

     We made lots and lots of copies.

     We wrote checks.

Now we wait. And wait.

We pray. We hope. We get depressed. We sigh…a lot. We check E-mails and then check again. 

Lord, give us hope and patience.

Thank You for working for our kids and our family.
Thank you for being with these precious children while they wait for families.
Lord, we praise You even when we do not see progress.
When we do not get news, we thank You. 

A blog from Dixie from God's Littlest Angels about IBESR now making all the matches, New Match Procedure. Don't know if this would be better or not for us. No one knows what this will mean for families with a 'soft match.' Know we need to pray that the children get to the families that fit well with their needs.

This just posted on the Facebook group by someone who's agency told them-IBESR will not be taking any new cases in September to 'catch up on all their current cases'. Now we've heard they have more than 1,000 'current' cases, some going on 3 years. Praying for a miraculously productive month! 

IBESR News.

Dragon fruit flower bud

My dad once called me an opportunist and I guess I am.

With the conferences on campus this summer with representatives from all 25 northern churches and a few additional churches outside the district we could not pass on the opportunity.

The opportunity to let them know about the lack of referrals the last 7 months delaying providing needy children with families.

We reminded them that while we pray that families can stay together there will always be some children who need a new family and right now many creches are full and needing to turn away children.

We asked them to join us in praying for the children of Haiti. Praying for the adoption process to improve and move forward. Praying for our children. Praying to defeat the devil's delays and blocks.

Together we join in prayer for progress to be made at every step for hundreds of waiting children and families.

Some folks report that over 900+ dossiers currently wait in IBESR.

Our chart joined the numbers 6 months ago and no word since then about our referral.

Some news this week from a meeting held by IBESR.

The short version boils down to some encouraging news:

• Biological families are being helped to understand their options of keeping their children and getting help with schooling and jobs.
• If IBESR feels that a couple over the age of 50 would be a good fit they will make exceptions to the age limit of 50 years. 
• The lawyer in charge of adoptions hopes to see matches starting by the end of July.
• If a foreigner holds a residential visa and lived in Haiti more than 5 years they will qualify for a National adoption. 

GLA full blog The blog also notes that many of the creches are struggling financially to feed their children as the delay in referrals means that adoption funds cannot be used.

After reading this we contacted our USA agency to remind them that we qualify for a national adoption and to ask them to ask about this when their representative next inquires about our dossier.

We resent the copies of our residential visas when it was expressed that the previous copy was too faint to read easily. National adoptions would be prioritized over international.

Encouraging to hear that referrals will start soon but not so on hearing that one family is at the 3 year mark waiting for a referral.

Keep praying.