Missed deadline...but all's OK

Well for the first time in this journey I missed a deadline.

The shocking email came this morning asking for information about where we were in getting the needed documents for F's visa as yesterday's deadline passed without our requesting an extension.

I do not know how that important date did not make it onto our calendar. [Failure to get an extension means your case is closed and we would have had to start over from the start with I800.]

Very thankful to report that the needed three month extension has already been granted and is HIGHLIGHTED on our calendar!

Praise the Lord!

Praying hard that this will be the last but it's our third extension and likely not last.

Also praying it will be the last time I miss something!

No word on the last needed signature that could come 'any day'...tomorrow will make three weeks.

We know that without the many friends praying this hard wait would be even harder.

Praying for health, no vacations, no political protests or any other distractions... for the person who needs to sign yet, so that they can focus and sign the charts that need signing!

A political protest is in Cap Haitian this afternoon-praying once the papers get into lower courts in Cap that everything can move smoothly.

We did see a very cute picture of F last week holding a fluffy baby chick. Hear he's happy and that last night he said during evening prayers "And I can't wait to be with my mom and dad!" 

Know that the Lord is answering the prayers that we and F will wait well and still hold on to hope.

Praising the Lord that F' is in a Christian home and doing well while we wait.

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.

Balancing act...prayer praises and request

At times life, parenting, and adoptions all require balancing, hard balancing.

When to ask or when to continue to wait quietly??

Tuesday we sent out a couple of different e-mails. One requesting information about our fingerprint renewal [as we heard nothing in the 2 week time line and the prints were set to expire in three weeks].

In the second we asked what the guys learned back in March when they went again to IBESR to ask about the I600 paperwork and if a "Plan B" existed if the paper kept getting misplaced.

Just received word that our fingerprints were renewed on March 30 !! Very happy not to travel to the USA, Dominican Republic or even Port-au-Prince for this step. Thank you Lord.

Equally exciting news arrived by email on Tuesday that our referral is printed and ready to be signed out! Hoping and praying that it can be picked up this week. Praise the Lord!!!

Thank you for praying the I-600 paperwork into the right spot!

The person who needs to sign it doesn't work every day so praying they already worked this week and signed so when the agency staff go to check, everything is ready to be picked up.

Prayers:

• Signature and dossier / chart pick up this week.
• Protection and safe travels for the paperwork to the North, in a timely fashion
• That the judge and court officials will have time in their schedules to rapidly process our case.
• Praising the Lord for the good news on both requests. 

A third piece of good news-for other families still under the I-600 visa. Everyone thought that if an official referral had not been signed by April 1st, that these transition families would need to redo their paperwork and resubmit it all for a I800 visa [Hauge treaty].

But an announcement from the US State Department makes things sound very good-that they will continue to work with IBESR on these cases and they may be able to continue as I600 cases. Another answer to prayer.

They plan to meet next week to work on details...another reason it would be great to exit this week so that the meetings do not delay our exit any further. 

Also received a two month update on F. He's doing well. Lost a tooth, enjoyed a morning at a pool, learning more manners and letters! He already politely used 'please' and 'thank-you' when we met him 11 months ago but adding 'excuse me'

All these answers to prayer have my hopes flying and increased my e-mail checking frequency a lot!

The Lord is working. Keep praying!

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.

Prayers please. Fingerprints

I ignored it as long as I could hoping we would have heard by now that we've completed one step and moved into courts.

However the time has come to face the fact that we need to be looking into renewing our fingerprints once again for our I-600 visa paperwork.

You may remember how this was an issue the first time, since we live in Haiti...we ended up showing up at the USA Embassy and a lady did our prints.

When the time came to renew we asked again, were advised to go to the Embassy. When they didn't respond to our emails we showed up for a walk-in visit and were told that the prints could not be done.  Later our prints were 'refreshed'.

Sweet Potato

Our 'refreshed' fingerprints will expire the end of April, therefore we're to ask for an appointment 2 months in advance...which is now.

The actual expiration date of our approval is Nov. 21, 2016. If we do not have F and his visa before then we understand that we will need to start over again and file for a I-800 because Haiti is now a Hauge country. 

While I know the Lord is in charge and has a plan....I'll admit that dealing with governments and unknowns makes me nervous, a bit stressed.

Thank you for praying.

Philippians 4:6-7a "Don't worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this you will experience God's peace."

Praying. Know God knows what we need better than we do. Thankful. Needing God's peace.

Waiting = Grief.

Thankful to receive a bit of news today that F continues to do well and had a few really good weeks.

Thankful for all the prayers for him and our adoption.

I've lately come to the realization that our long wait for our referral and now to exit IBESR, has me cycling through the Kugler-Ross stages of grief.


Denial-it will not take us that long. Maybe TODAY. Maybe the next stages will go fast. Maybe soon..

Anger-being mad at the IBESR folks, for red tape, at governments, for the folks who messed up in the past causing more rules and regulations to be put in place to safeguard children and families, and even mad at God for not stepping in with a miracle or two, for not meeting our expectations in a timely fashion. At myself for not trusting enough, for getting depressed and stressed, for not having the faith to move mountains, for not learning what every lesson it is that I should have down by now but still don't...because maybe if I GOT IT then the Lord would allow us to move forward.

Bargaining-what if we do this, we're willing to do x,y, and z. What if I fast more? What if I go to church every day? What if we get more people to pray? What if....

Depression-Sadness I rapid cycle with this stage and often it occurs along with the other stages. I mourn the time we've lost, the days and smiles that we will never share with F. Each holiday that passes, each week, each day that turns into history means memories that we will not share with F or he with us.

Acceptance-this one comes rarer but it does come. Never lasts long but the peace that accompanies accepting the Lord's plan soothes the soul. Makes me fight all the harder to focus on the Lord and pray for His will. Striving for it sends me into the Word and on to my knees because...I know I can only get to and stay in this stage with the Lord's help. I need His help to STOP striving and let Him act on our behalf. I need to trust. I need to rest in His love, rest that His plan is good. His power enough.

Some days I may spend a bit of time in each stage and other days I may remain in one. Some days like holidays I can predict will be harder to stay positive but other days I jump from stage to stage in sporadic randomness. Both ways drain and tire.

Like playing a non-fun game that's full of delays, skip a turn, go-back-to start, but no fast forward cards. This week the doors of IBESR will remain closed due to Carnival [maybe also politics?]

Praying the staff remain safe, enjoy their break and all head back to work on Monday the 15th ready to make major progress in the waiting cases.

Praying that Haiti's new interim government, who will work to get elections set up during the next few months will allow IBESR to continue as normal, as well as the other stages of adoptions in Haiti.

Praying that our faith continues to grow as we wait. Praying to wait well. Praying to learn to trust more and spend more time in the 'acceptance' zone. Praying we're ready to act when the Lord says act!

Praying that F continues to do well and grow and thrive. Thankful for those caring and loving him during the wait.

Thank you Lord.