Where have YOU been???

Well, goodness, it's been awhile! What was supposed to be a brief break in posting because of grad school and work obligations turned into a "blog-sabbatical"! And, to be honest, so much has happened.

To begin with, how the world has changed! We have a newly elected President, a crumbling economy, and an unsure future.

Since then things have changed in our "adoption world" as well. When we last left off we had recently completed our home study and were waiting until Dec. 1 to post our Immigration documents in the mail to the USCIS. After much soul searching, we decided to hold off on pursuing an international adoption from Russia.

There are many reasons, but at this time some potential issues related to Russian adoption preclude us from continuing adopting from Russia. We received a "heads up" notice from our agency that because of the tragic death of a Russian adoptee in Virginia, that there is sense that Russia will be re-evaluating it's international adoption program. I believe the exact phrase was that "the Russians have generally felt 'ambivalent' about international adoption" and may use this incident "to review" and slow international adoption as they examine if placing Russian children with American families is an appropriate option for their children in need. Russia has a history of starting and stopping her international adoption programs during various periods. Therefore, we are hesitant to start the international component of our adoption with this possibility looming.

Now, for those of you who are unfamiliar with our international journey, let me give you some back story. When we first started our adoption process, we researched various countries and determined that Guatemala would be a great fit. We were interested in parenting a young child and the Guatemalan foster system appealed to us. And, then, due to circumstance beyond our control, the US State Department changed the law and forbade American families from adopting from Guatemala. There were some pretty scary allegations regarding the placement of children so this decision while personally disppointing, was made the best in the best interest of the children in Guatemala. maybe.

So, after much disappointment we researched additional countries that fit our profile and decided that Colombia might be a great fit. We attended some webinars and learned as much as we could about adoption in Colombia. We were so excited! But, as Guatemala closed, other Latin American countries experienced a surge in applications. In Colombian international adoption, preference in adoption placement is given (and, rightfully so, in our opinion) to families of Colombian descent. Makes perfect sense, right? However, what this meant for us though, is that the new wait time was over 3 years and some agencies weren't even willing to take new applicants!!!

So...off we went! Looking high and low for another country who would fit our profile. This journey led us to...Vietnam (for those in the adoption community, I can hear your groans). Vietnam is a beautiful country with an amazing adoption community- a social network both locally (we have a tremendous group in our hometown) as well as on the Internet to provide us support and guidance through the process. Now, for those of you NOT in the international adoption community, in order to adopt from Vietnam, there was a Memo of Understanding (MOU) between the US State Department and the Vietnamese government. When we began our adoption process from Vietnam (in January 2008) our adoption agency felt "confident" that there would be no lapse in the MOU despite the Sept. 1 2008 expiration date. They accepted our application for Vietnam and, to be honest-our money- and told us that we were "on our way." Well, then in March 2008, we were notified by our adoption agency that they felt virtually certain that there WOULD be a lapse in the MOU and that we could no longer adopt from Vietnam. To say we were disappointed is an understatement.

Still with me? Yes, that's 0 for 3. But we haven't even gotten to Russia, yet! While we were going through this emotional rollar coaster regarding the international component of our adoption, we were diligently pursuing the domestic requirements. (see previous posts) And, while we felt slightly misled by our international agency, our local domestic agency and social worker had been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Because of the trust we had in our local agency, we attended a few face to face seminars with a different international adoption agency. It is at this point that we researched and felt drawn to Russia. On a personal level, I have always found the history and culture of Russia interesting. In particular, I have casually studied both the Orthodox church as well as the government and political environment. I have a special interest in the interconnected web of familial relationships among the varying ruling monarchies during the nineteenth century. In addition, I also have a burgeoning interest in how female heads of state successfully lead countries while navigating various external and internal state pressures. But, I digress. Suffice it to say, Russia felt like a great fit. When a family adopts a child from a country other than the US, there is also a cultural connection between the country and the family. Clearly, I felt connected.

So, off to Russia we went. We applied for and were accepted for the Russia program in the early summer! We were so excited! While the child or children we would bring home would not be an infant (like in Guatemala or Vietnam), we were excited to bring home an older child or children. We were thrilled! Our goal is to parent! And, Russia had just re-opened a few years ago, so we felt that we were within a window where we could reasonably expect the process to go smoothly. Now, not so much. Because of the untimely passing of a Russian adoptee, as I mentioned earlier in this post, the international adoption program in Russia may be under review. I don't have the stomach to be 0 for 4.

So, until we get the "all clear" regarding the situation in Russia,we are pursuing ...domestic adoption. Domestic adoption is a "whole 'nother ball game." More to follow soon....promise.