I just received this letter in my email inbox 2 minutes ago:
Dear Michael and Gayla,
Congratulations, you are now Gladney approved and ready to begin the dossier and ultimately the referral phase of your adoption process. I am mailing you both an approval packet with your approval certificate and quarterly training information for your “approved and waiting” period. (etc...)
WooHoo!!! That is a HUGE step in the right direction. It means our homestudy is complete and on it's way to CIS for final approval! It means we are very close to being on the "wait" list! It means this thing is REALLY going to happen!!! AAAAAAAUGH!!! I know we are nowhere close to the end, but I kind of got butterflies in my stomach when that email arrived. Wow. This is really going to happen. Am I up to this??? Am I up to this challenge??? AAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So exciting and encouraging and terrifying all at once.
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Jack Orion Lincoln (10)
Benjamin Peter Sirius (8)
Abeba Joy Lilah (Avé) (4)
Mick
...and her girl
Click to listen!
About Me
First, 2 continents collided...
...And then 2 continents became 3.
Adoption Posts You Might Find Helpful
My Oldest Son
Jack Orion Lincoln (10)
My Youngest Son
Benjamin Peter Sirius (8)
My Daughter
Abeba Joy Lilah (Avé) (4)
The Husband
Mick
The Blogger
...and her girl
A Little More About Me...
I try to live my life following the teachings of Jesus. If you are also a believer, try not to be offended by my love for irreverence and penchant for recreational cursing. If you are not a believer, try not to be offended by my, well, belief.
Books I've read lately...
- Growing Up Black in White by Kevin Hoffmann
- The Connected Child by Karyn Purvis
- How to Talk So Your Kids Will Listen... by Faber and Mazlish
- Adopted for Life by Russell D. Moore
- Attaching in Adoption by Deborah D. Gray
- Scared by Tom Davis
- The Hole in our Gospel by Richard Stearns
- 28 Stories of AIDS in Africa by Stephanie Nolan
- Red Letters- Living a Faith that Bleeds by Tom Davis
- In Their Own Voices: Transracial Adoptees Tell Their Stories by Prof. Rita J. Simon
- A Love Like No Other- Stories of Adoption by various authors
- The Family of Adoption by Joyce Maguire Pavao
- There is No Me Without You by Melissa Fay Greeene
- Ethiopia In Pictures by Daniel Abebe
- I'm Chocolate, You're Vanilla by Marguerite Wright
Adoption Timeline
- 2010
- March 11-22 Travel to ET to get Avé!
- February 8 Court Date! PASSED!!!
- 2009
- December 3 REFERRAL DAY!!!~
- July 10 ON THE WAIT LIST!!!
- July 2 CIS Approval letter arrives!
- June 16 CIS fingerprinting
- May 28 received CIS letter about fingerprint date
- May 27 corrected Homestudy received
- May 10 Homestudy has to be re-written b/c it says that Mick is an American citizen. Which he is not.
- May 7 OFFICIALLY "GLADNEY APPROVED!"
- May 7 Homestudy sent to CIS
- April 30 mailed Mick's passport ap AGAIN and mailed TONS of stuff to Dossier service!
- April 28 got fingerprints back from FBI stamped w/ "No Arrest Record"
- April 22 got Mick's passport ap back b/c signature went outside box. :-/
- April 15 sent fingerprints to the FBI and mailed Mick's passport renewal ap
- April 14 sent in application to renew my passport
- April 7 Fingerprinted for the FBI
- March 23 re-sent background check to OK Bureau of Investigation w/ the RIGHT form this time
- March 12 got Mick's birth certificate from Australia
- March 10 Homestudy!
- Feb. 17 mailed ALL Gladney paperwork- groups 1, 2, and 3!!!
- Feb. 14 mailed info to KBS Dossier service
- Jan. 26 mailed background check to OK Bureau of Investigation
- Jan. 20 Mailed the I-600A form and payment to Immigration
- Jan. 22 woke up with the PEACE. Whew!
- Jan. 12 -21 totally freaked out about what we were doing!
- Jan. 13 faxed "Application to get the Application"
- Jan. 11 went to Gladney's adoption seminar in OKC
- Jan. 7 Phone Orientation w/ Gladney
- 2008
- Dec. 9 Sent online request to Gladney to get Info Packet
- 2001
- May sometime... Felt like the Lord placed the future adoption of a daughter in my heart.
Fav Quotes
- "We must BE the change we want to see in the world." Gandhi
- "I know now, Lord, why you give no answer. You yourself ARE the answer. Before your face, all questions die away." CS Lewis 'Till We Have Faces'
- "But if I knew everything there would be no wonder, because what I believe is far more than what I know." Madeline L'Engle
- "The better part of one's life consists of his friendships." Abraham Lincoln
13 comments:
Congrats!! We got ours yesterday. Sounds like we are on the same track.:) Do you know how long it typically takes for your approval to come from CIS?
Ours took 6 weeks last time from fingerprinting- not sure what current times are for Texas. We are still waiting on our fingerprint appointment. Waiting isn't very much fun!
Congratulations!!!
Wonderful! Congrats! My CIS approval (I-800A) took 6 weeks. I was approved one week after being fingerprinted, so don't despair on the timeline!
:)
Justine
I just got that same email on Friday! my first time to your blog, but we're in the same spot. We turned in our homestudy to CIS in person this week and were fingerprinted at the same time (there is ONE office here in WA State that will do that...we had to drive 4 hours to get there!)
What age/gender are you waiting for? We are waiting for an infant girl. Congrats...that email felt like a BIG Deal, didn't it? Really nice to hear that we're moving from the first category to the "waiting" category!! Eryn
Congratulations, Gayla!
Happy Mother's Day, too.
fabulous. you are up to it. with God's strength all things are possible.
WOO HOO! I am excited for you guys
This is great, great news. I will continue to pray. Love hearing your updates.
Gayla,
Congratulations! Yes, you are up to it. You can do it. Life will seem like a crazy roller coaster ride for the next year as you work through the process, bring your children home and assimilate to your new life. But it is SOOOOOO worth it.
Of course, it might help if you get some meds from the doc. :)
Yes it is really, really going to happen. I remember when we were approved by Amani and they called to tell us about our son. We wanted a baby but God would not relent, they said he was a bit older but he was ours. This was the child God had for us a 13 month old little guy named Francis.
Oh, what would he think of us. How would he incorporate into our family. Would I love him the same? Did I have more love to give? Would he remember and miss his birth mommy. How would it all come together. I thought of him constantly.
I think of this lyric from a favorite song of mine "My someday coming child. I name and I rename you. I make up melodies for you."
I remember it like it was yesterday. After they said yes. We had a long way to go with INS approval. Homestudy. Raising money. The list was endless.
No you are not up for this. The game will change mid-play many times before it's over. The butterflies are real very real.
And yes, you can do it. Yes, the Creator of the world is with you every step of the way. The one who saw your babies be born. Who watched them and held them as they tried to sleep their first nights afraid and confused in the orphanage. He was there. He knows their names.
He was also with you whispering into your heart "Your girls. The ones that you dream of. The ones that your heart aches for. They are in Ethiopia. They need you, they need a father, brothers. Go to them."
Your way our of your league. But God is so faithful. I trust He will guide, direct and provide at each stop along the way. He is not safe. But He is good.
Love you and praying for you all.
Oh you're up to it! Congrats on the new progress! Cute new "paper". Oh, Joe had a great time this weekend with the guys. Seems guy-time is a good thing. :-) Take Care!
SO SO excited for you!!! You guys will be wonderful mom, dad and brothers to them!
So great meeting you too!!! We are thrilled to have connected with your family - it's gonna be soooo fun and exciting!! Now we can stalk your blog...muuaahhahahaaaa! :)
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