A new blog..

I have decided to add another page to my blogging repertiore. This time... a private blog. I wanted to make another place where Porkchop would be free to be himself. With the private blog, I can post pictures and have decided to talk a little more personally about my journey. I will keep this one up too but I sometimes I want to vent and somethings I want to tell my son and it seems I always have my computer handy and never have the journal I wanted to start. It's B's Blog in my blog list. I am not at all opposed to those I 'virtually' know to see it.

Merry Christmas

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and continues to hold hope that the babies waiting for their families to go back to pick them up won't have to wait much longer. I was hoping that Porkchop would be home by now but he will come home, its just a matter of time. Mom and I spent Christmas day with J & J and the kids. That was so fun, watching them open their presents and playing with the toys. And then there's the always entertaining --adults trying to figure out how to 'transform' a Transformer. I couldnt figure it out, even with the instructions. J got O.P together though. It was great to see them and know that next year I will be right there with them again but with an addition. Seeing them again put it all into perspective..We talked a bit about their wait and the ups and downs of international adoption. It was very comforting. Loud and Clear-- He will come home, its only a matter of time. I got a couple new pictures (I am greatful for them) and he looks well but still a peanut. No weights or measurements on him though. Happy 6 month bday, baby.

To make a long story short, the hope is, now that the President has made a decision things will get moving. The MOE will be in charge of adoption under the direction of the Deputy Minister's monitoring. This transition will take about 10 days and their holidays fall about a week after ours here in the US. We are looking at the middle of January before letters will be signed. So if we count about 5 weeks after that.....it's the end of February or into March now for me. This, of course is provided I am one of the first ones with letters signed and I get through court quickly. We still dont have a time line and once they start signing letters I will know more. Thank you everyone for your continued support. I will keep you posted.

J (my agency director) sent out the following message:(I removed names)

I talked to T and she confirmed bits of information and rumors that we have heard. The information is from (the) Senator, from his conversations, including with Ambassador Z. The Ambassador's meeting with the President went well. He is fine with adoption. He supports having the Prime Minister's office monitor adoptions through the Deputy Minister within the Ministry of Education.The current problem is that there are two other agencies ostensibly with legal responsibility for adoption. One is the Dept of Child Protection and the other, above it, is the Ministry of Physical Culture, Sports and some other areas. The Dept of Child Protection is under this Ministry of Physical Culture. (I have no idea how the Ministry of Physical Culture and Sports became part of adoption; I think it is because social issues were somehow part of that Ministry, and then in 2006 the Dept of Child Protection was created and given responsibility for adoption processes.)There has been a legal conundrum as a result. Because there have been some issues, neither Dept wants responsibility, at least not for any errors or irregularities. Hence, no letter signing. (By the way, the irregularities largely stemmed from within the MOE, with the former Adoption Dept head. So the MOE is doubly cautious about doing anything that might get them into trouble. Again.) The President or Prime Minister said it will take about ten days to straighten this out and fully assign the responsibility for signing the letters to the MOE. But then, there are also the holidays. The first ten days of Jan. are usually given to holidays, so it would be unrealistic to think that anything will actually get done. T says that letters will come in mid-January, according to what she learned last night and this morning.Deputy Prime Minister C will be overseeing this. We do believe that the government will get reorganized and things will get going in mid-January. This is a complicated problem. There are way too many departments involved, with legally and political implications. Having the MOE under the Prime Minister and solely responsible will hopefully make things smoother and more predictable. Families waiting for their children will unfortunately be stuck with waiting another three weeks -- I am so so sorry. As T said previously, it is such a mess. This is not a condition isolated to Kyrgyz, though, so don't feel alone. ALL the countries have big problems with their adoption administrations when adoption become more popular. They deal with this institutional fragmentation and also with the media issues that inevitably arise. Ambassador Z will be back in the States on the 20th and it will be, in my mind, a litmus test if the Embassy continues to accept new dossiers. If they do -- then that means she has confidence we will be moving forward in January.

Happy Holidays to all.. Wishing continued Hope to those of us waiting.

B

JCICS Statement

Nothing good on the adoption news front. There have been some statements circulating on the blogs I follow and the groups I am a member of. The JCICS has issued this statement

December 10, 2008
The U.S. Department of State does not recommend that U.S. citizens consider adoption from Kyrgyzstan at this time because of serious, ongoing problems in the country’s intercountry adoption process. A number of prospective adoptive parents have reported that their cases are not being processed. The U.S. Embassy has requested official clarification, but no formal response has been received.
According to local experts, no cases are being processed at this time. Further, the government of Kyrgyzstan appears to be making moves to strengthen its internal controls of and develop new legislation on adoptions. It has been reported that Kyrgyz citizens may have been denied the opportunity to adopt during the past year, even while some intercountry adoptions by non-citizens were being approved. At this time it is not clear what action will be taken on pending cases or if the Government of Kyrgyzstan will accept any new cases
The U.S. Embassy continues to monitor the situation and will provide clarification as soon as it is received.

None of us already in process know what is going to happen. Things change daily in the crazy world of international adoption. I am, of course, not giving up. My son will come home but I cant say when. I have to trust that he is being taken care of well and that we will keep getting updates and pictures. I have the utmost confidence that my agency is doing all they can to get babies home to their families. I am keeping my eye (and heart) on the prize. We usually get an update once a week. I will keep you all posted.
So here is where I stand:

1. I know that my letter hasnt been signed.
2. I know that I have not been to court yet (this will happen after the letter is signed)
3. It will be 5-6 weeks after the letter and court before I can travel to pick him up.

Thank you for the continuing prayers and encouragement.

St Louis MO

I've been to St Louis a few times. I was able to go to the Arch during one of the visits and on another occasion stayed down town with a great view of the Arch. The 'Gateway to the West' was completed in 1965 and opened to the public in 1967. It is cool to see when you are driving from the airport to downtown. There's a tram that goes to the top of the arch but I couldnt get tickets the same day, plus, I kinda have a thing with small spaces and heights. If you are planning a visit be sure to get your tickets in advance.

I havent been to court yet

I got an email back from Jackie and she said that I havent been to court yet.. darn. So when the letter for me is signed I will have to wait at least 3 weeks before I can go get him. No letters have been signed yet either. It sounds like they are trying to get the letters signed before court for those of us who havent completed the court process yet. It is looking more and more like the end of January or into February. It makes me sad but there isnt anything I can do about it. I have clothes and things for him that he may outgrow before I go back. I will be sending some money for formula this week to J at the agency. I hope to hear good news soon.. once they start signing things will get moving.

Oklahoma City, OK

In 1995 the landscape and our lives changed in the blink of an eye. A bomb exploded in downtown Oklahoma City. I had the opportunity for a quick trip to the memorial site and it is beautiful in its simplicity and calmness. Gateway structures bring you into the view of the reflection pool, the Survivor tree and wall, and the empty chairs that signify those who's lives were lost. Everything you see in this memorial has significance. The times on the structures at the east and west ends of the reflection pool, 9:01 represents the last moment of innocence, and 9:03 the moment of recovery. The number of rows of chairs references the floors of the Alfred B Murrah building. The link http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/index.php takes you to the website for more info. Its not a large memorial but is extremely meaningful and serene. I wasnt able to visit the museum (I was there after hours), but would like to return to learn more about those lost.

Waiting Still

Thursday came, and went with no news. So, it seems, has Friday. I will send J an email in the morning to see if she has had a chance to talk to T again to find out if I have had court and if the letters have been signed. I cant really see her 'forgetting' to send the families an update if the letters were signed, but she is very busy.
Its the not knowing.. I realize I have said that before (probably a few times) but not knowing is definitely worse than if I knew it would be mid January or even the end of January. Granted, knowing that I couldnt bring Porkchop home til the end of January would not make me happy but at least I would know and would have a goal.
So, to bide the time until I hear something I am going to start looking through my pictures and post some of my favorites. For those of you who dont know, I travel for my job, mostly from the Central zone West, and have had the opportunity to visit alot of places I may not have ever gotten to on my own. We will start tomorrow with Oklahoma City, OK.

The latest

I heard from Jackie yesterday and the latest is that 3 families should have letters signed on Thursday. I dont think I am in that group but am thrilled for the 3 families and know that movement of any kind is such a blessing and a positive step towards bringing Porkchop home. I think all the home improvements are completed (thanks Becktor for the offer of continued distraction). I am working now on the fleece blankets for the orphanage. I may enlist the help of one of the ICF familes soon to travel to get some of the blankets there on my behalf. There may not be room but its worth a shot. We will hopefully have news tomorrow night. Its Thursday morning over in Kyrgyzstan now so hopefully when we say prayers tonight they will go directly to the MOE and prompt the pen to paper that we have all been waiting for. I will keep you posted!