IT'S A BOY!!!!

IT'S A BOY!!!!
We had our 3rd and final court date today. Isaac is ours. And we are now legally his :)
Whew. It will take a few weeks to get the adoption certificate, then we are on to his passport and U.S. visa!!

Article in Adoptive Families

Saw this article and thought it was accurate and helpful. (Wish I would've seen it when Isaac first came home to us.)

Adopting a 15- to 22-month-old: Toddlerhood is a particularly difficult stage for a child to be moved. He's had time to build attachment to a caregiver, and now his greatest fear -- losing that person -- has come true. His cognitive and language abilities are not developed enough to understand any explanations of adoption.

Children adopted at this age may cling to the new parent for fear of losing that person also. "Gena wanted to be in physical contact with me all the time," says her mom, Susan Tombrello. "She would plaster herself to the shower door and whimper for me, or she would try to climb up on me just about anywhere I would sit. Cooking was very difficult when she outgrew her baby sling. I somehow learned to do everything with one hand."

• Prepare your child. Visit your child in the presence of the caregiver before placement. Together, talk to the child about the move before it occurs. It may help to act out the forthcoming adoption in play. If a pre-adoption visit isn't possible, send your child an album of family photos or a recording of your voice, so you'll be familiar by your first meeting.
• Help your child identify feelings. Your child's verbal abilities aren't developed enough to express his feelings about the change in his life. Help him label emotions, such as fear, anger, and sadness.
• Record the circumstances. Write down as many details as possible about placement day. Take photos. As your child's verbal skills develop, she will need to rework her emotions about that day. Details will help her understand what happened, why, and what it means.
• Get good advice. Children adopted as toddlers frequently struggle to balance dependence and autonomy. Professional advice can be helpful.

Visa Appointment at the US Embassy and Growing versus Rotting

Thursday we had our visa appointment at the embassy. Actually, I thought it was just the appointment for the issuance of the Article 5/17 letter. But apparently it was for everything. Which is great, except I wasn't prepared for it. So Kevin drove home really quick to pick up Zac (who was napping) and I ran upstairs to the bank to get the US$230 visa fee.  We took Zac next door for his passport photos. And thankfully I had everything else I needed already in my folder.
A few clicks on their keyboard and a few minutes later, and the adoption coordinator handed me the sealed envelope containing our Article 5/17 letter.

And the good news? Everything regarding our visa is now ready. Once we receive the official adoption certificate from the courts (two weeks after our final judgment on May 30), then we can apply for Zac's Kenyan  passport. We found a service that will expedite the passport for us (still checking to see if that's legit). Hopefully that will take a couple of days, then we go to the Embassy again. Turn in our adoption certificate and his Kenyan passport, and they'll issue us our US visa in his passport that same day (possibly).

Regarding the Article 5/17 letter, I am couriering it over to my attorney on Monday along with my signed affidavit. My attorney is planning to make an appointment with the judge and ask/beg him to take the letter so he can put it in our file. That way he can review it in the meantime and render the final judgment on May 30 as opposed to turning the letter in on May 30 and having to go to a fourth court date after he reviews it. But my attorney is not sure whether the judge will even hear her, let alone take the letter. So we'll see...

I said to someone recently that it's "all downhill from here" regarding the court process. I had no idea this portion would still be stressful - - but with the new judges and not knowing what additional documents they might require at the last minute (which they did to my Canadian friends...) makes this 5-week-wait-to-the-final-judgment a bit hard. I have a friend who is in the Ukraine right now picking up her 3 newly adopted children. She wrote on her blog once that during this whole process, we can grow in Christ and turn into beautiful fruit. Or we can rot on the tree. Man, sometimes I feel like I'm just rotting. Lord, please help me grow into beautiful fruit. Overflow me with your Grace, Mercy, Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and most of all, Self-Control. Overflow me so I can extend your fruits to my Children on a daily basis. So I can be a light to others around me. So we can all grow closer to You.