December 21, 2007

Happy Holidays!!! I got some surprise pictures today, just in time for Christmas. Notice the outfit doesn't match...burgundy dress, pink socks, and black shoes. My mom and I want you to know we did NOT send this outfit. She is going to need a personal shopper as soon as she lands here in the U.S. How about that pony tail? We are going to need lots of ties also! We love her anyways and are glad she is healthy. Next week I will get weight and height updates. For now, just enjoy the holiday season...MERRY CHRISTMAS!

December 10, 2007

Yay, I finally got PA...now we just have to wait for the Social Worker Interview to happen so we can get out of Family Court! Hoping to post new pictures by end of December!

December 5, 2007

I haven't posted lately because there has not been any changes. I am still waiting for my pre approval and also waiting for a scheduled court date. Things become a little slow in Guatemala over the holidays. In December, half the workers take off 2 weeks and then the other half take off for 2 weeks. This is probably why I haven't been assigned a court date yet??? I will post any changes if they occur. For now...we will just have to wait, wait, wait!!!

November 25, 2007

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! Just got some updates on Dawson. She is now 5 months old and up to 12.5 lbs, and 21 inches tall. Still on the small side but, glad to know she is growing. Each month I get a check list of what she CAN DO according to what her foster mom claims. Here's the list...sit without assist, hold head up, hold own bottle, push up on arms when on stomach, track objects, transfer objects hand to hand, roll from front to back and back to front. Sleeping seems to be going well too! She sleeps from 10p.m until 6a.m. I'm hoping she continues that pattern when she gets here!! Dawson and her mother were submitted to family court on 11/15. This is when a social worker gathers all her background information, goes to court with her mother, and then decides if the case seems legal. This process takes about a month for court approval. I'm hoping to be out of court by Jan. 1. Guatemala is a very catholic country and the take lots of holidays in December that might delay me. We'll see what happens?

November 14, 2007

Thought I would post a few new pictures...they just came through today! I sent a few new outfits and a photo album of my family. As you can see, she likes to look at herself best!!! The clothes laying on top of her are the ones I just sent down. I think my agency is letting me know she got them! Check out those Spanish books. I sent those to encourage her to READ instead of WATCHING TV so much! Enjoy!!

November 10, 2007

My agency is headed out this weekend for a visit, pictures and a medical check. This means...MORE PICTURES to come soon! As always, I can't wait to see the changes. This past week I did have the opportunity to send over a few questions for my foster mom. These questions go through my attorney in Guatemala and then are translated to my foster mom. Being a an educator I was curious to find out if she was being read to, enjoyed music, liked rocking, etc. Basically, I was asking what she likes to do. To my surprise, her response was....she likes noise but, LOVES TV! (remember she is only 4 months old) Well, I didn't like the idea that she was liking TV until Papa Pat mentioned he would buy her a 60" plasma for Christmas! Now I think it's GREAT!!! I also found out she has other children in the home. The foster mom has two of her own children, a boy age 6 and a girl age 8, along with another baby girl (fostered) that is 2 months old. All I can say is that she might as well get used to all the chaos and confusion! It probably won't change much when she gets home!!!

November 2, 2007

Just got my new update around 10:00 tonight. With DNA a match, I will be submitted to Family Court on Tuesday, November 6th. I will now be assigned a social worker to do a report on Dawson's mom, similar to the one I had to do here in the U.S. This report needs to be submitted, reviewed, and approved before I can exit Family Court and move on in the process. I'm hoping and praying for an EFFICIENT social worker. Some are better than others! This is also a big month for the grandfather clause that I am looking for. On Sunday, the presidential election will occur. After the election, the congress will begin to go back into session and the grandfather clause should begin to be discussed and hopefully passed. The word in Guatemala is that this might occur by the middle of November. Hope everyone has a great week!

October 28, 2007

Just a little news this week! At her four month check up she is now 10.5 lbs and about 22 inches. I do know that her DNA test was done and I should know the results by Monday. Our next step is to get a Preapproval from the Guatemalan Government. What this means is that after they see the DNA test results, and they are a match, they will allow the adoption to continue! Just another step in the process. Have a great week!!!

October 19, 2007

LOOK at ME! Here we are at 4 months old. I think she's getting a little more hair each time I get a new picture! This has been a good week for Dawson. Her mother and her both had their DNA tests done last Monday. Now I just have to wait for the match! My agency sent an attorney to Guatemala this past week to look into the amendments and the Hague Treaty. He did come back with some optimistic information for all of the cases in process. It looks as though my case should go through but, might have a few holdups. They are saying a few days, but I'm thinking more like a few weeks. We will know more when November comes along and the presidential elections are concluded. As we well know, anything can change at any given moment in Guatemala!

October 13, 2007

It was a busy week at my agency so my weekly update came in a little late. The Guatemalan attorneys for my agency were in town helping out with the Hague Treaty accreditation process. This means that when the U.S has to meet the Guatemalan Treaty requirements, my agency will be ready to go! This could be very beneficial for me if things get a little crazy with the new law change. There is no new news on the voting of the amendments that would allow me to be grandfathered in. The Guatemalan government has decided to postpone voting on these amendments until after the Nov. 4th election. This week, my agency is headed off to Guatemala for new pictures! I will hopefully have some in the next 10 days! I can't believe she will be 4 months old!!! The good news this week is that I have received DNA authorization. This means that Dawson and her mom will both be tested to confirm it's a match. The results will be back to me in about a week. My next step is to get into Family Court! Every step is one step closer!

October 6, 2007

Another update...fyi...I get updates every Friday with how things are going. Most likely, that is when I will update this website. At this point, I am waiting for the DNA testing of both Dawson and her mother. If they are a match, we move to family court! Now for the good and bad news of the week...bad news first! Guatemala has passed a new law known as the Ortega Law. This law is going to go in effect Jan. 1, 2008. It will stop all adoptions in Guatemala until the adopting countries become compliant. The U.S. plans on becoming compliant late spring. Requirements for their adoptions are going to become much more difficult and wait times will increase. What does this mean for me??? The good news, I hope, is that we are waiting for some amendments to be read. The one I am looking for is to be "grandfathered" in. The word around is that this is going to be proposed soon! Please read the info below to get a better understanding of what's going on. Ultimately, I don't think any one knows what's really going to happen!


Ortega, Amendments, & Campaigns
Latest and Greatest:
1.) JCICS is reporting that the Hague permanent bureau is supporting allowing in-process to continue. This is excellent news for in-process families!2.) The Guatemalan papers are reporting about amendments being offered to the bill and that the executive branch is not happy that the bill will undergo so many changes. The UNE party seems to be the one most supporting significant changes, or at least they are the ones saying that the bill in its current form has many issues. 3.) It does not appear as though the amendments will be voted on before the Nov 4th election. We are hearing it will be on Nov 14th. All parties in Guatemala seem to be agreeing that they must not allow the adoption law to become a campaign issue

October 1, 2007

I have finally decided to start a blog after reading everyone else's throughout the past month. I really enjoy everyone's story so I thought I would put one out their myself. Many people keep asking questions on where I am in the process and what comes next. The most frequent question is ...why can't you get her sooner??? I wish I could!!! (we all do). Right now, I am early in the process, but hoping for the best. As some of us know, Guatemala may close down adoptions as of Jan. 1, 2008. Right now, my hopes are that since I am in the process, my adoption will go through! This is Dawson's two month photo. I should be getting new ones by the end of October. By this time she will be four months old. My agency did not visit in September due to the confusion and dangers of the election month. I can't wait to see how she has changed! To the left of this writing you will see a timeline of her adoption. I will try my best to keep it up to date. Let's just hope things start moving along!