the happenings

Life style picture to be submitted to Ukraine with our Dossier

So many people have asked what I am doing, how do you adopt, what does it entail... 
I decided to tell you all about what my next 3 weeks will involve as I begin to submit my dossier. This is a fancy smancy word for all the paperwork, documents, interviews, history, blah blah... that is submitted to Ukraine.

I try to wake up a 4 am and get adoption stuff done, emails, appointments, filling out papers. It is the only time in this house that I am alone. It is quite and I have no one bothering me :)

It's actually happening.
Scattered across my antique desk in the upstairs hallway are 5 piles of papers. To do piles. For the last few months, I felt as though this was never going to happen, but as I sit here with these forms and my checklist it seems so reasonable. A huge paradigm shift from my feelings last week. 

So grateful for this feeling Lord, and my many piles. 

Pile #1: Today's todo list: FBI criminal report requests filled out, finger print cards (the real cool old fashion ink kind),  credit card authorization, and USPS priority mail envelope ready to be sent. When I receive the criminal report for both Adam and I, it will need to be notarized and apostilled.

Pile #2: Medical reports to be copied on kaiser letterhead and filled out in blue ink by our amazing doctor (who has already filled out 3 different forms from us in the last 6 months.) As well as a place for him to copy a license. Then it will be notarized and apostilled.

Pile #3: A salary verification form to be filled out by our human resources department, where she has to write in blue pen our net income for the last 6 months starting in July 2014, but first copy it on the district letter head. Then that will be notarized and apostilled.

Pile #4: Proof of home ownership to be filled out by any real estate agent verifying the market value of our home and our monthly payments. Also then notarized and apostilled.

And finally pile #5: Everything else :) 4 copies of Adam's and my passports, petition for a specific child (thats the most exciting form: that one has Alex and Yana's name on it. Asking Ukraine if we can have these specific kiddos, our kiddos), 11 or so other forms that we need to sign in front of a notary. 6 photos  of our everyday life to be submitted, and of course 3 copies of our completed home study. On top of that large pile is a name of a courier.  A person living in sacramento that will walk our completed notarized dossier to California's Secartary of State office to have everything apostilled and sent back to us the same day, for a fee of course.

These are a few of the life style pictures we are submitting to Ukraine

life style picture

When my piles are gone and submitted, I get my dates to travel about a month later. Hopefully my desk will be empty by late January. 
Ukraine here I come.

If you feel called to donate to bringing home Yana and Alex before the new year please do so here.

And thank you, every little bit helps.

This link is the estimated cost of adopting 1 child from Ukraine if anyone is interested.