Off to Haiti!

We received good news today!  Our dossier is back from D.C. and on its way to Haiti!  It will take a month or so for it to be registered with IBESR, the Haiti equivalent of family and children's services.  They are responsible for approving families, ensuring the child meets criteria and is eligible for adoption, and following the Hague convention rules for international adoption.  Once the dossier is registered, we begin the official wait time.  When we initially applied our understanding was that it would be a 2-3 year wait before we would receive a referral.  At this point that timeline could be more like 3-4 years.  We trust that all will come together in God's perfect timing.  He laid this path before us and we know He will guide us on the journey ahead.  We ask for continued prayers for our child(ren) waiting to come home! 

Work in the waiting

We were notified Friday that our dossier is translated and is on its way to Washington D.C. for authentication.  They expect this to take 3-4 weeks.  In the waiting, we are starting to dig deeper into learning.  I have joined two groups on Facebook which have been extremely helpful.  One is just for families adopting from Haiti so great conversation from people at many different places in the journey (understanding timelines, expectations, hurdles, etc).  The other is a group specifically for transracial families and helping white adoptive families understand black culture.  The reality is that our community has very little diversity compared to most cities so for me personally, race has never been a big issue.  But the more we dig in the more we realize how little we understand (which I expected would happen) and how conversations need to be started.  I'm starting to see just how much work needs to be done in me and I am thankful that the Lord is working those changes on His timing.  I'm also seeing how different people from my past are now present again for this new season.  How wonderful are your ways Lord!