Were Dossier To Vietnam!!!

We made it finally! This morning I hand delivered our dossier to the agency. I sat with the program coordinator while she reviewed all the documents to make sure everything was in order, which thankfully, it was. Whew!!!! I wanted to start biting my nails while she looked every sheet over. But she said it looked great, and that it will be sent off to Vietnam TODAY! It was all I could do not to start jumping up and down in the office.

So now it takes a few days to make it overseas, where it will be translated, and then its just a matter of waiting for our referral. Waiting for the phone to ring! This is really happening for us, and soon too! The agency said it will take a couple months to receive our referral, then we travel a couple more after that.

Although he probably wont make it home for the holidays, it will be the best birthday and Christmas present for both me and daddy when we get to see our babys face for the first time.

Its back already!!!

What a cool surprise! I really didnt expect it until next week, but there it was when I got home from work. A huge FedEx envelope full of forms with all kinds of official stamps, signatures and seals. Man, what a pile of papers! I made a joke once that my stack of documents was going to weigh more than the baby, and it looks like it could be a close call! Ok.......maybe thats a bit of an exaggeration, but it sure is alot!

So the plan now is to make two photocopies of everything, one for us and one for the agency, then stop to get the bank check in the morning, and then hand deliver our dossier our program coordinator. Sooooo exciting!!!!!

Oh wow, I cant believe its really getting here! This is going to happen!!!

Baby Names

My coworkers spent an entire week writing baby names on the board in the staff room. Most of them I vetoed for being too boring, wacky, or just plain cruel. Sorry, but names like Cletus are out! We really haven't spent much time discussing names yet, and if I know us, we'll probably be bouncing them back and forth on the plane ride to Vietnam. Then again, if I know us, we'll be doing the same all the way back home. The only one we kind of agreed on so far was Kevin, but we'll see.

Our Dossier is Off To DC!

Today I got the last of our documents authenticated by the Secretary of State, and then I took everything straight to the FexEx drop off. I must have checked and rechecked that envelope about ten times to make sure everything was there and I wasnt forgetting anything. I have kept those papers so close to me for so long now, that handing them over to some stranger was really tough! I actually thought for a minute that I could deliver them to DC myself. Im crazy enough to do it too, believe me! These days I have been so desperate to have something, anything, happen that it wouldnt have phased me in the least to hop on I-95 and head up to the Embassy.

But Im trying to keep my nuttiness in check as much as possible, so I reluctantly handed my stack of documents over to the kid standing behind the counter at Kinkos. Then I walk out of the store and Im thinking that my papers will be on a plane! My precious papers! My homestudy, and my 171-H!!! My medical clearances that I had to have our doctor redo three times are on that plane! What if something happens to the plane? What if they get lost somehow? What will I do then?!?!?

Completing paperwork and tracking down legal documents has been a regular part of my routine since what.......back in the fall sometime? And now, right now, I can say that I have no paperwork to do. And it feels weird, although Im so relieved because Im exhausted! This last part of getting the dossier together was tough for me. Probably because we wasted three whole months with the first agency, so when it got time to do the dossier, I couldnt get things together fast enough. I know I bring on some of my own stress, but I just cant help it right now. Im to the point where I just want this paperchase to be over once and for all, and I just want to hold my baby.

But I can really see that were getting close now because there really isnt much more to do on our end. The last thing when everything gets back here will be just checking to make sure all the documents got stamped properly, then sending it all to the agency. I think thats about it!

Then the real wait starts.......