waiting4afamily

yard work

2010-06-17T09:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday

2008-10-23T16:58:00.000-07:00

2008-09-13T17:35:00.001-07:00

1st Day of 1st Grade!

2008-09-03T05:38:00.000-07:00

All fresh, brand new school year! Watch out world!

What is your cross?

2008-08-31T15:33:00.000-07:00

In life every single person is given a cross. Some are large, some small, some grow as we live and mature, some fade as we live and mature. However what do you do when the cross is so heavy? Lay it down and walk away? Try harder, pick it up and continue, continue to the end? What did Jesus do? A cross has been placed in your hands, an opportunity that you choose to see or walk away from. Then others pray they are never given chances have they ever opened up their eyes to the crosses that are placed in their hand?

Ok world, Here are the facts, what should we do?

2008-08-29T14:27:00.000-07:00

We have been in process 2.5 years with our adoption from Viet Nam, second set of fingerprints have a few months left on them. We are #1 with our agency to review the next file of a child. Our agency has no other programs that we qualify for (just found this out TODAY!), so here are the options.

Stay with our agency and not loose the dossier fee of about $4000 hoping for a short closure.

Find another agency and country with a shorter list and loose the $4000 to start fresh

Our agency did not pass the Hague, so even if Vietnam opens what are the new twists going to be (only work with Hague agency's?), hopefully they can reapply this fall.

We are each having another birthday this year, so this make us age out of many options.

To come up with the dossier money:
We auctioned off a very old grandfather clock with an oil painting on the top of it.

Cleaned out a house of a very old lady that died, 70years worth of items, it took about 3mths to do this.

No Movies, No Dinners out, No out of state Vacations or unnecessary travels.

Kept the thermostat very low

Cleaned the snow out of the driveway, not hired done, planted a garden, put up food.

Can't remember the last time I purchased any personal items.

We accepted hand me downs, actually very nice ones, for kids clothes.

Can't remember the last time I used the clothes dryer, all laundry is hung on the line, winter included. I only wash in cold water, never hot.

Still driving the Blazer SUV into the ground, going semi-strong at 190K miles!!!

I am sure we are not the only family having such a hard time, but this is truly a kick in the teeth. No child, no money refunded. I am just sick.

Spring 2008 Local Pancake Breakfast

2008-08-27T08:34:00.000-07:00

Photo of family with our Senator after discussions of our issues with adoptions in Vietnam. Not too bad for a family photo, just have to crop him out, Christmas cards already!

Positive talk!

2008-08-25T16:26:00.000-07:00

To protect children, central agencies to manage adoption
22:06' 25/08/2008 (GMT+7)

Mr. Vu Duc Long
VietNamNet Bridge – Speaking to correspondents on the sideline of a meeting reviewing the implementation of the bilateral agreement on adoption between Vietnam and the US, Head of the Ministry of Justice’s International Adoption Agency Vu Duc Long said the management of adoption will be centralised.
The case in Nam Dinh revealed that state agencies, including the International Adoption Agency, respond too slowly and ineffectively, didn’t it?
Our difficulties were shortages of information and power.

What is the direction of this case?
There will be no change for the children who were adopted. The violators in Vietnam will be penalised, the adopted children will not be brought back to Vietnam.
Provincial Departments of Justice are in charge of checking and approving adoption files, so what is their responsibility if violations are detected?
It depends on the seriousness of violations. But it is very difficult to verify adoption documents if they are sophisticated counterfeits, because criminals begin forging documents when children enter orphanages.
So who will be sued by families who lose their children?
If their children are kidnapped, they have to sue the kidnappers or those who lend a hand to the kidnappers. We have the Law on Human Trafficking Prevention. In the case in Nam Dinh, it is very difficult to prove kidnapping.
What do you think about provinces permitting the establishment of orphanages which are very poor in facilities?
The happiness of an American couple who have a Vietnamese adopted child.
The orphanage in Nam Dinh is a district-level unit, while district-level management is very poor. This is a lesson. Some provinces have inspected local orphanages and closed down some units, for example the Viet Lam orphanage in Phu Tho province.
Some orphanages in southern provinces are being inspected. If district-level orphanages don’t have good facilities and are not managed well, they will be closed.
The recent US report on adoption in Vietnam said that some officials of the International Adoption Agency received money under the table or accepted overseas tours. What is your opinion about it?
They overstated officials demanding overseas tours or going shopping. The information is inaccurate. It is necessary and normal for officials to be invited to visit adopted children abroad to check and exchange information between related sides. They were voluntarily invited and Vietnam seriously observes regulations.
They said Vietnamese officials raised difficulties to seek profit. That’s not good. We have asked the US side to send us financial reports of Vietnamese delegations. If they overspent, they will be punished.
As an expert in adoption, what solutions do you think will help solve problems associated with international adoption?
The strongest solution is the issuance of the Law on Adoption. This law will basically change the management mechanism. Accordingly, the direct relations between orphanages and international adoption agencies will be abolished. Central agencies will directly manage adoption activities and relations with adoptive parents.
In addition, a national unified adoption assistance fund will be set up to diminish financial ambiguity and the ability to seek profit from adoption at grassroots agencies.
The power to make decisions currently belongs to orphanages and locations where the orphanages are located. This power will be centralised.
What about the experience of other countries in adoption?
One of the principles of the La Haye Convention asks member countries to control adoption activities, so centralisation is the best solution.
Vietnam should follow the model of China. They centralised everything and none of the power is given to local agencies.

Xuan Linh

My Peeps!

2008-08-24T16:06:00.000-07:00

Ok, so we have raised our chickens, they are no longer required to be in the fish tank in the laundry room! We have 5, two roosters and 3 hens. Why two roosters? because that's what we ended up with. However the "book" said if one rooster does not make it over the winter months (croaks)we will have a back up rooster. They just started crowing, sounds like a crackly broken record for now.

1. Rooster #1 name is VV
2. Rooster #2 Dumb Dumb...because he walks past his open door and is not smart enough to enter.
3. Hannah Montana (with the pretty white feather on her tail
4. Brown Eyes
5. Pecky (no explanation needed)

So when they were little and cute my husband said he would make a hen house, 3 months later the lumber is sitting in the lawn and we mow around it! Well today I guess the chicken project marinated enough (no pun intended) he got started. I am impressed he even used a level! *Imagine the money we will save when they start laying eggs! ~~~sarcasm

Good News? Bad News? at least its in the News and being discussed

2008-08-23T18:36:00.000-07:00

Early this week, police were seeking forgery charges against the heads of two charity centers in Nam Dinh.

At a meeting in Hanoi Friday to review the three years since the Convention on Adoption between Vietnam and the U.S was implemented, experts recommended stricter regulations to manage adoption.

Financial aid to orphanages should be handled solely by the Ministry of Justice’s Department of International Adoptions (DIA), the department’s director Vu Duc Long said.

He said related authorities were considering restructuring adoption procedures to prevent direct contact between international adoption agencies and orphanages. DIA would connect the two.

He said it would prevent possible unhealthy relations between the agencies and orphanages.

“The financial aid in cash and flexible financial structures have created loopholes in adoption,” Long said.

“It has offered opportunities for unhealthy relations between international adoption agencies and the orphanages.”

DIA’s Vice Head Le Thi Hoang Yen said: “We are very worried with the recent fake adoption documents. We had been confident about the legitimacy of documents appraised by police. But in recent cases in Nam Dinh Province, there were fakes which police appraised.”

Recently, 134 U.S. senators – including Barrack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John D. Rockefeller IV – and hundreds of adoption associations and 8,460 U.S. residents petitioned for the extension of the Convention on Adoption between Vietnam and the U.S., after the U.S. decided not to extend the convention when it expires September 1.

DIA’s statistics show 1,700 Vietnamese children have been adopted by families in the U.S. since the convention between the two countries took effect in 2005.

The Ministry of Justice has authorized 69 international adoption agencies to operate in Vietnam, of which 42 agencies were from the U.S. Orphans at the Humanity Assistance Center of Y Yen District in Nam Dinh Province.

Nam Dinh Police were seeking charges against the center’s director, Tran Thi Luong, early this week for allegedly faking babies’ documents.

Reported by Thanh Phong

An open door is the sign of "Welcome"

2008-08-16T06:27:00.001-07:00

When troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow." --James 1:2-3

Joint Council Survey Request-USA Families only

2008-08-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

If you are anywhere in process of adopting a child in Vietnam please take a moment to fill out a quick survey. Its about ten questions.The survey Link will be above this post.

CLICK ABOVE TO SIGN THE PETITION

2008-08-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

The petition
Honorable Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung,

It is with utmost respect that we, American citizens, seek your assistance in the matter of continuation of intercountry adoption between the US and Viet Nam.

During meetings with President Bush in June, you indicated an intent to speed up preparations for early accession to the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoptions. Your visit to the White House was quite well-received and suggests that perhaps you are willing to assist us in two urgent matters.

We are respectfully requesting your immediate involvement, Prime Minister Dung, in the establishment of an interim adoption agreement between the US and Viet Nam. Please appoint a high-level negotiator to work with our Department of State to implement a temporary interim agreement that leads to Hague Compliance. While Dr. Vu Duc Long, Department of Intercountry Adoption, has made significant gains toward this end, further support from the national government is imperative to the success of these negotiations.

In addition, we respectfully request that the government of Vietnam hold all US dossiers not yet matched at September 1st rather than returning them to those families. These families could then be matched quickly when the interim agreement is implemented.

We respectfully implore you to act quickly as the September 1st deadline is rapidly approaching. We appreciate your time and attention to this important matter.

*SIGN THE PETITION WITH THE ABOVE LINK, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GIVE MONEY AT THE END OF SIGNING. JUST SIGN AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

Loose Tooth

2008-08-10T15:05:00.000-07:00

Yes, our daughter is ready to loose the 1st tooth, I thought maybe one more photo with "the tooth"....going forward that little smile will look like a pumpkin! Oh no she is growing up. Gotta stop, ready to cry more.

Raise Your Hands!

2008-08-10T09:23:00.000-07:00

Our priest use to be a teacher in Africa, today I listened to the cutest story and I will share it with you. In the years of his teachings the teachers would have surprise reviews. This was to grade the teacher. Were the children responding? Could they answer questions from the topics being taught ect. A good response from the students would mean the teacher was doing a great job. The teacher instructed the students, if there is a day when officials enter the classroom, know that I am being graded. I want you all to raise your hands to my questions and be active in the class. When I ask you a question, raise your hands. However, if you are unsure of the answer raise your "left hand" if you know the answer raise you "right hand". This will always ensure a good review!

Regarding #7 on list below AKA Lucky #7

2008-08-06T11:57:00.000-07:00

If you have an "URGE" to email Michael Moore regarding any comments or ideas regarding the current state of affairs with Vietnam adoptions and the 9/1 deadline, please email him as soon as possible. He will be sending a letter to the DIA asking numerous questions on behalf of orphans and adoptive families currently in process. Here is the address info@ccainstitute.org

August 1st Meeting Notes/ DOS ,CCAI (Lonley? "Hold a Meeting") just joking!

2008-08-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

The meeting was led by Michael Valverde, CIS-Chief of the Children's Issues Branch, International Operations, Michelle Bond, Dos- Deputy Assistant Secretary for Overseas Citizens Services Carrie Rankin, CIS- Presidential Management Fellow, Children's Issues Branch, International
Operations, and Gerry Fuller, DoS- Unit Chief for Adoptions. There was "standing room only, two people deep" and though it was scheduled to last 1 hour in total, to
cover Ethiopia, Guatemala and Vietnam, 1 1/4 hours were consumed by discussion of Vietnam. DoS members in DC seemed "compassionate" and "get it".

2. DoS appeared "shocked" by the overwhelming turnout and "'intensity" of the crowd.

3.One of the staffers attending (no name available) is himself attempting to adopt from Vietnam.

4.
DoS "painted a stark picture of how difficult it has been to work with
the Vietnamese government." The frustration is that there not a
central authority from which to obtain information. DoS is currently
waiting for a response from the Vietnamese government on the following:
- how many of the 1,729 applicants are waiting to be matched

-what are Vietnam's intentions regarding PAP who are not matched by
Sept. 1, Could those families not matched by Sept. 1 be placed first in
line for upcoming referrals? Could children be matched prior to birth?

5.
DoS has received authorization to permanently double its staff size in
Vietnam in anticipation of an potential flurry of referrals by the end
of August.

6.DoS will enhance communication on all levels via
the internet, possibly establishing a specific website for Vietnam
adoption.

7. CCAI is following up on this meeting by writing an other letter to the Vietnamese government addressing the concerns brought up at today's meeting.

8.DoS, again, voiced concern about using its limited time for answering questions versus processing adoptions.

Still got the butterflies!

2008-08-05T17:36:00.001-07:00

You know we have been told no way no how,with 9/1 approaching nothing can be done in time regarding getting a referral. I thought I was at peace with this, NOT. We have 4 good weeks left, there is still time for talks, extensions, miracles. I am starting to think that maybe just maybe something will come together for us. Might be just setting us up for a huge let down, who knows at this point? In all of this process, government reports, any bits of news, I really have heard goodness of Dr. Long, it does seem he would want as many orphans placed as possible. Its very hard to read our position.

Do you have it in you?

2008-07-30T13:37:00.000-07:00

The fight that is, are you giving up, or maybe just "ONE MORE ROUND?" Here you go,the meeting is scheduled for this Friday so time is of the essence. The links for calling your contacts are to the right of this post. So at this point CALLING/Email would be the most effective.

Dear Families,

Please read below the JCICS posting and please email or call your Senators and Representatives today!

July 30, 2008 - CALL OR E-MAIL TODAY!

The Congressional Coalition on Adoption has invited the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to conduct a briefing of Congressional Members and Staff on issues related to intercountry adoption in Vietnam , Guatemala along with issues related to intercountry adoption in general. The briefing is scheduled for this Friday, August 1, 2008 in the U.S. Capitol Building, LBJ Room at 10:00 a.m.

Given the pending suspension of intercountry adoption and related services in Vietnam and the continuing issues of concern in Guatemala , Joint Council urges participation by all Congressional Members or Staff. It is critically important that Members of Congress and their Staff participate in the U.S. Government’s role in international children’s services, specifically intercountry adoption. Given the impact of current issues on children and families, Joint Council urges 100% participation by Congressional offices in this very important briefing.

In order to gain the largest possible participation, please choose to contact your Congressional Representatives and Senators and urge them to participate in the briefing by sending a staff member or Member themselves.

·If you choose to contact your representatives, please do so today by email or phone call, and request that they send Staff to Friday’s briefing.

This briefing follows the briefing conducted for Congressional Staff last Friday, July 25th by child advocates and experts including Joint Council. These briefings and continuing participation by Members of Congress in the ongoing issues related to international children’s services is critically important to the continuation of intercountry adoption as a viable solution for children in need.

Hague in the News

2008-07-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

Should we stick this thing out? Switching countries will extend our wait unless we see a brief ray of hope waiting for Vietnam to get a new agreement. Here is the latest news,it seems very positive to me, unless I don't understand what I am reading. :)

Lawmakers back bid to join Hague adoption convention

A man pushes two Vietnamese kids in a stroller outside the Notre Dame Cathedral in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1
International adoption responsibilities would be fielded by a single government agency if Vietnam joins the convention.

A majority of National Assembly’s Standing Committee members supported a bid to sign the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption Friday, scheduling a vote on the measure by the year’s end.

The International Adopted Children Bureau, under the Minister of Justice, would be solely responsible for approving international adoption applications if Vietnam becomes a signatory on the convention, said Deputy Minister Hoang The Lien on the sidelines of the committee session.

Currently, each provincial government ratifies its own international adoption applications.

ADOPTION FIGURES

Of 378 orphanages nationwide,

85 centers have been licensed to process international adoption applications.

Around 2,000 Vietnamese children are adopted into international families each year.

Financial aid to orphanages would also be handled by the central government agency if Vietnam joins the convention, said Lien.

The move would aim to ward off unhealthy competition between international adoption agencies and even among Vietnamese orphanages, he added.

Lien said lawmakers would also work to remedy shortcomings in local adoption regulations, which many people had capitalized on to forge adoption applications.

Under Vietnamese law, a child must be abandoned by their parents or orphaned to be adopted.

Vietnamese parents who send their children to orphanages due to poverty do so only temporarily.

But several criminals have faked documents leading agencies and adoptive parents to believe that such children were in fact abandoned.

Lien said a recent case of adoption paperwork fraud in the northern province of Nam Dinh would be a major deterrent.

Nam Dinh Province police arrested the head of a charity organization in Truc Ninh District on Thursday for allegedly forging adoption documents.

Nam Dinh authorities began investigating two local charity organizations for their alleged involvement in dubious adoption paperwork in mid-July.

Prior to Thursday, Nam Dinh police had arrested three people, including two communal health officials, for allegedly faking papers documenting the origins of babies they claimed to have found.

Lien also said authorities would discuss other mismatches between Vietnamese laws and the Hague Convention.

For example, under Vietnamese law, the maximum age for adoptees is 16, while the Hague Convention extends the adoption age to 18.

Additionally, the Hague Convention stipulates that adopted children must jettison their legal ties with their parents while Vietnamese laws still allow adopted children to retain inheritance and other rights from their birth parents.

Lien said Vietnam and the US may still cooperate to arrange adoptions in the future through a new agreement or the Hague Adoption Convention.

In April, the Ministry of Justice dispelled accusations in an official US report of systematic baby-selling in Vietnam, saying it was “totally untrue.”

Reported by Tuyet Nhung

Not going to Happen

2008-07-23T13:23:00.000-07:00

After two years it appears that we will not meet the 9/1 deadline. I am a strong person, so talk to me with straight answers. No more hearing that "we are hopeful" or "you might be ok", so with the current agreement and new surprise of needing the DIA letter sent to us by 9/1, its not going to happen, no way possible. This is hard saying, but better than expecting good news or the call that never comes, re-thinking all possible scenarios, hopes that we will just get by. I will tell you we are so darn close, the only small saving grace is we get to keep our "blessed number" with our agency. So if Vietnam does reopen our place is not lost. (there is more to this mix but too much to go into now) We have not officially pulled out yet, wondering if any dates will be extended. Truly what's another 6weeks in the scheme of this. So for how I am feeling, lets just say numb for now, starting to get a little angry thinking how everything is going down. At this point I am more sad for the families, PAP's all the people that are just financially getting by to make the adoption happen. The children will get homes, just not in the USA. Adoption programs will continue. I will add, hopefully US agencys will contiune the humantiarian aid, and that Vietnam keeps track of the support US agencys provide to programs within Vietnam.

Waiting, and more waiting....

2008-07-22T16:19:00.001-07:00

Ok, Ok see the theme here? My current song is specially loaded for J&C, Joyfull, NYPD,& Little River, two Mr's 5 in the Hive "ya all know who you are" and all the PAP's that are having one very very hard wait. Are we waiting for the dreaded 9/1 deadline or some sort of miracle? Time will tell, however this is not the end of the road, maybe a different turn. Remember live life with no regrets don't give up only to say years from now, "at one time we tried to adopt". I hear this statement from many people that see us with our kids, its sad. God put the burden of adoption in your hearts, you have to carry it and follow the "plan". This is our 3rd time, not easier, we are proof that things work out, specially in your darkest times,quiet times when you are alone with your thoughts.

Groovy

2008-07-19T15:12:00.001-07:00

I could post all our worries, endless thought of what ifs, quits, other countries, constant re-hashing. All we can do is hang in there. Its no easier on other families either, I specially have extra prayers for 1st timers, this should be a joyous wait, some worries but not this horrible pit of darkness and helplessness. I hope come 9/1 many doors or windows are open for theses families.

The good old camera came out today. I am enjoying my camera tons. Last year I ordered a family yearbook from shutterfly. So this year I am even more organized. It is too much keeping up with the scrap booking, ordering prints, ending up with tons of supplies and photos all over the place. The yearbook was about $170 for over 12 months worth of photos and events all in a leather bound book. I LOVE IT! The trick is order at the end of DEC, that's when all the discounts come out, I had a 30% offer. Great deal. Today we finished our tie-dye craziness. Even dyed the pillow cases!

Time for Thanks: Very Important timeframe

2008-07-18T09:59:00.000-07:00

Please consider one last push to your reps. The links for your contacts are to the right of this post. *Never regret that you should of done more, so here ya go...

Dear Families,
As you may know, both Congress and the Senate will recess from August 11-September 5With the MOU expiring on September 1, while our representatives are away, it is critical that we continue to show our support for a new or an interim MOU.
We, along with our representatives, JCICS, CCA and ASPs and many others have worked tirelessly to encourage the Department of State to support a transitional agreement as Vietnam works toward acquiring Hague compliant status.
I am asking first, that you extend a note of thanks to your representatives for their assistance in making our collective voice heard and along with that correspondence, a plea for their help in securing a definitive reply from the Department of State prior to the August 11 recess.
For your convenience, below is a draft of a letter to copy/paste and send to your representatives. Phone calls,FAXES, snail mail and personal visits, of course, will help.

Dear __________________________,

Your time and effort in supporting the establishment of an interim agreement that facilitates the continuation of adoption between Vietnam and the US have been greatly appreciated. As a signatory to the letter for Secretary of State Rice on my behalf, I'd like you to know that your efforts are unprecedented in the adoption arena and certainly, a credit to living in a democracy. Thank you!

As you are probably aware, both Congress and the Senate are scheduled to recess from August 11- September 5 while the Memorandum of Understanding with Vietnam expires September 1. I would like to respectfully request that your office strive to obtain an official statement regarding the implementation of an interim agreement from the Department of State prior to August 11, 2008.

Respectfully,

Shame on Both of you!

2008-07-11T07:55:00.000-07:00

I have taken quality time to review all the signatures on the lettter to Sec. Rice in support of adoptions in Vietnam. I do not see SENATOR BILL NELSON OR MEL MARTINEZ of FL. Ok fine, if you were not going to sign say that. But NO, both offices told my mother and all her friends in the Condo that they signed in support. Shame Shame, of all people to lie to, it would not be my mother or her friends. They are not happy. If the Senators lie about this what next? Signing in support would of been a very positive gesture, no real effort on their parts. All I can do is shake my head, do these people think we are stupid? Of course I was going to check. I am still pissed at the McCain for not signing. There is nothing I can be told to calm me down. He should of supported this PERIOD!

Things that are bugging me...

2008-07-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

1. That Senator McCain did not sign in support of the letter to SOS Rice. OMG, he is an adoptive parent, his wife HUGE in helping the orphans in Vietnam. Come on now, what was he thinking?

2. Getting mad at NBC, I wanted to teach my kids the game show "Family Feud" the other night, sounded like fun. The first two rounds were Sex related or getting even with ex-lovers((&*^&*^%??? What the heck happened to that show? Not to mention seeing the "Hell Boy" constantly popping up in commercials and on the bottom of the screen through several shows even during "America's Got Talent".

3. Creating a wonderful garden, only for it to be over run with bugs eating all the beautiful plants. That is a huge defeater. Even squeezing them is totally gross.

4. People thinking that their kids look cute with food all over their face. (its only cute if its your kid) I don't want to look at that! *We did a worm snack treat at the library today, and GROSS.. nasty pudding coated gummy worms hanging out of kids mouths, even the big kids, with Mom's smiling on. SORRY.. not cute.

Photos of 7/4 Rafting Adventure on the river.

2008-07-05T06:37:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th of July America!

2008-07-04T18:14:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful day today. Our adventure started with a white water raft trip. It started with the manager saying that our son was too young and maybe if he cried it would ruin the trip for the rest of the rafters. Oh my, yes my heart did sink, I had email and phoned 3 times to this company to confirm the ages in our group. All times we felt welcome. Needless to say, we did take the trip. Michael promised the man he would be good. If I was to brag, I do think he acted better than most of the children and adults. (this could of gone either way) We have been talking of this trip all week so what a huge disappointment if we had to call the whole thing off after the car trip and arrival. If anything the trip was more for me, I just needed a stinking break! Other than day trips, I am starting to look forward to following the Olympics, due to start 8-8-08. Watching the sports and the world come together gives you a deeper meaning of proud to be an American. Here are a few photos of todays adventure,we rafted about 6 miles in the river below. Does this not look like nature touched by the hands of God?

Feeling a little better

2008-06-26T09:15:00.000-07:00

Sorry for being a downer, every little positive bit of info I read, I have a way of making it negative in my mind and keeping my hopes low. I did have a call with our adoptoin rep, we are still hanging in there. It did make me feel better after speaking with her. The agencys truly feel the calling efforts are making a difference. So please try to keep up the efforts and make sure your personal Senator & Congressman did actually sign the Letter to Sec of State Rice.

Notes from President Bush and Prime Minster Dung of Vietnam

2008-06-25T19:52:00.000-07:00

"The President expressed his commitment to continue the development of
intercountry adoption cooperation between the United States and
Vietnam that ensures the best interests of the child, respects his or
her fundamental rights, and prevents the abduction and trafficking of
children. The Prime Minister underscored that Vietnam shares these
goals and stressed that Vietnam will speed up preparations for an
early accession to the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoptions. The
Prime Minister also welcomed U.S. technical assistance in facilitating
this step."

Here's the link to read the rest:
http://www.whitehou se.gov/news/ releases/ 2008/06/20080625 -4.html

Thank You Senator Martinez! FL (UPDATE 7/11 **MARTINEZ NEVER SIGNED! Huge disapointment, thanks for NOTHING!(Clinton did sign Thank You!)

2008-06-25T06:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, my sister JOJO and Mom aka "condo callers" have both reported in that Senator Martinez from sunny FL has signed the "Child's Right Campaign" letter to Sec of State Rice. The Martinez staff was very concerned with our issues and we truly appreciate the follow up efforts they made with us. Thanks Again!

I and several other families still are wondering whats going on with Senator Clinton from NY?? I have heard this is her first day back to Senate. Still, you would think work and discussions would still be made in her absence. Her website is very clear that she will only support you if you are from NY. Here is the phone number 202-224-4451, good luck and please let me know how you make out.

What do you think about this?...a bit more positive

2008-06-24T16:37:00.001-07:00

Excerpt from today's announcement:

"The United States and Vietnam are working to develop an intercountry adoption agreement
that ensures the best interests of the child, respects his or her fundamental rights, and
prevents the abduction and trafficking of children, including U.S. assistance to facilitate
Vietnam's early accession to the Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoptions. Eighty-five
percent of all U.S. Official Development Assistance to Vietnam focuses on health issues, and
our cooperative efforts to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS and combat Avian Influenza are the
hallmarks of our bilateral health relationship. The United States is providing International
Military Education and Training to Vietnam and using Economic Support Funds to help ethnic
minorities in the Central Highlands. We have also discussed the possibility for a Peace Corps
agreement with Vietnam. The United States has engaged actively with the Vietnamese on
various regional and global issues, particularly in light of its non-permanent UN Security
Council seat in 2008-2009"

For full announcement, you may read it at Adoptnewswire. com or at State Department's
Website.

Good Old NY- "Senator Schumer did not yet sign"UPDATED POST

2008-06-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

AS OF LATE THIS AM: SENATOR SCHUMER DID SIGN. THANK YOU SENATOR SCHUMER!

*Senator Schumer 1-202-224-6542 Please give him a friendly call requesting his support. Thanks!

Joint Council is pleased to announce that the letter from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption to Secretary Rice regarding intercountry adoption and child protection in Vietnam has received over 130 Congressional signatures.

Given the visit to the United States by the Prime Minister of Vietnam over the next few days, it would greatly benefit our collective effort if additional calls to Members of Congress were made immediately.

While many families and adoption service providers are not directly involved with Vietnam, we urge all families and service providers to participate in A Child’s Right Campaign by calling your Congressional Senators and Representatives today!

Please take a moment now and contact your Congressional Senators and Representatives and ask if they have signed the Congressional Coalition on Adoption (CCA) letter to Secretary Rice. If they have, please thank them for their support. If not, please ask that the Senator or Representative add their support and signature to this important letter.

Still going strong! ***UPDATED ENTRY

2008-06-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

Please keep contacting your representatives, senators, congressmen asking them to support the CCAI letter to Condoleeza Rice. It is having an impact!
E-mails are good, phone calls are better. As per CCAI this morning, due to the large number of representatives responding, CCAI has postponed delivery to Condoleeza Rice until later in the week. They want more time to give everyone the opportunity to sign on.

Also, the Vietnamese Prime Minister, Nguyen Tan Dung is visiting the US this week 6/23-26, for a number of reasons but mainly to strengthen economic dealings. He is scheduled in D.C., California to meet with Barbara Boxer and also in Houston. If you live in any of these locales, this may be an extra opportunity for you to promote an extension allowing for continued adoption from Vietnam.

****Senator Boxer has signed the letter to SOS Rice, Senator Boxer is in total agreement in working on an agreement to keep Vietnam open to adopitons.

The Little Red Hen

2008-06-21T14:54:00.000-07:00

We read a version of "The Little Red Hen" last night, but in this version they all get eaten in the end. So why do I tell you this? Today I had the best helpers in the entire world! Who will pick the berries? Who will wash the berries? Who will cut the berries? Who will mash the Berries? You got the picture? Needless to say we had a pretty carefree day. The urge to log on to the computer happened a few times, but I enjoyed the day and stayed off. Hope you enjoy these photos.

Bring on Summer.....what ever will be will be

2008-06-20T17:54:00.000-07:00

Ok gang AP's, PAP's, supporting Family & Friends, time now to enjoy, take a deep breath and let the cards fall where they may. Yes the Vietnam situation will always be on my mind, but darn it... We had a very hard winter and now time to enjoy some summer! It seems tradition always starts summer with Berry picking, followed by Cherry picking, followed by long days at the beach. So looking forward to this routine. Our daughter has 1.5 days left of Kindergarten, its gone way too fast. Yesterday she brought home her art work for the year. It made me cry. Her art is so simple, happy and carefree. I pray she always stays this way. Our son is biting at the bit to help with yard work specially if it involves using the garden hose! Daddy and him picked some strawberries this am (2 quarts!) I give him credit. Tomorrow we will truly attack, my goal is at least 10 quarts with a 3 & 5 yr old. There are only so many trips one can take to the berry farm with the price of gas and all so we have to make use of that trip. The price is $1.75 each, not bad, in the store it's easily over $3.00. OH, ps if you like the art work collection...all I did was use an ugly picture frame from yrs ago, I actually had it ready to go in the trash. Let your kids decorate the frame with leftover scrapbook stickers, fill with your favorite collection and wa-la!

Did you know??**UPDATED INFO

2008-06-19T19:13:00.000-07:00

***PLEASE FAX YOUR LETTERS PER THEIR REQUEST TO 602-952-8702

Did you know that Senator John McCain's wife Cindy is huge in helping the orphans of Vietnam. She is very involved with operation Smiles, she will help the children get the surgery's done on the Navy ships off Vietnam. Another fact: they are also adoptive parents! In the 90's they adopted a little baby girl in Bangladesh.

So if you feel the urge to ask Senator McCain for support here is the information.
Phone Number 703-418-2008 option 5 to leave a message. I will post the link above this message to email your request. I used the topic, tell me about an event. Keep your note brief and short. A long rambling message will not get attention. Also include the request that he signs the letter to Sec of State Rice for "A Child's Right Campaign" Ok that's all for now, sure would like to hear some positive feedback for all your efforts.

Ding Ding "ROUND TWO!"

2008-06-18T18:39:00.000-07:00

June 18, 2008

Joint Council's Child's Right Campaign has been well received, and the letter to Secretary Rice, advocating for a new MOU for Vietnam, is now circulating to all of the congressional offices.

Joint Council is asking families to call their elected officials on Thursday, June 19th and Friday, June 20th, in support of the campaign. Joint Council has previously asked for your support, but the next two days will be crucial in obtaining the support of Congress for this important bill. Details on the A Child's Right Campaign can be found below. Joint Council has received overwhelming support for this campaign, and we appreciate your phone calls and e-mails on such short notice.

*get your contact info under the photo of "BABIES IN HANOI"

Heres to a busy Thursday and Friday!

Calling Efforts

2008-06-17T13:25:00.000-07:00

This week I have spoken to Congressman Oberstar and Senator Landrieu, they are both members of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption. There are a group of officials currently in Vietnam advocating for the "pipeline" families. Hopefully they will return with a good report. Both of my conversations were very positive, here are some quotes "We don't want the DOS to simply throw in the towel" I told them "you are saying everything we want to hear" Where should we focus our efforts. The reply was **continue to ask Our Senators and Congressman to sign the letter to Condolessza Rice.** On a side note, our last round of callings was what I would call a "dress rehersal" because of miscommunications, the letter at that point was not even drawn up, it was in very early stages. As of Last Friday, all parties agreeded on the "wording" and hopefully its typed and in route to be delivered. Any whooo, we should really do one more round of calling, at this point why not? My game plan will be to wait until Joint Council announces that the letter has been sent, maybe at that point it will be online for our review. Links and contact info under "Babies in Hanoi photo" on the rightside. If you have not yet signed the online petition for BRING OUR CHILDREN HOME please do so now,(link above) the signatures are past 2500, good results, but NOT GOOD ENOUGH!

Joint Council Update *keep calling Senators and Representivies

2008-06-16T19:54:00.000-07:00

June 13, 2008 ****Continue calling Senators and Reps' to sign the letter to Sec Rice phone numbers links on right side of this post.*********

In advancing our advocacy for every child’s right to a permanent, safe and loving family, Joint Council will lead a delegation to Vietnam on June 17, 2008. The delegation is a collaborative effort and includes: Tom DiFilipo of Joint Council; Paul Singer of the Global Orphan Care Initiative and Joint Council Board of Directors; Linh Song of Ethica; Gary Gamer of Holt International; and John Meske of Faith International. During this trip, the delegation will present the key elements of A Child's Right Campaign including our Recommendations, to officials of the Vietnamese government.

With dual goals of maintaining the myriad of services provided to children and families—both directly and indirectly—through intercountry adoption and strengthening protection from unethical practices, corruption and abuse, the Joint Council delegation will advocate for a new Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Vietnamese and U.S. governments to go into effect September 1, 2008.

A Child’s Right Campaign Update

Joint Council continues to communicate with the Congressional Coalition on Adoption (CCA) Co-Chairs regarding a collective letter to Secretary Condoleezza Rice that promotes the continuation of permanency services through strengthened protections and a new MOA. It is our understanding that the CCA Co-Chairs are continuing to develop this letter, which will be distributed to all Members of Congress early next week.

Joint Council will issue a notification when the letter has been distributed, as well as an update on when the letter will be forwarded to Secretary Rice.

We offer our thanks to the families and friends of Joint Council, along with our Member Organizations, who continue to participate in A Child’s Right Campaign for Vietnam. Your ongoing advocacy efforts on behalf of the orphaned and vulnerable children of Vietnam both inspire and motivate all of us at Joint Council.

Normally

2008-06-15T17:43:00.000-07:00

I am normally the one people come to with their problems, I am the one that will make problems go away, fix things, make it better. Everything is just crashing down, day by day, every update from our agency spinning me out of control. Basically I work from sun up to dusk, keeping busy, playtime, garden, housework and a very full schedule. When night sets in the tears come. No one understands, this has been good intentions going very wrong. Two years of financial family sacrifice, planning, keeping calm and emotions in check. Trying so hard to not let this consume me. I am so tired. I also have my doubts, however I reason myself back into thinking this will all work out. How come numerous other agency's continue to get a steady flow of referrals, when our agency has been seeing decrease every month? Maybe this is all way to big for me. I keep searching for any positive news. We have done the calling, letters, faxes. Its truly surprising that I have really gotten only one weak response. That or I am still very naive in expecting a reply from the start. Well here's to a new week, come good or bad...its on the way.

Bring Our Children Home :due 7/1/08

2008-06-14T07:48:00.000-07:00

Please sign this petition for "Bring Our Children
Home" *you do not need to give money, just complete by
putting in your email, name, and a brief message like
"Please support keeping matching families with orphans
after Sept 1."

*SEE LIVE LINK ABOVE THIS POST: BRING OUR CHILDREN HOME

Let me know if you have any questions

Weekly Update, How will the Rat treat me this year?

2008-06-13T12:40:00.000-07:00

For today Friday the 13th here is my forecast on the horoscope front:

Chinese Astrology 2008: Year of the Rat
Take action today and make things happen! Spend some time with your partner, even if it's just for a little while, and find fun wherever you can. You may be feeling lighthearted, and soon everyone around you will be too.

I guess I did just that, after waiting more than patiently for a reply from Senator Schumer, I left a voice message about my 25 day wait for an update to my issue and that I also left a message with VP Cheneys office. Guess what? 10 min later I get a return phone call. The lady told me my case was sent in to the office in DC and she would call me back with an update. She also asked if I had any new information. OF course I did, Vietnam DIA is implying they will continue to keep families in process if the Dept of State will continue to issues the Visa. So basically we have yet again lack of communication. I hope to hear more positive news. If any PAP's have any positive news...come on...leave me an update! (OH YES, my local Senator Michael Nozzolio wrote me a letter today stating he would request that Senator Schumer office advocate for me)

On the home front, I am almost recovered from poison ivy. Mostly on my arms 40% covered, its been very very bad. I am also just starting to paint the hallway, the one that I striped the paper off this winter. After about an hour painting it the color stated to look like calamine lotion! I am starting to like it better, its called cinnamon swirl. Sort of earthy.

Give Me a Good Cause and I'm Like a Dog with a Bone!

2008-06-09T18:35:00.000-07:00

Ok now, lets finish up this letter writing campaign with a big bang. Here you go, anyone for just one more?? Information on how to contact VP Cheney. FAX Number 202-456-2461 email a letter http://www.congress.org/congressorg/bio/letterslist/?offset=10&length=10&issue=1&id=47313 *To follow up with a call to the White House switchboard, tell them why you are calling and you will be connected to leave a detailed message here is the phone number 202-456-1414

June 9, 2008

Your address
Any street
City , State, Zip

The Vice President
Eisenhower Executive Office Bldg.
Washington, DC 20501

***AND extra letter to

The Vice President
The White House
Washington, DC 20501

Re: Please help us to complete our adoption of a baby in Vietnam

Vice President Cheney:

It is our most heart felt request that you urge the Dept of State to write a letter to Dr. Long the Director of International Adoptions in Vietnam. Please make it clear to Dr. Long that the United States will continue to issue Visa’s to all orphans being adopted by US citizens. There are new policy’s currently in place that will help ensure that adoptions are ethical. To close this program will place over 3000 families, orphans, and current humanitarian aid at risk. Both parties must work together towards an agreement that will keep families in process after 9/1/08. I look forward to your reply.

Sincerely,

Your Name
Phone Number
email

****Notes if you are contacted for US names in Vietnam you can say Michael W Michalak, US Ambassador to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in Hanoi and Consul General Kenneth J Fairfax in Ho Chi Minh City/ they are off the DOS VN website.

Requesting your help,,,,One more time

2008-06-07T19:13:00.000-07:00

This was posted on another site,(please copy and use it) I think its a wonderful idea and to the point. Here is the letter I am sending and faxing out first thing Monday. I hope you all support one more letter-calling campaign. *I think it would be best to get out ASAP as July 1 is truly right around the corner. Here is the letter I am sending, along with all four addresses *these people are part of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption.

Congressman Ginny Brown-Waite
414 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone 202-225-1002
Fax 202-226-6559

Mr. & Mrs.
2 Any Street
Your town, State, Zip
Phone

Dear Congresswoman Brown-Waite

We have been in process of adopting a child from Vietnam for **** years now. Please help us to complete our adoption and bring our child home. It is our most heartfelt request that you send a letter from the Dept of State to director Dr. Long of the DIA. In your letter please ask him to allow all dossiers submitted by July 1,2008 to be grand fathered in and allow all families currently logged in permission to receive a baby’s referral even after Sept 1.

I feel that Vietnam will honor this request if they have word from the US DOS that Visas will be issued to the child so families can complete the adoption to bring the child home to the USA. We applied to USCIS believing in good faith that the US and Vietnam would work to continue working together by completing ethical adoptions.

USCIS implemented DNA testing and the Orphans Fist program. These steps will help bring confidence to the adoption process and allow the US with Vietnam to negotiate a new MOU with the goal of becoming a Hague country. Closing the program at this point will leave over 3000 families and orphans in limbo for possibility two more years.

I look forward from hearing your thoughts regarding our request. This is a very trying time for our family and we wish this does not end in sadness.

Sincerely,

Type your name Here

Below are addresses and fax numbers of the four co-chairs of the
Congressional Coalition on Adoption:

Senator Norm Coleman
320 Senate Hart Office Building
Washington , DC 20510
Main : 202-224-5641
Fax: 202-224-1152

Senator Mary Landrieu
724 Hart Senate Building
United States Senate
Washington , DC 20510
Voice: (202)224-5824
Fax:(202) 224-9735

Congressman James Oberstar
2365 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington , DC 20515
(202) 225-6211
FAX: (202) 225-0699

Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite
414 Cannon House Office Building
Washington , DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-1002
Fax: 202-226-6559

Two Crow or Not to Crow

2008-06-05T17:21:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like out of six baby chicks, 3 of them might be roosters. No, you can't tell by looking between the legs! Apparently if you look where the beak ends and if it starts to get bumpy that is the start of the comb. Today I looked real hard, and if correct I have 3 roosters. I am hopeful that the man I purchased them from might let me get some more females to add to our happy little chicken family! WE NEED EGGS! He still had plenty about the same age. We will see tomorrow. No big news for us on the waiting front.

I am a little disappointed in the Joint Council Calling Campaign. Maybe I don't know what I am talking about, BUT if you are calling Senators ect, about signing a letter, you would think the letter would of already been mailed and arrived in the office of the government official you were calling. At best by day 2 or 3 or the campaign. Not so. Again I have no inside scoop, I'm just saying "come on" that letter of support should of been at least sent with "return receipt" to each Senator. I know there are not that many when you are pushing such an important movement and so many people are supporting it, I don't want to hear at the end of my efforts "its still being drawn up". Again just my two cents.

Stirring the pot!

2008-06-04T11:01:00.000-07:00

Wow, my sister MJ really made some great progress today with Senators Nelson. Their office has been getting many calls on this subject (most likely form Old Port Cove), but Mr. Martinez did not have a clue...did you condo callers know you have 2 Senators in FL to call? PLEASE GET BUSY, and call Mr. Martinez at 561-842-8300.

House of Rep. Wexler's office just took a quick message to give him, she is going to call back, your help in this matter would be greatly appreciated please call 202-225-3001.

Take 2, A chicken, and a little ray of hope,

2008-06-04T10:17:00.000-07:00

I have one more chance to redeem myself, I can only imagine what the teachers and parents were thinking in their head when we arrived so so late for "The Concert" This Friday is scheduled another concert durning the day for a special guest. Our Aunt will attend this. The kids will re-sing all the songs from last night. So instead of her wearing a boys shirt and play jeans, I did a little bargain shopping today. I wanted to purchase 5 but came back into reality and got 2, Heck each one was $8.60!!! That's right.

A Chicken, my sister JOJO wanted to see how our chicks are growing, here ya go, this one is named VV. We gave her (hopefully a her) that name because she has a V pattern on her/his head. I really can't wait to see how many roosters we have out of 6.

Small news on the campaign front for A Child's Right. Some families have gotten replies via email that the Senator is aware of this issue and have been in touch with the Dept of State, they have been assured that plans are underway to renew by 9/1. I just hope this is true and not an old generic reply from past issues.

A Night of the Arts & (bad bad Mommy)

2008-06-03T18:34:00.000-07:00

All I remember reading from the numerous school memos was this is a big night for the arts Kindergarten show will start at 6pm. Ok, cool, I have camera in hand walk up and down several hallways all lined with art work, in and out of a few classrooms. How the heck will I find our daughters art? No order on how they were put up. Was I suppose to smile while viewing thousand of student art, some had the same theme, yes they were labeled. But I had to read the card on each piece. Then I asked a 4th grader if she was a "parent helper" surely she would find our daughters piece. She said oh, the kindergarten class is in the auditorium singing now. WHAT! Oh my, I do remember her practicing numerous songs, but this can't be the main event...NOOOOOOO, race through the halls, in between isles, guide her up to the stage just in time to finish the last song of "Sing a Song" I am "The Biggest Looser", She is marred for life I say. I did creep up to the front an snap a pict.(little girl on the end with brown shirt)

Thank You Condo Callers!

2008-06-02T18:02:00.000-07:00

Sunny FL has been getting VERY positive feedback, I put my Mother on the case, her and all the CONDO , Card playing friends were up bright and early with fingers on phones ready to dial at 9:01am! Many had very long conversations with the interns. Then all her friends called family from FL to Mass and had them call. We are very proud of the Condo Callers!

I Can Award!

2008-06-02T15:00:00.000-07:00

I normally don't brag about our kids, However our kindergartener came home with her award ribbon for reading an entire book to her class. She is a very quite,shy kid in unknown situations, so this is HUGE! Plus she picked out the book, Level 2 and 38 pages long! "Alice and the Birthday Giant" By John Green. Good JOB, look out first grade!

Last Min Reminder....

2008-06-01T18:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, the calling part of the campaign starts tomorrow, Please don't put this off, lets get it done on Monday then we can bug our friends and co-workers the other two days Ok? Remember to ask them to request support for their friends. A small ripple will eventually make a HUGE wave!

Statement of Speaking points:

“I/we urge the Senator/Congressperson to join the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Co-Chairs and sign their letter to Secretary Condoleezza Rice in support of the recommendations found in Joint Council’s A Child’s Right Campaign for Vietnam.”

How to find my State contacts see links below (CALL BOTH REPS)

http://www.house.gov/ *you will search with your zip code
http://www.senate.gov/ *you will search by state

"Ok Alex I'll take Adoption"

2008-06-01T18:30:00.000-07:00

Happiness, Hope, Anxiety, Anger, Sadness, Anxious, more Anxious, Joy, Hopeful, Prayer, Internet Addicted, Nervous, Eager, Nervous Energy, Messy Home, Extra neat Home, No makeup, On your mind, Off your mind, always on your mind, Overeating, Under eating, Over sleeping, Not Sleeping, regrets, what ifs, should of sooner, overworked, extra immersed, not getting it, questioning, sadness, getting a grip,Hopeful.

What is adopting a child from Vietnam?

Ethica Update

2008-05-30T13:42:00.001-07:00

May 28, 2008
Notes from ASP Meeting at US Embassy Hanoi

The following informal notes were taken by Ethica’s representative at the quarterly ASP meeting. These notes are as accurate as we can provide within this type of forum (i.e. without written statements and with conversations vacillating from topic to topic).

I-600 processing: There have been more I-600s processed in 2008 than in 2007, representing a 10-15% increase. Since the Orphans First program started, the average processing time has been coming down and is now at 46 days. In January, with Christmas and the New Year (both Western and Tet) holidays, there were some rough spots and delays. In January, there were also a large number of petitions filed (112) which contributed to the slow down. Both the embassy and CIS offices have taken steps to increase staffing. On cases that went over the 60 days, there was usually some sort of issue that needed to be looked into.

Provincial Investigations: Most provinces have successfully cooperated with the investigations. To date, 309 cases have received pre-approvals, including recent ones in Thai Nguyen. In several provinces (Thai Nguyen, Quang Nam, and Hue) the problems have been worked out. In Phu Tho and Thanh Hoa, there are issues still being worked on and problems that have not yet been addressed. At Tu Du Hospital, the situation is very complicated with many people/agencies involved. The issues have to do with records, potential fraud, etc. They are working hard to resolve these issues but it will take time due to the complexity of the situation.

Contrary to some rumors, the files do not “sit on shelves” but are continually worked on to move the cases along. They are working with the most senior levels of government to resolve the issues. They are also working to streamline processes. There is now same day visa service. However, APs should not make return flights too close to the time they expect to receive the child’s visa as there are sometimes computer glitches. APs should not book flights home before the evening of the day following the visa interview. They are also working with the National Visa Center to go “paperless” to help with the current lag time between pre-approval CIS letter and embassy notification.

*As of Nov, 07, all I-600s had to be filed at HCMC office. I-600s should not be kept at local offices. That’s where they sit on the shelf. I-600s should be sent to HCMC. This issue is causing some of the delays.

There will be a DNA policy announcement tomorrow by the HQ office. Michael Valverde and his office will be setting up a conference call with ASPs in the next two weeks to answer questions.

There are 2 facilities authorized to conduct the DNA tests: IOM in HCMC and SOS in Hanoi. The results must be mailed directly to the US embassy in a sealed envelope by the facility.

DNA test required will be at the discretion of CIS. There have been about 10-12 cases thus far and the BPs complied; there have been no problems to date.

Fingerprints: There needs to be more diligence with regard to ensuring that APs have current FP records. The I-600 is not really approved until the immigrant visa process is completed and therefore the fingerprints need to be current at that time. ASPs and APs should pay attention to notes on pre-approval letters that may state that FPs need to be redone. If FPs are done at a service center in the U.S., CIS HCMC can be notified and verify new prints online.

The I-600 needs to have the original signature of the AP and the date. ASPs can assist with filling in the form but must state that they did so in the appropriate place on the form.

MOA Ending–and New Requirements by CIS:
As stated by Vietnam, dossiers must be in by July 1st and a match with a child made by Sept 1st.

However, the responsibility will be with APs to show that they have met all VN requirements. Therefore, two new forms will be required and added to the list of required documents:

1. DIA letter stating dossier has been approved
2. DIA letter stating commitment to adopt/assignment of child

The US has asked VN to provide a list by July 1st of the dossiers completed. They currently do not know the total. The US is hoping to receive more information soon. The ASPs need to let families know where they are in the process very specifically. The ASPs should send their own lists to CIS and copy the Embassy.

ASPs have to notify CIS of new referrals to be sure they are on the list. CIS can cross check with lists they hope to obtain from DIA. Especially in August will this be very important. It is important to file the I-600 ASAP, with the hope that the last ones will be filed before Oct 1st.

On Sept 1st – if case has not received referral, the case will be returned to the ASP. The letter from the Vietnam government also specified that licenses of the ASPs would terminate on Sept 1st but that they would be allowed to process the remaining approved cases.

Side note: The MOA required both countries to commit to renewing it by March 1st. On Feb 1st, the US notified the VN that they would be unable to renew the MOA in its current form and indicated their willingness to re-negotiate a new MOA. The USG also requested clarification on the processing of adoption cases if the MOA expires. Between Feb 1st and mid-April, the DIA discussed options within the Vietnamese government; it was an ongoing discussion and thus a coincidence that they sent a letter to the US indicating the July 1st and Sept 1st dates on the same date that the embassy released the report on irregularities.

MOA negotiations: In a new agreement, there would need to be a strengthened VN system, to address both regulatory issues on VN side and on the ASP side. It would be a time limited agreement, as a bridge to the Hague Convention. The focus of the US is twofold: to help current cases/families and protect the members of the adoption triad, and to develop a stable adoption and child services system in VN.

Discussions are going on, on multiple levels (with JCICS, Ethica, etc.) and there are a lot of good ideas and input for the revised MOA. Discussions with Vietnam are underway, but use of the term “negotiations” is premature, as the discussions are currently taking place on the lower rungs of the diplomatic ladder. The USG has asked for VN to name a more senior person to conduct negotiations but the Vietnamese have not yet done so. It is unclear at the moment what the timeframe will be.

Q&A session:
Is DNA search against VN law?

The VNese have been complying with DNA searches for 15 years in refugee cases (at IOM in HCMC). Also, they have been compliant in other immigration cases. It should not be a problem. Immigration is a benefit and the USG has the right to request such testing.

Names Involved in Fraud Going to be Released?

The USG cannot make public names of agencies or facilitators who have been linked to fraud to the general public. They will cooperate with law enforcement authorities, of course, and if someone is prosecuted then that’s a different story. But no list will be posted.

Shout Out! If you stop by, please say HI

2008-05-29T16:39:00.001-07:00

Hey Hey...sort of getting blogged out, no movement on the referral front,and I am sure you have read about the current campaigns. FYI my letter to the Editor was published in our local paper! That's good news right? just in time for calling our Congressman and Senators. As I said we live in a very small but caring town, I like to feel like we all look out for each other.

You know I added this neat feature to my BLOG, it lists the country's flags of my visitors. NEAT! I truly made this site, first for us, then our child, and then family. But now, man, I am meeting some wonderful people, I have Five in the Hive, Joyfulplum, A Mothers Journey, My Thursday cheerleaders J&K (you know who) and visitors in the USA and now, look at the flags, I never realized...my newest thrill is to see if any new flags appear. LOVE IT ! Hello to England, Spain, Canada, Europe,Ireland (I'm 50% Irish),France,Italy,Malaysia, Russian Federation! BIG FAT LOVING HELLO from me!

oh yes. PSS, I have been buying those little ice cream cones. The Gram-cracker crust cones with nuts and chocolate they come 6 to a box, you know? So does this make sense, 2 for the kids and 4 for me? Heck I bought them. Really this is becoming a habit or maybe a new nesting side effect.

How are things going on the campaing front?

2008-05-28T16:32:00.000-07:00

I have truly been pushing everyone I know to sign the online petition and do the calling efforts in June. I just hope everyone is giving this their all out no holds bar! No regrets after the fact that we could of done more. If the officials can find a way to at least keep DTV families in process and renew the MOU in a reasonable time frame, many worries will go away. If you have been promoting the efforts GREAT, if you want to do more WONDERFUL...its the 4th quarter with 1 sec left! Other news....on a personal note, "HURRY UP THURSDAY UPDATE!" just like pulling off a band-aid, no matter what you do, it still hurts. Anyway enjoy the small glimmer of good news below. Catch ya tomorrow!

I don't know about the JCICS campaign but Ethica has received
excellent feedback from the Department of State and both Congressional
and Senate offices. We've pointed out that ethical adoptions can and
are happening. We only need to look at agencies that are working in
orphanages where there are equal numbers of domestic and international
adoptions, sometimes more domestic than international. That is only
one indicator of how some agencies have been able to promote family
permanency AND international adoption without contributing to the
unethical practices and trafficking that has been reported to the
Embassy and to Ethica. An update was posted here on the 10th:
http://www.ethicane t.org/item. php?recordid= vietnam&pagestyl e=default

Now that we have our politicians' attention and support, we're working
on new terms for the new MOU with JCICS and the Department of State.
In several weeks I will also be accompanying the JCICS delegation to
Vietnam and advocate for a timely resolution. I encourage you to
continue to promote this issue with your community. We've made some
great progress but we have a lot of work ahead of us.

Best,

--
Linh Song, MSW
Executive Director
Ethica, Inc.

Almost 5/30 did you email in your petition yet?

2008-05-27T05:32:00.000-07:00

Please read below, I have placed a links list for your convience at the right side of this post. All people should respond to this plea, you don't have to be an adoptive parent.

*THE FIRST THING YOU DO By 5/30 IS EMAIL A MESSAGE STATING YOU SUPPORT "A CHILD'S RIGHT CAMPAIGN FOR VIETNAM" EMAIL ADDRESS IS advocate@jcics.org Then follow up with the calling efforts. Statement of talking points below.

b. Include the following in your calls and emails.

· “I/we urge the Senator/Congressperson to join the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Co-Chairs and sign their letter to Secretary Condoleezza Rice in support of the recommendations found in Joint Council’s A Child’s Right Campaign for Vietnam.”

· If they have not heard about the Campaign, ask them to contact the Congressional Coalition for Adoption Institute at 202-544-8500 or Joint Council on International Children’s Services at 703-535-8045.

Ideas to spread the word:

Request help from your co-workers, family, church members, chamber of commerece members, any local group. Write your request to letter to the editiors, print in church bullitens, passout flyers after functions, send a note to the local school asking for teacher support. * Call people that have influence, your town supervior, Senators, congressman, write letters, emails, phonecalls. Please don't have any regrets after the fact that you should of done more. We have a huge movement backing the orphans and families, but the support in numbers will make a difference.

Happy Memorial Day

2008-05-25T09:12:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day is often celebrated with the purchase of the artificial Red Paper Poppy's. Many years ago the profits from the sales were used to help orphans of the war. Over time the profits are now used to support disabled Veterans and unemployed Veterans. This is a time to reflect on the sacrifice's that others have made to pave the way for the freedoms that we sometimes take for granted.

In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army
IN FLANDERS FIELDS the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-05-23T15:38:00.001-07:00

Every Where a chick chick....

2008-05-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

Well we live in the country with only two cats, whats wrong with that picture? The kids are at the proper age to start caring for small animals, I have made an executive decision. Late last night I thought "we need some baby chicks" so I ran the idea by my husband when he was half asleep. I only wanted maybe 3, since each chick normally gives two eggs a week, however state law says minimum purchase must be 6. So we have six cute little chicks. They are called Americauna Araucauna and some are also R1Red, I can't tell them apart. One kind will lay Blue-Green eggs and the other Brown. The other issue is, they are too young to know if they are male or female. Only time will tell. They will be kept warm in the house for the time being, we love to hold and pet on them, (I am waiting to see what the kids will do when the chicks plop a #2 in their hands!) I have told them no matter what the chicks do "you are not to throw them to the ground" Our daughter has a real natural way with the handling, our son not so sure yet.

Don't let adopitons in Vietnam close for TWO years! Act now

2008-05-21T11:25:00.000-07:00

What does Thursday mean to you?

2008-05-20T14:13:00.000-07:00

Well, On Monday I start thinking about Thursday, then on Tuesday I think hurry up,,,almost Wednesday bring on Thursday, then I think where the heck is the update from our agency? I check every hour durning the day. Any news? Read the update, how does this effect me? Then I click off, force myself to get busy and get my mind off the disappointments. Sometimes I think hurry up and bring on Sept 1, come happiness or heartache, at least I will know were we stand. The spring weather has really made our days full, so the wait is a little more bearable, but still out of my control. We all have control issues and its an art to be patient to some degree, and believe me adoptive families have really been tested lately.

I seem to think that most people that read my site are Mom's waiting just like me. So today's photo should cheer you up some. He is called Mr. Thursday, I hope he makes your wait a little more bearable!

Waiting for a Reply....lets see

2008-05-18T12:25:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I have spoken to Senator Michael Nozzolio in person and this was also a great photo op for him as my family was with me. When I get the picture I will post it. Follow up letter sent

Spoke with Dist Court Family Judge Paloma Capanna, in person with her and her aids for about 1/2 hour. She is also running for Senate. Follow up letter sent

Sent letter to Congressman James Welsh and Congressman Dan Maffei.

Sent letter to Senator Schumer, last week no reply yet.
" " Senator Bill Nelson
Senator Patrick Leahy
Senator Sheldon Whitehouse
Senator Pat Roberts
Senator John F Kerry
Senator Barack Obama
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Senator Mel Martinez
If any of you are fired up enough after reading this you can find contacts and addressed at http://bringourchildrenhome.org/6701/index.html OK everyone, we are not going down without a fight right!

I will tell you, I know this is an election year, but it really felt like they were concerned, or that I am very naive.

Happy Apple Blossom Day!

2008-05-17T16:12:00.000-07:00

We had a day full of fun, food, parades and dancing. The rain held off just the right amount. The parade was over 1 hr long, and very entertaining, we had Brass bands, Zoot music (remember Drag Net) they did great, apples bin racing. I even rubbed shoulders with several Politicians running for office and YES I did bend their ears over our troubles in Vietnam, many had NO CLUE. I was given several personal addresses and they urged me to mail more letters to these new contacts. Back to typing letters Sunday durning nap time and out in the mail first thing Monday am. I also finished planting 80% of the garden, just in time for the wonderful rain, better that then turning on the hose this time of year. All I have left is tomatoes and sweet red peppers YUM YUM!

*Please Visit Site-- and give (posted above)

2008-05-15T17:32:00.000-07:00

We just spent a few hours at our local spring celebration with the kids, It was very enjoyable, however as I walked around seeing families enjoying each other, I noticed half eaten food being thrown away...basically I saw waste. Then I thought of the images coming out of China and felt very very sad. See, we were raised finish what you are given "there are starving kids in this world", my smarta-- come back to my parents were "then lets mail it to them". Now I totally understand. I am very very sad for the suffering of the people of China and Myanmar. I am sorry to be such a downer and most people come here for Vietnam Adoption news, however my simple worries are not important. If I can help spread the news of need and suffering to help Children's Hope administer to the helpless then I will do this.

This is a quote from staff in China right now.

"Here, many babies born in the last several days have been starving with no milk from their moms and a shortage of formula."

Our Childrens Hope Rep in China

2008-05-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

The above is a link to Melody Zhang's CHI blog. She moved to China with her family a few years ago to help CHI and the orphans of China. She is one of the CHI founders that helped start CHI many years ago. Her Blog has a link to help with the current Earth Quake disaster in China, as many should know, the orphanages will be accepting numerous orphans because of this disaster. They will have many basic needs not met if we don't help in way of donations.

Hang in there.. take stock and give thanks..our worries are truly small.

2008-05-12T09:33:00.000-07:00

We are still waiting on direction from Joint Council, they are gathering more information regarding a scheduled meeting, We may not get our directions until Tue or Wed. It will still happen, so please check back.

Please have a moment of prayer for The China Earthquake victims, the People of Myanmar, the Orphans,relief workers,Government Officials and families in a struggle to adopt a child. Also a special prayer for Brithmothers that will never know the child they bore due to their unselfish sacfacrice of adoption. Pray for all people that have had a positive effect in the life of a child.

Calling all able bodies

2008-05-09T08:50:00.000-07:00

On Monday the entire adoption community,family members,people of support will be calling Government officials. We will urge them to continue the MOU agreement with USA and Vietnam, work together for the interest of the Children and families left in limbo, due to the lack of their leadership. Stress to them that applications/dossiers currently in Vietnam should be processed and matched with orphans waiting for families. This may be your last call to action durning this critical time. Please view my "BLOGS I follow" link to see our agency families waiting for travel approval and waiting for a child. They have been yearning to bring home these children for many many months. These are the families that you are fighting for! *I will post calling directions on Monday.

News from Dear Friends in HCMC

2008-05-08T18:46:00.001-07:00

These past
few months have been challenging. Many
of you probably received our email for
prayer regarding the break-in at our home.
Unfortunately, theft has been an ongoing
problem for us since the day we arrived.
Due to the last theft, it forced us to face a
staffing change that potentially could have
jeopardize the outreach center as well as all
of the team members on the field. Because
of all of your prayers and the grace of God,
this did not happen. We were able to
successfully transfer the license to a new
business partner without the Coffee House
having to close down at all. If you’ve ever
worked in an asian society, you know this is
a miracle in itself! Please continue with us
in prayer for full restoration for these
people!

OUTREACH CENTER We have
recently had two articles published about
the Coffee House. One in a local
newspaper, and another in a women’s
magazine. This has fueled a flood of new
people to the outreach center with many
new opportunities to evangelize. We are
expecting a team of 6 for 1 month and

another team of 4 for the following 4-5
weeks. Theses teams will be a great support
for the work that is happening here, but we
are still praying for people to answer the call
for full time ministry here in Vietnam.
Please be in prayer for these teams that God
will do something radicle in their lives while
they’re here with us.

HOUSE CHURCH Our House
Church is growing by leaps and bounds.
We have had four new salvation's, and many
more people eagerly searching. Please keep
praying for open hearts and open doors
here in Vietnam.

ORPHANAGE We had the
opportunity to take another trip to the
orphanage in Ben Hoa. They have recently
had a surge in newborn babies, and were in
need of cradles, diapers and formula. Our
House Church stepped up, and we delivered
all of these things, as well as rice, cooking
oil, fish sauce and snacks with contributions
from our congregation. The children were
so excited to see everyone. We were allowed
to teach them a few christian songs in
English and Vietnamese- it was great.

LANGUAGE & SCHOOL Molly
continues to take Vietnamese language
classes, and has adopted the “Slow and
steady wins the race” motto. Every
Vietnamese conversation is a language
victory, however small! Grant continues to
focus on his Global classes, and has taken
over full responsibility for running the
Coffee House while the other Wyatt’s are in
the States.

HAI PHONG Molly will be going to
Hai Phong in northern Vietnam at the end
of May to do a teaching with the Deaf
National AG Church. Please keep her in
your prayers, as this is a first for anyone on
our team!

LOGAN & GRAYSON The boys are
doing great. We just registered Logan for
Kindergarten in the fall and Grayson had
his 3rd birthday at the end of February. We
want to take this opportunity to thank all of
you for praying for us and supporting us as
we fulfill God’s call on our lives. We love
being here, and feel like we’re really making
a difference. God Bless-Grant, Molly,
Logan & Grayson Wyatt

For giving purposes contact AGWM c/o Grant Wyatt- Vietnam

Contact us if you are not currently receiving this

Assembles of God World Missions

newsletter by email and would like to do so at:

1445 N. Boonville Ave.

grantmolly@mac.com or 294260@ma.agmd.org

Springfield, MO 65802-1894

Our Acct. # is AG# 294260-5

Not keeping it together

2008-05-06T13:19:00.000-07:00

I am trying very hard to keep busy and active with the kids. The Internet chat rooms were stressing me out, I am no longer following LVC, still going through some withdrawals or anxiety of what information I may be missing. A good friend said, the chat rooms are just like the soap's you can take a break from them, go back and still not miss a thing. I panic and want to call my CHI rep, but I just spoke with her last Friday, I should not be a pest, they are extremely busy doing important work. I wrote a letter full of Vietnam Adoption info to my Senator, then chickened out after reading my ranting letter comming off as a crazy person and did not mail it. Still it felt a little better just getting it all out on paper. I will save that type of letter if I have serious issues with any "pre-travel" adoption issues. I did send two pre-made letters from the Ethica site, it still seems like they were sent into a black whole somewhere. I am trying hard to "suck it up" what will be will be, out of our control. I still hate this very much. It would be great to get a good nights sleep, stop the mind from racing of all the questions with no answers. I laid awake for 3 hours waiitng to sleep, I was so tired. We have to have a good summer, this can not rule what should be happy family times, so I will try harder.

The Winner by a MILE..BROWN!!!!

2008-05-03T15:42:00.001-07:00

Oh NOOOO.....where's a good bookie when you needed one? I had no action, we talked about Brown and 8 Bells the entire pre-show! Doho0 ! See never go against your intuition, but also, only bet money you can afford to loose. So I guess that was a win win. no loss, no gain, just EVEN.

4pm Post Time Kentucky Derby and ect...

2008-05-03T12:19:00.000-07:00

First the ect.. I was born The Year of the Horse, same as our daughter and probably millions others. Anyway we both love horses and plan on TV time for the race today at 4pm. I hear that Big Brown is favorite, I normally pick the prettiest horse that looks like it will win at first, but slowly looses ground. I have no clue how to bet properly, "tri facta, order to place ect...I just enjoy it. I highly recommend attending a horse race, the excitement is explosive,hearing the announcers voice anddddddd there off! It's just something everyone should experience. I posted info about "Horse People" I guess it sounds like me.

2007 will have ended on a happy and social note for the Horse and he can look forward to more of the same for the Year of the Rat. However,2008 will be a hectic and demanding year overall for the Horse, which could make him feel unnerved and anxious. It is important for all Horses to remember this year that all challenges are learning experiences and his tenacity and inner strength will see him through all situations. Planning and thinking about the year ahead will prove extremely beneficial to the Horse, providing him with a sense of control and direction. It is also important to make a concerted effort to listen to and get along with work colleagues and friends as ultimately they will be may be able to smooth out any rough patches for the Horse in 2008. March and August are super times for travelling and exciting adventures.

Call to Action

2008-05-01T17:41:00.000-07:00

Below is a link from Ethica, a group for ethical adoptions. Most people that want change really need direction on where to start. So here ya go....take a little time, get the letter, pick your contact and get erdone.

http://www.ethicanet.org/item.php?recordid=vietnam&pagestyle=default

We are still in a wait and see mode, what else can we do? We will take the lead of our agency and whatever they suggest we will do.

The Pending Miscarraige

2008-04-30T16:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, that is exactly how this feels. This is a feeling well known to us, "your pregnant, but we are sorry to say you will not keep the baby." Will we have to wait until 9/1? Will our agency give us any hopeful news? If we do get a referral, will the US make such a large case and force a NOID? I know that the only good getting a child at the end of this mess, would be truly knowing as best as possible that the child did qualify as an orphan. I mean come on, the line is drawn in the sand, I do not think the US will make these last 4 months a pleasant process. This is a 3rd world country, birth certificates, personal documents are not centralized like in the US, for that fact some people don't even have birth certificates. So how the heck will they be authenticated? Vietnam creates what it needed to make the adoption happen. If a DNA is ordered, the officials have been quoted as "adoption is a personal matter we will not let our citizens be tested." Where do you go from there?

Not many knew that we were adopting, frankly I told everyone about our other adoptions, however I remember the draining questions, in the grocery, at work, at church, well meaning people but still draining. That's why we kept this a little more low key. With the latest news, there has been fewer people to explain our situation to. Also answering questions about a 9 page government report where Anonymous Vietnam employees discussed Vietnam Orphanage business with US officials. RIGHT! (We will save that topic for another Ranting post) I also have been holding my tongue to several people who's response has been "you should just be happy with what you have", "You should be lucky with your current kids, you really lucked out", "well that's good, you don't want a stolen baby...do you?" I guess if I was stronger, my replies would be more thought out than just a statement of agreement. Remember what I now say....some people do take pleasure in others bad fortune.

What is needed for a successful adoption in Vietnam

2008-04-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

The following ingredients are required for the adoption of a child in Vietnam. Remember if any ingredients are missing or not working together, the entire process is in jeopardy.

1. An ethical Adoption Agency

2. The Family that has a completed Dossier

3. An ethical orphanage

4. The DIA willing to work with the US government & respect for each entity

5. The US government willing to work with the DIA & respect for each entity

6. A very clear set of rules called "Standard of Practice".

7. Hold wrong doers accountable and not penalize the entire group

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-04-28T08:20:00.001-07:00

Stop n Smell the Roses

2008-04-28T06:07:00.000-07:00

Basically take time out, enjoy life and the surroundings of spring and nature and new life. I will apologize first, my last couple post have been a little graphic regarding bodily functions. This won't be much different so sorry.

So we are coming home from church. I took the back country roads, had on some nice driving music, just taking it slow and enjoying the local farms, trees in bloom and the animals enjoying the new grass. Then we notice about 20 new calf's in the field with the mommies, some are napping, some are nursing. Then around the corner I see one big cow in the back all by herself. I know this means she is getting ready to deliver and by the mooing it sounds like soon. We pull over the car, instruct the kids to stay quiet and we walk up to the fence. My son is more impressed with playing with the dirt roadside, however my daughter looks on with wonder. She knows some of the "birds and the bees" so this was perfect timing. The cow gets up twists around some, continues this for a few more times. This may sound horrid, it turns out we missed the birth, the baby was behind a clump of weeds about 10 feet away, what we were watching was the passing of the "afterbirth" Gross! Did I mar her for life? She still seemed impressed. This probably won't be my last screw up, but at least they will have memories of mom taking time to teach them life and how to observe your surroundings.

Check out my Slide Show!

2008-04-25T17:12:00.001-07:00

We will stick this out, "no regrets" right?

2008-04-25T14:28:00.000-07:00

Highlights of this week:

Our updated documents are on the way to Vietnam.

We still have a small flicker of hope that we will be ok.

I thought I would never say this. "we got a van"...puke!

I ordered some really neat "stick people" stickers to put on the Van (puke) maybe it will make it look cooler to me. Its of our entire family in sticks, and I did order one for our little baby boy waiting somewhere in Vietnam.

My son did #2 durning naptime all over his carpet, real nice and runny, I had to chop up the carpet and toss it, It was a smeary mess.

The garden is closer to being planted.

I am learning the CVS shopping game, to save money, my sister is teaching me. I just spent .44 cents on laundry detergent. Check out her site for tips My Crazy sister.

Painted the entrance steps to our house.

Our bare patches of grass are starting to fill in.

A dear friend came over with homemade rice pudding for me. (now I am going to cry)

I just can't stand this termoil, I want to wait in happiness and peace. I never thought this process would feel like we were begging for a child. I truly feel the most sorrow for first time families, specially those that have endured inferility, stay strong, if you made it this far, something will happen good for you.

Hold on tight we are in for one HELL of a ride!

2008-04-25T08:54:00.000-07:00

Adopted Children Immigrant Visa Unit
Warning Concerning Adoptions in Vietnam
April 2008

The Department of State continues to urge prospective adoptive parents and adoption service providers not to initiate new adoptions from Vietnam at this time. The 2005 Memorandum of Agreement, required by Vietnamese law to authorize adoptions between the United States and Vietnam, expires on September 1, 2008. In addition, recent field investigations have revealed incidents of serious adoption irregularities, including forged or altered documentation, mothers paid, coerced or tricked into releasing their children, and children offered for adoption without the knowledge or consent of their birth parents.

The United States is strongly committed to processing legitimate intercountry adoptions from Vietnam if possible. Our primary concern is to ensure that the children and families involved in the adoption process are protected from exploitation. The Government of Vietnam shares this concern. Both countries acknowledge that more needs to be done to address deficiencies in the current system.

On April 25, the Government of Vietnam announced that it will allow adoption to be completed in cases where prospective adoptive parents have been matched with a child and received an official referral prior to September 1, 2008. It further stated that in accordance with Vietnamese law, the DIA will suspend the acceptance of new dossiers on July 1, 2008. On September 1, 2008 any dossier that has not received a referral will be closed and returned to the Adoption Service Provider. In view of the processing time required in Vietnam from placement to the Giving and Receiving Ceremony, an adoption process begun now cannot be completed before the current Agreement expires.

Prospective adoptive parents should be aware that documents relating to adoptions in Vietnam, such as birth certificates, abandonment reports, relinquishment agreements, and investigative reports are generally issued by orphanage directors, local People’s Committees, Provincial Departments and the Department for International Adoptions (DIA). The facts asserted in these documents are not verified by the issuing officials. Attempts by U.S. officials to verify the accuracy of these documents have routinely uncovered evidence of fraudulent or inaccurate information. Therefore, documents issued by the authorities listed above, and any other documents containing information not verified by the issuing authority, cannot be considered adequate evidence of the facts claimed. They may be used in conjunction with primary and contemporaneous secondary evidence, or must be independently verified by U.S. officials in Vietnam, before they can be considered valid for immigration purposes. (http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciprocity/reciprocity_3705.html)

Consular officers have routinely completed field verifications of orphan status in over 35 provinces in Vietnam. However, in some cases, Vietnamese officials have prevented the U.S. Government from conducting independent field inquiries into the status of children identified in I-600 petitions. Embassy outreach, as well as support from adoption agency officials, have thus far allowed independent investigations to resume in some areas that were previously impeded. We continue robust efforts to resolve this issue. Unfortunately, it is impossible to predict when we can complete the field inquiries in areas which are still closed to our staff.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service and the Department of State have instituted procedures to verify that children identified for placement meet the requirements of Vietnamese and U.S. law, before the child has been adopted under Vietnamese law. Information about these procedures is available from USCIS or through their website http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis. The Embassy strongly advises prospective adoptive parents not to travel to Vietnam until they have received notification from the Embassy that their case is ready for final processing and travel is appropriate. Parents should contact the Embassy immediately if anyone, including their adoption service provider, encourages them to travel to Vietnam prior to receiving this notification. The Embassy can work together with adoption service providers, Vietnam’s Department of International Adoptions, and local authorities to resolve issues such as the scheduling of a Giving and Receiving Ceremony.

SECOND ANNOUNCEMENT/UPDATE

Adopted Children Immigrant Visa Unit
Summary of Irregularities in Adoptions in Vietnam
On October 25, 2007 in response to “growing concerns about irregularities in the methods used to identify children for adoption in Vietnam and the resulting difficulties in classifying those children as orphans,” USCIS required that I-600 petitions be filed in Ho Chi Minh City, with the processing of these petitions to be completed before prospective adoptive parents travel to Vietnam. These procedures enable USCIS to determine whether a child qualifies as an orphan, as defined by the Immigration and Nationality Act. In the six months since this program was instituted, US officials in Vietnam have investigated over 300 I-600 petitions. This report presents a summary of our findings.

----------------------
Country Fraud Profile
----------------------

Vietnam is considered to be a high risk country for immigration fraud according to the Department of State. Fraudulent documents are routinely submitted by Vietnamese applicants in both non-immigrant and immigrant visa applications. These include both documents that have been fabricated outright and official documents issued improperly or based on incorrect information. Birth certificates, household registry documents, and marriage certificates can easily be purchased from corrupt local government officials or brokers. Marriage fraud, in order to obtain immigration benefits, is common and has resulted in multiple arrests in the United States.

--------------------------------------------------
Adoption Legislation and Administrative Structure
--------------------------------------------------

Intercountry adoption in Vietnam is regulated by two decrees: Decree 68/2002 and Decree 69/2006. These decrees divide responsibility for adoption between the Department of International Adoption (DIA) in the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) at the national level. Most of the actual administration of adoptions, however, is handled at the provincial or district level, with minimal oversight from DIA or MOLISA. For example, the matching of children and adoptive parents is the responsibility of the district-level Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs. In many cases this authority is delegated to the orphanage director. If DIA feels that a child is not eligible for intercountry adoption, they can request the office that made the match review the file, but they cannot block the match or prevent the completion of a full and final adoption.

The definition of an adoptable orphan is provided in Decree 68/2002 Article 44, which states that a child cannot be released for adoption without "the written voluntary agreement of the father and/or mother of that child." The decree lists only three exceptions to this rule. The first is if both parents are deceased; the second is if the child "has been abandoned or left at a medical establishment;" and the third is if "the child's parents have lost their civil act capacity" [sic]. Decree 69/2006 clarifies that the orphanage or People's Committee must prove that a child is covered by one of these exceptions. Otherwise, a child is still considered to be under his parents' custody, whose consent is required prior to any adoption being authorized. Decree 68/2002 and Decree 69/2006 also establish that in the case of a child who has been abandoned or left at a medical facility, a 30 day search must be made for the birth parents, and in all cases a separate 30 day search must be made for domestic adoptive parents. These searches are conducted by the orphanage or local People's Committee.

----------------------------------
Financial links between ASPs and Orphanages
----------------------------------

Vietnamese law requires that an Adoption Service Provider (ASP) sign a donation agreement with an orphanage before the ASP can arrange adoptions from the orphanage. These agreements are generally not released to the public. Several orphanage directors have told the Embassy that they actively bargain with multiple ASPs, and choose to work with the ASP that offers the highest donation per child referred. While these donations can be a mechanism to assist in the care of the children at the orphanage, they can also have a distorting effect on the adoption system.

Orphanage directors in four provinces have reported to the Embassy that there is a strong financial incentive to maximize the number of children available for foreign adoption in their centers. The donation provided per child (available for intercountry adoption) can be up to 10 times the standard government funding. Hospital and social workers have reported that orphanage directors offer them financial incentives for each child sent to their orphanage.

As a result of the autonomy given to orphanage directors by MOLISA, individual orphanage directors, in conjunction with representatives of their sponsoring ASP, have broad latitude in determining how donations will be made, what the amount will be, and whether applications from prospective domestic adoptive parents will be processed. For example, one orphanage, which is entirely funded by an American ASP, submits expense reports and receipts to the ASP on a monthly basis. The ASP then transfers funds to reimburse the orphanage for its expenses. The number of infants in this orphanage has remained steady for the past three years. The orphanage is clean, well stocked with medicine and has an RN on duty. This orphanage prioritizes reuniting children with their biological parents, and processes equal numbers of domestic and intercountry adoptions. By contrast, another orphanage receives a fixed monthly donation for each child in the orphanage who is available for international adoption and the payment is made in cash directly to the orphanage director. This orphanage has seen the number of infants in its care increase by over 2000% in the past year, but it has not made significant increases in staff and does not have an RN.

According to DIA, orphanages are required to refer one child for foreign adoption for every x dollars donated by the ASP. Thus, if the ASP funds a $10,000 project and the per-child donation is set at $1000 per child, then the orphanage would be required to refer 10 children for intercountry adoption to the ASP. Should the orphanage not have 10 children who are qualified for intercountry adoption, then, according to DIA, the orphanage director is required to find the additional children to complete his side of the agreement. Two orphanage directors have confirmed to consular officers that they are feeling pressure to find more children for their orphanage to "compensate" ASPs for their donations.

Another effect of the donation system is that it can reduce the protections that Vietnamese law grants to birth parents, such as the required 30 day search for birth parents and/or domestic adoptive parents as described above. Since, in most cases, the ASP has a close relationship with the orphanage, the ASP representative may be informed as soon as a potentially adoptable child enters the orphanage. This can result in the issuance of a "soft referral," where adopting parents are notified that they have been matched with a child before the completion of the two consecutive 30 day search periods. The DIA has stated that such pre-referrals are illegal. Nonetheless, in over 40 documented cases, DIA has taken no action to punish or prevent the issuance of soft referrals, noting that all they can do is to inform provincial or district officials of the law and request their compliance.

Local officials throughout Vietnam have reported that they have never received any calls in response to ads run seeking the birth parents of a deserted child. In fact, officials at the Ministry of Justice acknowledge that such advertisements are ineffective as many families in these provinces have no access to TV or radio and are often illiterate. Vietnamese social workers also note that if a child is abandoned, the birth family is most likely to reclaim the child 3-6 months after the abandonment. However, the ads are run only one week after the abandonment, further decreasing their effectiveness. Further, provincial officials have stated that the advertisements are made in a manner that significantly decreases the likelihood that they will be heard or seen by the birth families. Investigations by the Embassy have also confirmed that the ads are not effective. In 6 cases where investigations by the Embassy have located the birth family of allegedly deserted children, the birth families said that they never heard or saw any ads seeking the parents of the child.

Orphanage directors in two provinces have confirmed to the Embassy that while they receive applications from families interested in domestic adoption, they do not process these applications. They have said that the reason these applications are not processed is that their orphanage will receive a donation from an ASP if the baby is adopted internationally, but not if the child is adopted domestically. One orphanage director stated that he would need "permission" from the ASP funding his orphanage in order to release a child for domestic adoption, noting that the monthly support payments the ASP made for the children gave the ASP the "authority" to decide the child's future.

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Types of Adoption Cases
-----------------------

Under US Immigration law, children can be adopted if they are orphans due to the whereabouts of their birth parents being unknown (desertion) or if one or both birth parents have permanently relinquished custody of their child to the orphanage, (termed "abandonment" by US Immigration law, but commonly referred to as relinquishment). Prior to the suspension of adoption in 2002, 80% of cases were relinquishments, and 20% were abandonments. Since the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) went into effect in 2005, those figures have flipped with over 85% of the cases involving desertions. Orphanages not involved in intercountry adoption, however, have reported to the Embassy that they have not seen any increase in the number of deserted children, and the vast majority of children in these facilities are children in care . Post has received multiple, credible reports from orphanage officials that facilitators are deliberately staging fraudulent desertions to conceal the identity of the birth parents.

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Relinquishments
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Cases where one or both birth parents have permanently relinquished their child to an orphanage account for 15% of cases filed under the Orphan First program. 75% of birth parents who were interviewed by a consular officer stated that in addition to payments for food, medical care and administrative expenses, they received payment from the orphanage in exchange for placing their child in the orphanage. On average this payment was six million Vietnamese Dong, which is the equivalent of 11 months salary at minimum wage in Vietnam. Many of these families cited these payments as the primary reason for placing their child in an orphanage. The majority of these parents also state that they had not considered placing their child in an orphanage until a health care worker or orphanage official suggested to them that they should do so and informed them that they would receive a payment for doing so. Many of these parents also report that orphanage officials told them that the child will visit home frequently, will return home after they reach a certain age (often 11 or 12), or will send remittance payments from the United States. In these cases, the majority of birth parents have said they do not consent to the adoption if any of these conditions are not kept.

The Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (MOLISA) has stated that the payments to birth parents described above are unauthorized and not funded by government sources. The Ministry of Justice has likewise confirmed that such payments are illegal under Vietnamese law. MOLISA has stated, however, that there are absolutely no regulations on how orphanage directors can spend the money given to them by ASPs and that orphanage directors can give this money to anyone they wish, as long as the recipient did not have to take any action, such as relinquishing a child, in order to receive the donation. Accordingly, while MOLISA can confirm that the reported payments from orphanage officials to biological parents must have come from ASP funds, they do not have the ability to take action or to investigate reports of child buying.

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Desertions
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Throughout Vietnam, officials at orphanages connected with intercountry adoptions report a sharp increase in the number of deserted children has since 2005, the year that the adoption agreement with the United States was signed. Orphanages in 7 provinces report a 17 fold or greater increase in desertions. Officials at orphanages not connected with intercountry adoption, however, have not seen an increase in desertions. A statistical review of child desertions reveals a series of facilities that have an unexplained high rate of child desertions.

Provincial records also document an unusual pattern of "desertion pockets." For example, in one province in 2007 there were 77 cases of child desertion. Of these, 76 occurred at one particular orphanage. The director of this orphanage told the Embassy that before he signed an agreement with an ASP, the orphanage was home to 10 children, most of whom had been relinquished. By January 2007, the orphanage was home to 23 children, of whom fifty percent had been deserted. By January 2008, the orphanage was home to 70 infants, with over 90% of them having been deserted. The orphanage director attributed the growth in the number of children and the number of desertions to the fact that the orphanage was receiving funds from the American ASP. He also stated that the orphanage had hired contract employees to find children between zero and six years of age whose families were in a particularly difficult situation and encourage the families to put their children in the orphanage. The orphanage guards also confirmed that desertions were extremely rare before 2006, but now they “find” five infants per month on average.

In other cases, individuals report finding children in a field or by the side of the road. Often the individual who purportedly found the child (child finder) is a police officer, a village official or a member of their immediate family. These individuals are often related to the orphanage director or the local official who approves adoptions. Embassy investigations have shown that many of these reports are fraudulent. These include cases in which those individuals, who only months or weeks before had signed statements claiming to have found a deserted child, told consular officers that they had never in their lives found a deserted child. In one case, the child finder could not remember finding a child, even though the purported event had happened the day before. In another case, the child finder stated that the police told her if she did not sign a fraudulent statement claiming that she had found a child in 2007, they would arrest her for kidnapping in connection with a child finder statement that she signed in 2006.

In over 10 cases, Embassy investigations have discovered the identity of the birth mother in cases where a child was purportedly deserted. In all of these cases, the birth mother was known to orphanage or hospital officials, but these institutions fraudulently document the case as a desertion. In some cases, this was to conceal payments to the birth family. In others, children were declared to be deserted with unknown parents after the birth parents failed to pay outstanding hospital bills.

In one of these cases, the official Vietnamese documentation the child was born at Hospital X and then the birth mother left the hospital and was untraceable. An Embassy investigation showed that the child was born by C-section at a different hospital. The child was pre-mature and had significant respiratory problems and thus was transferred to Hospital X. Based on information from the hospital director, the Embassy located and interviewed the birth mother, who stated that she had visited her son at the hospital several times, but that the hospital director would not let her hold the child until she paid a 12 million Vietnam Dong hospital bill. She stated that she applied to have the bill reduced due to her low income, but the director refused to consider the application. Additionally, she stated that she had been told that her child would require lifelong treatment for water on the brain and that, as a result, her son had been transferred to Orphanage Y for care. She was shocked to hear that the medical report from the U.S. panel physician stated that the child was healthy. After considerable pressure from the U.S. Mission, this adoption was canceled and the child is now back with his birth parents.

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Unlicensed Facilities
----------------------

In five provinces, the Embassy has discovered unlicensed, unregulated facilities that provide free room and board to pregnant women in return for their commitment to relinquish their children upon birth. None of these facilities openly advertises its services. Women learn of the facilities existence solely by word of mouth. While the facilities are open and the women are free to come and go as they please, they incur a debt for each night that they stay that they have to pay if they do not relinquish their child. Recent Vietnamese media reports of such facilities have revealed that women often live in squalor and in many cases are forced to labor during their stay. In several of these facilities, there is a policy that the birth mother cannot see her child after delivery, in order to prevent bonding. Women in these facilities report receiving up to 6 million Vietnam Dong as payment for their children. While the source of funding for these facilities is unclear, they appear to have close connections with nearby orphanages.

When the Embassy visited these facilities, we saw up to 20 women living in a single home. These women reported that orphanage officials came to the house in order to have them sign paperwork relinquishing their children. The women would then receive the promised payments. Often, the child is then taken to a nearby hospital or orphanage where a second set of paperwork is produced stating that the child was deserted. This is the paperwork that is submitted to the DIA and to the Embassy to support the claim that the child is an orphan.

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Vietnamese Documents - Issuance Procedures
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Documents relating to adoptions in Vietnam, such as birth certificates, abandonment reports, relinquishment agreements, and investigative reports are generally issued by orphanage directors, local People’s Committees, Provincial Departments and the Department for International Adoptions (DIA). The facts asserted in these documents are not verified by the issuing officials. Attempts by U.S. officials to verify the accuracy of these documents have routinely uncovered evidence of fraudulent or inaccurate information. Therefore, all documents issued by the authorities listed above and any other documents containing information not verified by the issuing authority cannot be considered adequate evidence of the facts claimed and, at best, may be used in conjunction with primary and contemporaneous secondary evidence or must be must be independently verified by U.S. officials in Vietnam before they can be considered valid for immigration purposes.

In cases involving the desertion of a child, local officials usually issue birth certificates and reports of abandonment at the request of orphanage or hospital officials without speaking to the individuals involved. For example, the People's Committee in one southern province told the Embassy that they issue whatever documents a local midwife requests without verifying the accuracy of the statements. This is done to "help her with her business with the orphanage." In a different province, village officials issued an official statement that a birth mother was single, even though their own registry book showed she was married and had four children. Further, MOLISA has confirmed that for deserted children a birth certificate can be issued showing the date and time of desertion as the date and time of birth and listing the birth parents as unknown, even if the true facts have been previously recorded in official documents.

The Embassy has received credible reports that some ASPs pay $10,000 per referred child to local facilitators. According to one of these facilitators, a significant portion of this money goes to the orphanage director, who is responsible for finding children. The facilitator and orphanage director then work together to create a false advertisement claiming that the child was abandoned, regardless of the child's true origins. This ad is then used to obtain the necessary paperwork from local officials and DIA. The facilitator noted that as long as the right fee is paid, no one tries to verify the facts of the case, and the documents are issued with no questions asked.

Fraudulent police reports have also been submitted to the Embassy in connection with adoption cases. For example, in one adoption case the original file stated that the birth mother was unknown. However, hospital records revealed the mother's name and address. When the Embassy requested an explanation as to why DIA approved the adoption case without a police search for the biological mother as required by Vietnamese law, DIA blamed the omission of the birthmother search report on the village police and provided a document dated March 21, 2007, stating that a police check had been done and they could not find the birth mother. However, the police officer who purportedly did the check stated he had not actually done a physical search, and that the date on the document was inaccurate. He stated that "about 20 days ago" the police chief in another village visited his office with a prepared backdated report about the search and asked him to sign, which he did.

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Vietnamese Documents - Verification Procedures
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Once a child has been matched with a prospective adoptive parent, the provincial level Department of Justice conducts a review of the file to ensure that it contains the proper documents required by Vietnamese law. According to provincial Department of Justice officials, the review consists of physically verifying that the child is in the orphanage and verifying that each required document is signed, sealed and in the file. There is no requirement to verify the accuracy of the information contained in the file. Further, there is no requirement to verify that a birth parent intended to relinquish their child or to verify the circumstances of a child's desertion. According to DIA, even if this review were to uncover any discrepancies, DIA and provincial Department of Justice officials are prohibited from conducting an independent review of the facts or speaking directly with the witnesses in the case. Instead, they are required by Article 45 of Decree 68/2002 to return the case to the official who prepared the original report. If this individual recertifies that his original report is correct, then the case is allowed to proceed.

DIA's explicit position is that, as long as the appropriate papers have been signed by the correct officials, DIA will certify that the adoption complies with Vietnamese law. DIA has stated that it does not actually have the authority to declare an adoption illegal, revoke a Giving and Receiving Ceremony, or cancel a referral. The lack of verification and accountability regulations in Vietnamese adoption law creates a situation where an unscrupulous orphanage director or local official who fabricates a "desertion" or "relinquishment” is also only that official who can investigate the alleged fraud in the case.

A provincial Department of Justice official told the Embassy of cases where under Vietnamese law children had been matched with adopting families and the cases were referred to her office for verification. In one case, hospital records stated that the birth mother had registered at the hospital under an assumed name and then died shortly after the birth. The child was listed as deserted. However, the DOJ official found a reference in the hospital file that the woman's family had come to the hospital to claim her body. As a result the official contacted the family, who stated that the hospital had transferred the child to the orphanage without their consent and that the orphanage had denied them visitation rights. The family has now been reunited with the child, who is being raised by his maternal grandparents. However, the official noted that under Vietnamese law no one had technically done anything wrong in separating this child from his family. Only her personal interest in the case and her ability to persuade other local officials to do the right thing prevented this child from being permanently separated from his family.

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Reports of Corruption in Adoption System
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The Embassy has received credible reports from current and former employees of ASPs working in Vietnam regarding corruption in the adoption system, beginning with the licensing procedures. Several ASPs have reported that they were told they had to fund tours to the United States for DIA and other government officials in order to receive their licenses. According to ASP employees, these tours included shopping sprees, where ASP employees were expected to pay for all of the purchases of the Vietnamese delegation. Others have reported being asked to pay bribes in order to obtain provincial licenses.

In addition, statements from adopting parents and ASP employees show that many ASPs ask adopting parents to pay cash donations to orphanage directors and staff. These payments are illegal according to the Vietnamese Ministry of Justice, but the Ministry acknowledges that they are widespread and that they are a key factor in the irregularities seen in the adoption system in Vietnam. Further, ASPs have reported that cash and in-kind donations have been diverted by orphanage officials and used to finance personal property, private cars, jewelry and, in one case, a commercial real estate development.

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Official Response to Reports of Irregularities
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DIA has acknowledged that when it receives reports from the Embassy regarding fraud in adoption cases, they meet with the ASP or local facilitators to develop a strategy to refute the Embassy's evidence. Frequently this consists of a second investigation where child-finders are notified in advance that they will be re-interviewed in front of the People's Committee. When they arrive they are reminded that they can be punished for having previously made false statements to the People’ Committee. In other cases, birth mothers from rural provinces who had told the Embassy they did not agree to relinquish their children were summoned to Hanoi at their own expense and ordered to appear before DIA to sign new relinquishment papers. Under this pressure, child-finders and birth mothers have recanted the statements they had made to consular officials.

The Embassy has informed the DIA of cases of potential fraud and illegal activity. However, the DIA has acknowledged that it has not taken any action, criminal or administrative, against any individual or organization for any violation of Vietnamese law or regulation concerning adoption. They have also stated that they have taken no action to address concerns or allegations of wrongdoing submitted to them by individuals, ASPs or the U.S. Embassy. Instead, DIA has stated that it is in the "humanitarian" interest of the Government of Vietnam to ensure that every proposed adoption is completed as quickly as possible. They note that the ASPs have made a donation for the child, and thus, even if they had the authority to revoke a referral or an adoption, they would not do so because they could not break their contract with the ASP.

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The Day Before Thursday

2008-04-23T17:31:00.000-07:00

Yes, Thursdays is my goal each week, get to Thursday and hopefully the update will be good. Most times its a huge let down. As most we are on the edge of our seats regarding the status of adoptions in Vietnam. Rumors of deadlines, DNA memo with no clear direction or public notice yet. Families that wish to wait in peace are now waiting with uncertainty and sometimes panic. Financial strain for those that have managed to keep it together so far. What once was a 6-9mth wait is now creeping up to excess of 2years. My sister followed lead of a fellow blogger and posted a St. Joseph photo on a condo she has been desperate to sell. In the last two days she has had some serious inquiries. Lets hope a deal comes together for her. So for this post we will learn about the Catholic Saint that "Keeps Watch" over the orphans. It only seems fitting for the state that we are currently in. So enjoy the following.

St. Jerome Emiliani

(1481?-1537)

A careless and irreligious soldier for the city-state of Venice, Jerome was captured in a skirmish at an outpost town and chained in a dungeon. In prison Jerome had a lot of time to think, and he gradually learned how to pray. When he escaped, he returned to Venice where he took charge of the education of his nephews—and began his own studies for the priesthood.

In the years after his ordination, events again called Jerome to a decision and a new lifestyle. Plague and famine swept northern Italy. Jerome began caring for the sick and feeding the hungry at his own expense. While serving the sick and the poor, he soon resolved to devote himself and his property solely to others, particularly to abandoned children. He founded three orphanages, a shelter for penitent prostitutes and a hospital.

Around 1532 Jerome and two other priests established a congregation dedicated to the care of orphans and the education of youth. Jerome died in 1537 from a disease he caught while tending the sick. He was canonized in 1767. In 1928 Pius Xl named him the patron of orphans and abandoned children.

Comment:

Very often in our lives it seems to take some kind of “imprisonment” to free us from the shackles of our self-centeredness. When we’re “caught” in some situation we don’t want to be in, we finally come to know the liberating power of Another. Only then can we become another for “the imprisoned” and “the orphaned” all around us.

Quote:
“‘The father of orphans and the defender of widows is God in his holy dwelling. God gives a home to the forsaken; he leads forth prisoners to prosperity; only rebels remain in the parched land’ (Psalm 68).... We should not forget the growing number of persons who are often abandoned by their families and by the community: the old, orphans, the sick and all kinds of people who are rejected…. We must be prepared to take on new functions and new duties in every sector of human activity and especially in the sector of world society, if justice is really to be put into practice. Our action is to be directed above all at those men and nations which, because of various forms of oppression and because of the present character of our society, are silent, indeed voiceless, victims of injustice” (Justice in the World, 1971 World Synod of Bishops).

Happy Earth Day!

2008-04-22T17:37:00.000-07:00

A wonderful tip for living a Green Day....

Take one bottle of Green Food Coloring add 1/2 cup vinegar to a nice warm bath...dim the lights and have a relaxing soak.

Anyway at least I thought it was funny! Seriously, I have many going green tips, but recently heard of a real neat one: Bring your own cup to your coffee/coco place and instead of one time use and toss of the foam or cardboard cup into a land fill, use your own. How cool is that? If you have any neat ideas please share. Have a great night.

My sister is so funny!

2008-04-21T11:30:00.000-07:00

She is leaving crazy coments on my site! Just read what she said under my Bambi story. Ok now that you had a good laugh, here are things my sister is good at, buying and wearing makeup, wonderful with the computer, making you laugh, loosing and gaing lbs with a sneeze, scaming CVS for all the freebies & stocking her shelfs like a store, makes wonderful banana pudding, does not embarrass easily, if encouraged will act crazy even more to get the laughs, she will rent a haloween costume just to look the hottest in the entire group! (see photo rented "wench outfit") & her avitar.

Battle with Bambi

2008-04-19T18:31:00.000-07:00

The kids and I put in about 7 hours today prepping the garden, picking rocks and pulling out dead plants. We have 6 huge piles that have to be burned where they sit. Then plow the plot, de-rock again and plant! We love seeing the rewards of our efforts and talking about what we are going to grow. However....it is very defeating when the plants come up about one inch to only wake up to deer tracks and chewed up plants down each row. I think the deer spy on us durning the day making their plans for a midnight feast. Last year the first three rows of corn took quite a beating. This year I am more prepared for battle. First I will stake long sticks around the premise and string fishing line, from the line we will clip dryer sheets, then purchase a spray bottle and after rains we will re-spray the sheets. The apple farmers do this process to protect the new trees. It seems like the deer do not like the perfume smell. Other methods include grating Irish Spring soap around plants, or even human urine around the boarder of the garden. Urine around the garden is a great task for my potty trained 3yr old, so that will be our second defense! I am open to other suggestions, just remember I am not looking to spend tons of money on a cure.

Our documents have arrived safely

2008-04-17T21:10:00.000-07:00

Well, the UPS site has confirmed that our 3 updated documents have arrived at the Vietnam Embassy in Washington. So I figure it will take them about 10 days to review, attach the seals and send onto our agency. However I will still check the tracking numbers each day. Because THATS HOW I AM!

Chemical Safe Child products?

2008-04-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

I never realized that the sippy cups we were using were leaching toxic chemicals into our child's drinks. I mean come-on! I am smart enough to know not to microwave plastic bottles or sippy-cups, and I never reheat food on plastic, or for that fact even cover my food in the microwave with plastic wrap. But last winter the news first stared reporting that cancer causing chemicals in cheaper plastic would transfer into the liquid. The news said the grades of plastic, I only remember that a #2 on the bottom of the cups were acceptable. So you guessed it, the same night I threw away about 80% of our cups, and these were the major player names, Playtex, Gerber ect.. So we are basically down to two cups! That's right, I know our kids should really be done with them, but man they are so handy. I also still love getting cozy with the kids and rock them while they are drinking. So my new mission is to find a product that I trust and feel good about using. My mind is thinking about Glass baby bottles and toxic-free sippy cups. I am currently reading the website Nuturepure.com they have some pretty good products and the information makes sense to me. **Here is a news article below. Let me know what you think.

Watchdog Group Sounds Alarm About Plastic Baby BottlesTuesday, February 27, 2007 | 5:51 PMBy Denise DadorFebruary 27, 2007 -- Environment California's top five baby bottle offenders are the clear, hard plastic ones sold by Gerber, Playtex, AVENT, Dr. Brown's and Evenflo.
"Every one of those five brands of baby bottle leached a toxic chemical called Bisphenol A into the liquids inside the bottle," Lara Tabor, of Environment California, said.
The group used independent labs and found the chemical Bisphenol A leached more into liquids whenever a bottle was heated or washed with harsh detergents.
"Bisphenol A has been linked to cancer, obesity, diabetes and a lot of other serious problems," Tabor said.
Story continues belowAdvertisementThe group also claims excessive exposure to Bisphenol A can lead to hyperactivity, impaired learning and impaired immune function.
"Well it's pretty troubling to think that you'd be giving your baby toxic chemicals," Arthur Egeli, a father, said.
Bottle makers maintain all their plastics are FDA approved and recognized as safe for food contact.
"Philips AVENT bottles are manufactured using polycarbonate plastic ... manufacturers of consumer products and medical devices choose to use polycarbonate because it prevents cracking, shattering and other hazards that can lead to injuries," the company said in a statement.
"Gerber's manufacturing practices comply with the regulations established by the FDA and it believes these products are safe for us as intended," Gerber Products Company said in a statement.
And Platex says "many scientific studies have provided evidence that the potential exposure to BPA from sources such as plastic food contact containers is minimal and poses no known risk to human health."
Besides baby bottles, Bisphenol A can be found in a wide variety of consumer products including eye glasses, reusable water bottles and microwaveable food containers. However, Environment California says baby products should be the first to be regulated.
And while some parents agree - "I think that's the role of the state to regulate such things and I hope they would do something like that," Melinda Pearson, a mother, said.
Some parents say they're not worried.
"I really haven't seen any effects, any negative side effects from all the mothers that I have known who have used these bottles," Leann Alexander, a mother, said.

Short break ...but not really!

2008-04-15T19:43:00.000-07:00

We just came home from a wonderful visit with friends that traveled to China in our same group. We see each other maybe 2 or 3 times a year. It was nice just getting away, don't get me wrong still tons of work and returning home is still work. You should know the cycle. If anything my head was somewhat cleared of constant "email" panic and needing to read and search for any news. I did cave in on Monday night about 11pm, huge mistake, got myself all worked up over a "rumor posts" that I did not have any control over anyway. But I should known better. Anyway that post took my sleep away, took my attention way from the good time I was having and panicked me. I was quite surprised when my CHI rep returned a reply to my email, I would of been happy with a next day reply. It did easy some of my worries. All I can say is, anyone that is currently doing a Vietnam adoption "you deserve tons of credit!" This entire experience has torn at every nerve, made me guess our choices and really grounded us down. Some days the feeling is so defeated, we are considering ourselves the lucky ones, we have hung in there (so far) and look forward to our weekly updates. But it's like holding our breath each week waiting for someone to say, its all over. I will post a few photos from our trip.

No More Baby Seat!

2008-04-11T05:20:00.000-07:00

What does Brown deliver for You?

2008-04-10T16:52:00.000-07:00

Each time I hear that commercial I think "yes they deliver adoption documents, referral photos, Visas and passports". Would that not be a cool commercial. I am sure many of you have seen the surprised drivers getting hugged, photographed and totally caught off guard by moms running to the truck even before he the driver gets his feet to the driveway. Well today we ran to meet the UPS driver in our driveway, he delivered our brand new car seats. I can't wait to see them installed and the old ones out.

We are currently waiting for our 3 documents to return from the Sec of State, they should be here VIA- UPS tomorrow by 10:30, at least that's what I am told. (I have the tracking numbers memorized.) If so, I have the Money Order and cover letter and address ready to send right back out to the Vietnam Embassy. If I can get this out Friday, it will be at the Embassy first thing Mon am, I love Monday deliveries, I feel it saves an entire work week of processing and waiting. We can not afford "The Ast Stork" so we will chance our luck a second time. I will include a pre-paid envelope for the Embassy to forward directly to my agency, why pay to get it sent back to me yet again?

Hello My Name is:

2008-04-09T08:35:00.000-07:00

Boy what a personal choice, naming your child. In most cases you choose your child's name because its one you have been thinking about for years, you place your hopes, dreams and family honor in naming your kids. An even more complicated decision when naming an adopted child. Do you keep the their birth name? Did the birth family name the baby? Was it an orphanage name? (like baby #24 with mark on face) & yes some are named this way. What does the name translate to? Is it easy to pronounce? Will they be picked on in school? Will the name give them success in later years? Imagine if Oprah's name was Mable. Would she still be successful? Will it be a name easy to pronounce in the business world? Look good on a business card or will people struggle pronouncing it? Or all together just not say it in fear of saying it wrong.

In both of our prior adoptions we totally changed the names. Our daughters Chinese name did not translate to anything that gave honor to her. So we had a family member (whom is Chinese) help us pick a new Chinese name. Her new middle name is Mei Fei (May-Fay)which means beautiful and intelligent. A Chinese name keeps her link to her heritage. Our sons name translated also very plain and nothing special. His new Chinese name is En-Lai (in-lie) which is after a great ruler in China : Chu-En-Lai, he was very good to the Chinese people. So our son has a name after a great leader. He should be very proud of this later in life.

Now onto the American names. While I love trendy names and have fallen in love with many. I still have the opinion that naming your child, specially and adopted child ; the name should place your child on the family tree with a family name that links them there. This also announces to the child that they are included in our family history and demonstrates this to other family members. Our daughter was named after my middle name, which is also the name of another family member whom is also Chinese. Her American middle name is my husbands middle name. Our daughter truly loves hearing about how she was named after each of us. Our sons first name is my husbands name,and a version of his fathers Spanish name. His middle American name is after my deceased father.

Now for our 3rd and probably last child (you never know) he will also have a family name. It will be James, my grandpa was a James, my father was a James and my brother is a James. My brother had first dibs on using James, but he used it as a middle name for his middle child. So we will claim it as a first name for our 3rd child! His middle American name will be Carmen after my husbands late mother. We were saving this name for a girl, thinking that our current son would be a daughter but China surprised us! (there was 2 boys out of 59 babies referred that month). A great suprise for thinking we were expecting a girl. I had to sit down. Well anyway I hope this post has given you food for thought. Got to go check all my chat rooms. Peace for now.

Well I did it! Finally

2008-04-07T08:05:00.000-07:00

We visited family this past Easter and my Sister in Law who is the "Official Car Seat Family Inspector" OCSFI, put us on notice that our daughter has outgrown her car seat. Her head is over the top of the back seat and shoulder strap a little cutting, our son starting to hunch with the straps on the highest setting. Where does the time go? We paid dearly on the existing ones, figure it out, two cars, four car seats, Two Kids. (Most would say why 4? just move them from car to car. Believe me once they are in, they stay in. If installed properly it should take an act of GOD to move them.) I sort of knew we needed upgrading but kept on waiting for that extra chunk of money that was always due to me. So this am, got online and researched some. Kinda knew what I wanted, I remember seeing a very sad YouTube video about a mom who regretted not having a proper car seat, so that stuck in my head for years. I will post it later. Our first set was the Triumphs highly rated still today, holds up to 60lbs. Great for rear facing. We got a good 3yrs out of them. Our new baby will still use them. The new ones BRITAX REGENT will hold age one yr at least 22 lbs and up to 80lbs. Yes 80lbs! Only forward facing. I will pledge to keep my children in a 5point harness as long as there is a seat to hold them. So we should get good use from these. I purchased them at bestbuybaby.com free ground shipping and no tax. So I pretty much got two seats for the price of 1.5. That's how it makes sense in my head. I urge all families waiting to research car seats, don't just buy one because its cute or has little ladybugs on them, you will regret it later when you have to make the purchase all over again. *Pink one was $249, Camel one was $229 from Bestbuybaby.com

http://youtube.com/watch?v=azgBhZfcqaQ To view copy link to your address bar for this extrememly informative video on "The Importance of a 5 Point Harness" I urge you to view this before you purchase anything.

Does Anybody Else Look Like Me? By Donna Jackson Nakazawa

2008-04-05T17:56:00.000-07:00

(meeting brother for the 1st time)

I have read this years ago, and flipping through it found some highlighted areas that I wish to share. I really did not read this until after our 1st child came home from China, I was so oblivious, looking back I wish I was a little more "in tune" and prepared. Well here it goes,,,if you like buy a copy,you will not regret it.

Book Quote:

"Why do people so often make comments about multiracial children? Of course they are beautiful-we as their parents know that. But why is it that our children garner so much extra attention from strangers when other,clearly adorable kids don't garner as much?" End Quote

This entire scene use to play out every time we left the house to run errands. I use to avoid eye contact with people just to avoid a conservation regarding adoption in front of my child. When I did have a conservation I was very brief but polite. For truly interested people I even went as far as giving them my phone number. Please remember protect your child at all costs. If they are made to feel like an item,(like a puppy) or draw attention of how beautiful they are by strangers it will make them draw into a shell or not have solid self esteem.

OK this second quote was a perfect argument to my husband on why we should adopt again. He did not need much convincing as his heart was all for a second adoption even before the plane left China with our daughter. Anyway this helped move it along a little more faster.

Quote:"The benefits of having Siblings"

"For children who are biracial, the presence of siblings may have a remarkable positive effect on each child's self-esteem, giving each child a concrete sense that there are others like them, not only in their own home but within the greater world. Psychologist Beverly Daniel Tatum points out that "when a sibling comes along, the first child often has a great sense of relief in seeing someone like them in their family. It gives them a much bigger sense of seeing themselves reflected in the world around them." End Quote

Yes this was very true in our case, even today our daughter takes great pride pointing out to her brother that she was born first in China and that we had to go get him. Even today she said no matter how many birthdays he has, he will never be the same age as her! Always thinking that one! They have a beautiful bond that I enjoy watching grow everyday. In most cases she is his "little mommy".

Paperwork Cake Walk

2008-04-04T13:17:00.000-07:00

I feel we moved up on the list some today, I have to wait for word from my adoption consultant. Anyway because we updated our fingerprints and have a new approval document from USCIS. We need to get it Notarized, Certified and Authenticated. We had to update 3 documents, Express mailing $109 (4 envelopes) $150 Vietnam Embassy (3 documents @$50) Sec of State $30 (3 documents at $10) County Clerk $9 (3documents at $3) grand total $297 , I could of saved about $50 if I had the SOS send my docs onto the Embassy, but at the time this seemed the less confusing,they will come back to us, then I must send on to Embassy. My son and husband were with me, need I say more? This small paperwork task did seem easy. In fact I learned a neat time saving short cut, being this is our 3rd adoption I should of seen the big picture sooner. Oh Well, here it goes....instead of running all over trying to get a bank notary, town office notary, ect. Just use the Notary at the County Clerks office and the same day get the clerk to authentic each document. This saves time, saves using more than one Notary, limits that you may use notaries from different counties causing more running around and last but not least reduces the ERRORS that many notaries make causing you precious time and money.*ps might be a challenge with the doctor note and employment letter but for the rest...easy breezy.

Mom the Hero!

2008-04-03T18:56:00.000-07:00

We had about a 3hr window of special time today. I was busy working on drywall & cleaning, son watching the morning reading show. Then it dawned on me, "lets get the heck outa here". So with 3hrs before the school bus, we took off for the Zoo! The weather was so nice, you could feel spring in the air. He got ready super fast for the car. I want him to grow up remembering special times with just mom, or times when he is totally the center of attention. Believe me his days are numbered, when sharing me will not be easy. But anyway, I have a friend with 3 kids, and they make a point of each week to have a "date" or alone time with each child separately. I think that's cool! Ok I got off track of why I am a hero....Well, thinking of how he will have wonderful memories of seeing the animals, playground etc.. The only thing that impressed him was "skittles" were in the vending machine. Guess what? Only one package left. I had a one dollar coin and the machine accepted it, only to partially uncoil 89% of the package, leaving that poor package hanging for dear life. Ok tap the machine lightly, nothing, no one looking, give it a nice BANG...nothing no movement. no one looking still "lets rock it and let it BANG down! " Yes.. success we have skittles! My son was so proud, only for me to hear another parent that was watching. "boy you have a nice technique". I was a little embarrassed, maybe others would of just put in more money, but what the heck money is money right? (or I am just cheap) It really made me happy that my son enjoyed his Skittles, they were all his, and he did not have to share.

Vocabluary Time Kids...Yes new USCIS process

2008-04-02T17:56:00.000-07:00

According to USCIS the word ABANDONMENT means: A child is left by the parents and the authorities know who the parents are. For that child to be adopted the biological parents needs to have a DNA test to prove they are the parents, and sign a document that they are truly abandoning the child. The adoptive parents will pay for the testing of baby, and both parents. If needed the test maybe performed twice.(normally a month to process)

OK now..The word DESERT means: The child is left with no family or connections. An investigation will be ordered and if biological family is located, then see above.

So going forward, this will be the new step right after referral. I have seen that about 80% of children are deserted. I am sure once all the process is ironed out things will be OK. No one is very good with change, specially when a new one is issued it seems every week now. Well tomorrow is Thursday do I dare think our agency may get some referrals?? until then Peace!

Dedication....

2008-04-02T17:31:00.001-07:00

This current song is dedicated to my blooger buddy (you know who) Yes finally getting her fingerprint appointment tomorrow. Lets hope she does not soak in the bath too long tonight and make those prints all water logged!

Peas & Carrots, Carrtos & Peas!

2008-04-01T12:22:00.000-07:00

My feeling with the Vietnam adoptions are still medium, I guess it depends what Yahoo groups that you read, still tons of conflicting information. The MOU will not be resigned, however Vietnam still wants to work with non-Hague agency's, against what the US is pushing for. Since our agency is non-Hague I keep hoping that Vietnam will keep with their plan to continue working with non-Hague agency's and still process applications that have been in Vietnam for months. The current agreement expires this Sept. so no official announcements yet.. Our agency hopes to be accredited by then. Still its nerve racking. No one ever said this was easy. I wonder if it was easy for Brad & Angelia, did they read and cling to every chat room?

We did have a nice burst of warm air today, almost spring like. We tried to fly a kite, but most of the time was "stop stepping on the line" "get it out of the trees" "watch out the string will cut your hand" At one point it reached the top of our home, only to crash to the ground.

Our neighbor has a huge garden area, they shared it with us last summer, we managed it, watered, weeded ect. Her husband died late fall, the garden was still not fully harvested, so I wondered all winter if we would have the joy of a garden again this summer. Then she came over today, (see nice weather brings out people!) YES! She started telling the list of things to do before planting, we started today pulling out 20 rows of dead corn stocks and various plants. The ground was nice n soft so pulling them out was great. Last summer, we ate vegetables all summer and fall, even pulled leftover carrots in the winter thaw. It will be so nice to have that again this year. Even the daily fight with the local deer, its worth it! On a side note, this garden is like medicine to me, it helps to endure the waiting, keeping the mind and body busy. Going to bed nice and tired with no time to ponder.

Easter Morning

2008-03-24T14:25:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter, it was extra fun seeing the happiness in our childs eyes and the wonder of the Easter Bunny. We attended mass on Easter Eve, arrived about 7pm for a 7:30 start, they really were well behaved considering that we left after 2hrs and 40 min into it, at that point communion was not even started. I do feel gulity...but we were pushing out luck staying any longer. We left right after the 4th baptism. I think we are forgiven.

LET YOUR VOICE BE COUNTED PLEASE SIGN

2008-03-21T13:43:00.000-07:00

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/AmericansforVietnamOrphans/index.html

Please sign the above petition which will be presented to VP Cheny. It only takes 1min and costs no money. This is the time to let government know that we are unhappy with the current issues surrounding adoptions in Vietnam. I hope you all have a peaceful Easter, as we pray for all the families with uncertainties at this time.

Make Yourself Heard!

2008-03-19T16:39:00.000-07:00

Do you feel it is ethical for the United State to pressure Vietnam to only work with Hague agency's when in fact Vietnam is not a Hague country? Do you think it is humane to let babies sit additional months in an overstressed orphanage while the United States extend I600 applications investigation's past 60 days when the old process was about 10 days, with babies waiting to go home to American families. If your agency is not a Hague agency or your simply stressed with the current situation please contact your Senator/government officials at the following link. Only in numbers can policy be changed.
http://www.bringourchildrenhome.org/6701/index.html