We Know He Hears Us!

Back in September we posted the following list. Praise the Lord we have been able to cross off some pretty significant steps since then!  We will continue to choose to dwell on all God has done to get us to this point and pray for the remaining steps to be completed. We can never say enough thank you's to all our dear friends, family, and even those we have never met who have prayed with us in this process the past two years. Please choose to praise the name of Jesus with us! Prayer request for what is left at the bottom of the list! Our biggest praise is that our girls are now our legal daughters and that they are now at home with us in Haiti! Praise be to God for this unspeakable gift! 

We know He hears us!

BASIC OVERVIEW OF HAITI ADOPTION PROCESS
Get your homestudy done.
Notarize documents for your adoption package to be sent to Haiti.
Send notarized documents to Secretary of State to be authenticated.
Get notarized, authenticated documents translated into French.
Send I-600A and supporting documents to USCIS.
Send French and English documents (adoption package) to Haitian Consulate to be legalized.
Send your adoption package to Haiti.
Send first payment of Haiti adoption fee to Haiti to begin adoption process of a particular child.
Orphanage director compiles child’s documents.
Haitian lawyer reviews adoptive parents’ and child’s file.
File enters IBESR (the social services dept of Haiti).
IBESR director approves this adoption. 

Send 2nd/final payment of Haiti adoption fee after exiting IBESR.

Haitian court appearance before the judge who also has to approve the adoption.

Some people (like us because we have bio kids) have to get "Presidential Dispensations"...meaning the President of Haiti has to sign our waiver allowing us to adopt and continue the process.

Dossier goes to Parquet Office  (or Commissary)
a.  Homologation
b. Parquet
c. Justice Palace
d. Exequature
e. Civil Register
f. Authorization for signature of Adoption Decree
g. Parquet Legalization  (This is the  second “First Legalization”)
More Courts
a. Ministry of Justice (Second Legalization)
b. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Third Legalization)
c. Attestation of Signatures on Adoption Decree

Archives (THIS IS WHERE WE ARE NOW...MARCH 2012)

Immigration submits papers to Minister of Interior to get approval to make child’s Haitian passport.

Minister of Interior gives passport authorization to Immigration.

Immigration prints passport.

DHS 

Adoptive Parent files I-600

DHS interviews birth parents 

We file more USCIS forms (File I-864W, recent Employment letter, past 3 years tax returns, etc. to prove our adopted child will not become a public charge.)

US Embassy approves visa application.

US Embassy prints child’s US visa.

The good news (out of the bad news on the last post) is that we will not have to go through the Haitian system of IBESR, etc. once again to obtain the documents the U.S. Embassy is requiring to approve visas for our girls. We have been told that the Haitian father (the one that failed the DNA test) will have to go to court (once again) in order to now obtain documents stating he was the "legal guardian" instead of the father and at least 4 other valid witnesses must attest to this as well. This just needs to get done and then we must show these documents to the U.S. Embassy. The fact that he was the father listed on the paperwork in no way undoes anything already completed in our adoption process. We had to do this "guardianship" paperwork for Marguerite through her aunt that relinquished her to an orphanage 8 years ago, so we are somewhat familiar with this process. The Embassy is also requiring further "proof" of Marguerite's mother's death and a baptismal certificate on Marguerite. So our first prayer request is that this new required paperwork for each of our girls will get done as quickly as possible. We are praying that these things can be accomplished by the time we are out of the Minister of Interior and that the visas will then be approved so we can bring the girls to the states (and once we touchdown in Miami they will be U.S. citizens!). The U.S. Embassy has given us an extension deadline of June 4th, 2012. Our HUGE prayer request is that we will be able to come home to the states as a family of six in mid June (preferably on June 12th returning with home with our 4 friends visiting from our hometown who already have their ticktes returning on that day). That would be just the best! Please pray for best! We know God's timing is always best and we are trusting His timing for the completion of all these things! 

"Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, 

that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 

And if we know that He hears us, 

whatever we ask, 

we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him." 

1 John 5:14-15

"But certianly God has heard me;

He has attended to the voice of my prayer. 

Blessed be God,

Who has not turned away my prayer,

Nor His mercy from me!"

Psalm 66: 19-20