Now that Most People Know...

Monday we were sent an email from CHOC that asked us to see how fast we could process travel visas because there was a feeling that there would be an offer soon, possibly for December 24th.  I was at work and I was completely floored!  NEVER did we expect to even 'possibly' hear this soon.  It has been five weeks since our papers were sent over to Russia!

I immediately jumped on to the visa applications and it turns out it takes 12 days to process.  I told CHOC and said I would await their call.  This is when CHOC tells me they won't be calling.  They have to offer a possible child to our provincial government first and then NS offers us the child.  Wheels started turning.  I asked if CHOC was able to tell me when they have forwarded an offer or even any of the details regarding the child.  CHOC tells me they are not able to tell me ANYTHING.  OK!  I start to buzz because how else would CHOC have a possible date and be encouraging us to fill out visas if there hasn't been an offer?  I now knew I wouldn't sleep...

Wednesday morning I'm at work on the phone with a food representative and my cell phone rings.  I see it is an unknown caller and know that Family Services always appears as unknown.  I immediately hung up on the rep and answered the cell.  It was the head of Family Services!!!

Lo and Behold!  We are being offered a boy!  He just turned two at the end of October.  The description we received is as follows:

The boy is active, emotional, sociable, he speaks by simple words, understands orders, can walk.

And the photo melted me. 

He has a name but if everything goes according to plan we will be Canadianizing it slightly when custody is official.  His name is Makerov Maxim.  Instantly I was enamoured with Makerov (I've always liked names with v's) and had shortened it to Mak.  I find out a few hours later that Russians often go by their middle names.  Too late.  He isn't a Max to us, he's a Mak.  We won't say the first name until we know we have custody but for now, Mak Miklos?  sounds awesome!

We have told people but still request no public postings until we have the date - which I now know will come on MONDAY!

This is so amazing and so wonderful.  It is hard to describe the emotions that I went through but I will give it a go -

I didn't react to the call the way I expected.  There was a not a blubbery mess of tears.  I was definitely and  obviously happy and excited but I am pretty sure I was in a state of shock for 36-ish hours.  I immediately called Mike and told him and then ran around the store telling everyone.  I even saw the teller from the bank who sold me the last bank draft for the Russian Consulate and I showed him the photo and hugged him (only to later think that might have been uncomfortable for him)!  I was told several times that I was visibly shaking and stayed that way all night and next day.  Mike and I were both pretty speechless sitting together that night.  We just kept asking 'are you alright' and then smiling.  Our minds were made up even though we had a doctor looking over the file we were pretty sure nothing was going to stop us from pursuing this boy.

Thursday started the same way Wednesday night ended - I was buzzing.  I started to tell friends and family (beyond the parents whom already knew now) and it wasn't until reading one response that the immense awesomeness of this situation hit me like a tonne of bricks!  There are two ways that I can best describe the feeling.  One is that it felt like I literally shed a second skin and that it was so heavy that the sudden lightness made me fall to the floor.  I had dropped to my knees and just started bawling and laughing.  The second way is that suddenly Mak became three dimensional.  Up to this moment he had been the picture and nothing more.  I had even stood in his room the previous night but couldn't see him there.  Now I could picture holding his hand, him coming down the stairs with me standing at the bottom, eating breakfast with him, him rocking in the chair with me... it was an endless flood of three-dimensional opportunity!

WOW!

WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW!

More to come when I know more too.  Monday, as soon as I have the date, my status will be updated for the world to see my joy!

Travel Visas

Now that the immigration forms are done until we have Kid's info I must miss filling out forms since I downloaded the guide to filling our online Visa applications.  Single Entry Business Visa is what we require once we have dates and destinations.  This guide is WAY smaller.  The only downside to this is having to list all of the countries traveled to in the last ten years.  Me?  I'm fine.  Mike on the other hand...

Every single deployment that crossed borders must be entered!  Have fun with that Mike! 

Boo Ya!

Finally got our Immigration approval!  Yeah!  I left work as soon as I could and got the money order for the Russian Consulate to authenticate the letter and mailed it all off!  That was officially the last bit of paperwork before our proposal could be made.  It makes sense that Russia can't offer us a child until they know we are doing this legally...

Success!

I finally got through to the ability to hold for next available operator.  I guess the trick is to have a client id.  I checked my status, even though I know it, because that allowed me to indicate that I was a client.  Then I selected to speak to an operator.  It then gave me the same recording but it didn't hang up after 10 seconds of elevator music!

I was able to ask what I'm supposed to do about the missing signature of someone we don't know and who won't be able to sign anyway and the missing background declaration.

The answer?

I'm supposed to sign Child Miklos.  Then write that on the background document and n/a for everything else on that form.

Wow.  That seemed a lot of hassle for a little writing. 

Maybe if they had picked up the phone...

Our Immigration application was bounced back to us.  We failed to include our unknown baby's signature and background information...  We also needed a different Financial Evaluation (although I filled out the one the instructions told me to).  So, if that was ALL that was wrong that's pretty damn good considering I could NEVER get through to ask what I should do.  I included a cover letter and added little notes stating that the information would follow when we knew who Kid was but I guess that didn't cover our omissions adequately?  I wrote the agency to ask for help - most times this whole application are not filled out until the kid is known so maybe they know the trick to this first part.  I will also resume the phone calling tomorrow.  I might try the line for the deaf or hard of hearing just so I can get through... I have hearing damage, it's not QUITE a lie.  In the meantime, I have already filled out the financial form they requested - it was almost the same so it took no time at all.

oh i feel a headache coming on...

Different Feeling of Excitement

It moved faster than I thought! I was under the impression we had to wait for the letter from immigration before we could have our files sent over to Russia - nope! We can forward that letter later! It's all ready to go!!!!!

 Mike just mailed our first half of the Russian fees to CHOC! Last night a new feeling of excitement hit me. It's like I know I'm pregnant and waiting for the ultrasound where I can first see the baby and find out the sex! Oh wow, I'm tearing up again right now LOL!

 The following is an excerpt from the CHOC timeline documents. I thought I'd include it so you can see what we see. HOLY MOLY! Next week we hit step nine!!!!!!

 step 8) 6 to 8 weeks CHOC assembles dossiers (one set is assembled for initial submission/application to the regional MoE offices; another is assembled for submission to the local court. Dossiers include the homestudy and supporting documents from parents and government agencies). CHOC notarizes the dossiers, couriers them to CMFA and Russian Consulate for authentication and legalization, and sends legalized packages by international courier to CHOC in Moscow.

 step 9) ~6 weeks CHOC in Moscow has the English dossiers translated to Russian, has the translations certified and notarized, and couriers them along with the original English versions to the CHOC regional representative for initial submission/application to the regional office of Ministry of Education (MoE) and in/for future submission to court.

 step 10) 12 to 52+ weeks The regional CHOC representative walks the dossier into the regional office of the MoE and drops it off at the desk of the MoE regional officer. The regional officer will decide when to register the dossier as having been submitted (it may sit on his/her desk for an unspecified period of time before s/he gets around to registering it. Sometimes, the officer may ask for additional documents or clarification of a document or additional medical information on the family, etc, before accepting and registering the dossier). When a child becomes available (that is, a ward of state that has fulfilled a minimum of 2 months' time on the local or regional data bank and a further 6 months' time on the federal data bank and is now available for international adoption, having had no Russian nationals express interest in adopting the child or taking the child into a guardianship program, and furthermore, providing it is now the parents' turn and the child fulfils the parents' criteria), the MoE regional adoption officer will pass on to the CHOC rep, either an oral or a written invitation to the family for an appointment with the MoE or, along with this invitation, s/he may also pass along some preliminary information about the proposed child.

Again, HOLY MOLY!

It's Ready to Go!

Wow! Surprise to me! We don't have to wait for the letter from the CIC. CHOC emailed me the invoices for the Russian fees saying it's ready to go as soon as they receive the payment. YEAH! That was sooner than I thought. They can just forward on the letter from CIC whenever it arrives, since it's not really a complete form without Kid's name anyway! I had another vision too. I really think Kid's a boy. Strange since we both went into this process assuming a girl - no reason why, we just did. I also feel like June is going to be a key month. Hell, I was crying at work when I figured all this out yesterday! YEAH!!!!