Told Gertrude the News

I spoke with Gertrude yesterday and said we are coming to Latvia on November 10. She answered with her usual "yes" but it was a definitive and excited one. I asked if she is happy we are coming and I got another excited "yes." We are working feverishly to prepare for our trip. There is so much to do it is mind-boggling but we're getting there! Besides the normal packing for a trip, there is gifts to get for orphanage directors and kids in the orphanage, phones to use in Europe, adaptors and converters, and the list goes on! Plus all the normal tasks of daily living before we go.

We got an e-mail today from the Minstry today actually naming Gertrude. Now we are sure we're getting the right child! The subject was "warrant" which automatically made my heart jump a beat, because I usually equate that word with "warrant for your arrest" or a "search "warrant" but it was a warrant to allow us to get acquainted with adoptable child, Gertrude Liepina. So, of course we replied that we accept and wish to proceed. Soon we will see our little girl. It is hard to believe we are actually going but it's coming fast!

We're Going to Latvia!

So, where were we? Ok, we received the e-mail from the Ministry in Latvia giving us rights to adopt a girl age 7-11 years. On Wednesday we received another one describing Gertrude as the girl they had available for us, and we replied that we accept. Then yesterday, Oct. 27, Agnese e-mailed us our court dates---my birthday was the 26th so this was a great present! We have dates of Nov. 13 and Nov. 24, which is excellent. This means we will only have to be there 2 weeks total. Usually the court dates are exactly 2 weeks apart, so you end up being gone over 2 1/2 weeks. Tena will only miss 8 days of school, when we originally thought she might miss 3 weeks. This is because one of the weeks we are there is Thanksgiving week, when she doesn't have school anyway, and our court dates are 3 days closer together than we thought . Scott will only miss 2 weeks of work. It is really working out well. We found airfare on Travelocity and for all three of us we are only spending $2,300.00 It might sound like a lot but the fares seem to be generally closer to $1.000 each so I think we made out. We are a little concerned about where we are staying, however. Our attorney has found a place for us that is suitable and sounds nice but you never know. We know of 2 places that are decent (one that is actually "nice") that others have stayed in but may not be available. So, who knows what we'll be looking at? We hope to have internet access but not sure of that either. It is much easier to communicate that way we have been told.

Tomorrow we will call Gertrude and tell her we will be there on the 10th and she will stay with us. I have been told she will not have to go to school during that time so we will have her with us all day! We are happy for that for 2 reasons..we get to spend more time with her, and we don't have to go through the hassle of getting her to/from school every day. Transportation there is not nearly as convenient as it is in the U.S. and it could be a real bear taking her and picking her up every day.

We're excited to see Gertrude and the place she has called home for the last five years. Also to meet her half-sister. This will be an interesting experience in this country. The stories we have heard are amazing...I get the feeling we'll have a good time but will be very ready to come home after the 2 weeks! So, lots to do to get ready to go and not much time to do it in. Better get busy!

Official Notice

Well, we finally received an "official" document from the country of Latvia. On Wednesday, Oct. 18, we received an e-mail from the Ministry of Family Affairs that we are now approved and have "rights" to adopt out of the Republic of Latvia, a girl age 7-11 years old. They are required by law not to mention a particular child's name, but they have her name and personal code (like our SS #) and we will be matched to Gertrude in the end. Basically this letter shows that our dossier was in order and it looks as though we will be suitable parents in their view. Next, they should contact us that they have a child for us, and we will accept, then the dossier will go to the Orphancourt. We expect to be assigned our court dates within a week!!

Dossier Translated, It's getting Closer!

We received some great news from our attorney today. Our dossier has been translated and sent to the Ministry. Also, the social worker at the orphanage is going to notify the Ministry that Gertrude is now available for international adoption. The Ministry(of Family Affairs) is the department that matches the adoptive parents with a child. Once they have our dossier, and the social worker tells them the orphancourt decision was to allow her to be adopted abroad, they will officially match us with Gertrude. Then the documents will go to the orphancourt and they will set a court date. The dossier was translated in one week which is faster than I have ever heard of this being done! Usually it takes at least a week and a half, sometimes two weeks.

We talked w/Gertrude this morning and she was very quiet, and there were a lot of people talking in the background. She wasn't as excited and she didn't say much. We asked her about Halloween and if she is going to dress up. She said "yes" but we are not even sure they have Halloween there. We have received conflicting information on that. So, the ups and downs continue with our phone calls to Latvia! I'm sure she enjoys hearing from us though...it is just a nice reminder to her that she is loved. That is something she and all these kids over there really need. So, if we don't necessarily get that much out of each phone call, we believe that she does, and we are happy to brighten her day a little.

Talk with Gertrude-She May Understand What's Happening

Well, our dossier is now in the hands of our attorney (whew!!) She will take it on Monday to get translated, which will take 1 1/2 to 2 weeks.

We talked with Gertrude today and she answered the phone and sounded very happy, and said "hi, I'm playing Monopole!" We played "Monopole" (Monopoly) here a lot with her last summer. We told her we think we will be in Latvia in November and that she will stay with us in an apartment. We said we would have lots of fun and we would go to the waterpark. She was very responsive to us and seemed to understand more this time for some reason (maybe my Latvian is getting better!) I asked her if it is cold there and she said yes, and "gray." We looked up the weather on the internet for Riga, Latvia after we got off the phone and it said it was 52 degrees and rain showers. So, seems we talked weather successfully! I think she may understand some of what is happening with her case because she seems more excited these days. As it gets closer we are getting more excited. We looked up airfares to Latvia and apartments in Latvia just to see what we're looking at. Seems fares are going down. Apparently fall/winter must be low season in Latvia. Guess not too many people want to travel to a place where it's dark almost 12 hrs a day and 10 degrees for vacation!

Dossier sent, Gertrude Cleared!

Finally, action is happening! There was an orphancourt session on Tuesday, Oct. 3, to clear Gertrude for international adoption. According to our attorney it was "positive" and she should receive written documentation by the end of this week. We sent our dossier in Tuesday, Oct. 3, same day as her clearance. Everything was ready to go by Friday, Sept. 29, except the Department of Family and Children's Services had never run their check on us even though they had our consent for almost 2 months. We had to wait, and call, and fax, to get them to finally do it, and it was faxed to our home study agency Tuesday morning. I picked it up, got everything apostilled, went home, and sent it out. What a relief to have that gone (although I am nervous about it until I hear the attorney has it in hand!)

The dossier will take about 2 weeks to translate. Now we just have to wait, and soon we will hear of a court date. Hopefully we will hear tomorrow that the dossier has arrived.