Call from the R Country Counselor

I spoke today with the R Country counselor about the R Country program. They indicated that they would apply the $1150 fees we already paid to the agency to the new program and that we would not have to pay these amounts again. That's at least promising considering the total cost from start to finish is estimated to be $40-45,000. She indicated that the in-country fee for an infant girl 9-18 months right now is $21,500 - that's an amount that you basically get no receipt for and that you pay in cash in country. Of course, there's costs we've already paid for such as the home study, the application to CIS to petition for an unnamed orphan, etc. And there is the tax credit of over $11,000 to help offset some of the costs. The money is not the issue for me - we can make it happen, it's the principle of the thing. I've heard people refer to it as baby ransom and that's what it feels like - not sure how comfortable I am with that. I guess I have to look at it in light of this is an obstacle over which someone has to climb to save one of these institutionalized children. I just sometimes feel like part of the problem by paying it - it's that supply and demand thing. I just wish that the money that all of these people pay for the 1000s of children adopted from R Country benefited the children left behind in the orphanages - I don't think to a significant extent that happens. Too much corruption.....

The other information she provided me was that for a baby girl wait times right now run about 8-12 months between dossier submission and referral. There're then 3 trips over with an average of 6-8 weeks between the first & second and 10 days between the second and third - I think we'd try to stay through the 2nd and 3rd - depending on the time of year I could stay through the whole time. The first trip would be 7-10 days, then home for 2-12 weeks, back for 7-10 days, home for 10 days or so, then back to pick up baby, come home, live happily ever after, hopefully.

We are still waiting for Chuck at the Pennsylvania Access and Review office to respond to our request for court disposition papers - I sent on 6/26, he said they received on 7/3 and I still haven't received their response which I need to supply to CIS to move forward. Our homestudy will also be supplied as well as the explanation/apology/remorse letter from Gigs and we will change from K Country to R Country with them. Then we wait hopefully 2 weeks or less to receive CIS approval. The dossier is put together and sent for translation. Then it's submitted to R Country and we wait for approval and referral. Hopefully there's an approval quickly and then you wait for the referral. Perhaps the economic conditions in the US will slow the demand and the times will improve - I'm not sure that is a good thing to wish for - I'll have to think about it. One huge difference with the R Country program is that you do receive the child's profile, pics, possibly video, and medical records for evaluation before accepting. With K-Country you had no idea what child might be yours until you arrived in country and they presented 2-5 at which time you had to choose. This might make the waiting more difficult, but could make it seem more real, too.

I must continue on this path for now, we'll see whether this is where we end up in the end, finding our family one way or another. It's interesting to think that 1 year from now we could be home with the new member of our family - I don't think it could happen much faster than that.

Back to work.....