Readoption, huh?

This past Monday I picked up the final order of adoption signed by the Virginia judge. What? I know you thought the girls had been home since last September? Well yes, their adoption was truly finalized in July 2009 when an Ethiopian judge signed the adoption papers there in Addis Ababa; however, the American government issued an IR-4 visa for the girls to enter the country and subsequently issued them permanent resident cards (commonly referred to as green cards). You see, neither Gigs nor I had met the girls in person prior to the Ethiopian finalization. HAD we met them, they would have been issued an IR-3 visa and they would have been deemed American citizens the moment their feet touched American soil. In order for the girls to become full US citizens with all the associated rights and privileges, we had to go through whatever process was required for our adoption to be recognized in our home state. In Virginia, it is a bit more cumbersome a process than in some other states, but we opted not to hire an attorney and Mama handled it herself, saving a significant amount of money on the fees. I’m not sure how much an attorney would have charged – I’m estimating from 6 or 800 dollars to as much as two thousand?

I ordered a Continuing Ed course for Virginia attorneys and adapted templates included therein for our situation. To the clerk of Circuit Court, I dropped off the Petition to Adopt and an Order of Reference which instructs our local adoption agency to conduct an investigation requiring 3 visits by or with our social worker within 6 months, but with no less than 90 days between our 1st and last visit. Our caseworker met with us and utilized two of our other Ethiopia-required visits to write a report including a recommendation FOR the adoption to the judge. Once the investigation was entered, then I dropped off the last thing - the Final Order of Adoption which just required a signature by the judge. I received a call from the clerk's office and picked up the paperwork. It was a bit anticlimactic, not like many friends' processes where they appeared before the judge and had pictures, etc. of the big moment.

The most important reason for taking this step, as the girls could be permanent residents for their entire lives, is because legally they would not have all the rights of a US citizen. For example, if at the tender age of say 18, one of our girls got into some kind of trouble, she could be deported to Ethiopia, never allowed to return to the U.S. She could be sent back with potentially no place to go, no known family, no language, etc. It has happened to others and we are not willing to take that chance.

So, we are officially a family, again! Next up, requesting Virginia Birth Certificates and Certificates of Citizenship. I guess there is no way to avoid the $860 fees for the certificates....