Today was the big day. We were going to become parents again!
We got up about 6:00 to get ready for the day. It was hot outside. Immediately after getting out of the shower, you started to perspire so much, you felt like you needed another shower. The girls were up early and ate some slices of tangerine and drank some milk. About 7:30 P. and T. came to get us to go to breakfast. It was a really good buffet with a wide selection of western and Vietnamese food. The fruit was amazing. The girls’ ate well and seemed to be doing well. The nanny was reserved and appeared to be contemplating what was about to happen. She raised the girls since they were 1 day old. Since she had the twins, she did not have any other children to care for. She loves the girls as she was their mother and in a way she is the only mother they have known.
After breakfast, we loaded up in the bus for a short trip to the DMOJ (Ministry of Justice) office downtown. We arrived at 8:30 for our 9:00 appointment. We were told to sit on the benches in the lobby and wait. Although we could bring cameras and photograph inside the building, we were prohibited from photographing the exterior of the building. The building was like any government office building, people shuffling paper, people coming in to have appointments and being told to wait. T. and P. (the men) each wore slacks and short-sleeved shirts. The women had to wear long-sleeved shirts and pants to the ceremony.
About 8:50, we were invited up for the ceremony. The only people who could come were the family and L., who served as our interpreter. The room was a small office with a conference table. In the office was the head of the committee that approved our adoption and two other committee members. The head of the committee began to read the adoption decree and tell us of the importance of adopting these girls. She asked us to make sure the girls understood their heritage. She also asked us to raise them as good citizens and to bring them back to Vietnam to visit. After here speech, we started signing documents. Each of these documents had to be signed in blue ink, sealed with a red seal and was notarized. The last document we had to sign was the adoption ledger. It is a huge book, like an old banker’s ledger, with a line for each child adopted from the province. The ledger was all hand-written. We then took photos with the girls, the nanny and the committee members. We were officially parents again. Next, we went to the office of another government official. She asked us to raise the girls to become good citizens and asked us to ensure they understood their heritage. Then it came our turn to talk. They asked us to make a few comments to the committee and thank them for allowing us to adopt the girls. I let P. handle this. By 9:20 we were leaving the building and going back to the shopping center across the street to wait for all the certified, notarized documents we would need to take to the embassy to get the girls’ visas.
While we were there, the nanny fed the girls and we waited. When we boarded the bus, she came with us as far as the bus station. When we dropped her off the girls began to cry and get upset. Y., Ms. H, and Ms. N., were great at calming the girls down. Since N. was a frequent visitor to the orphanage, the girls climbed up next to her. After about 15 minutes (it seemed longer at the time), the girls began to settle down; they ate a little and fell asleep.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Day 6, G & R day !!!
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Differences between Angelina’s Adoption from VN and Mine
1. We wait to be matched with a child our adoption is on its 367 day.
Angelina goes to VN over thanksgiving and picks one out.
2. Our dossier has been in VN for 7 Months now.
Angelina’s gets logged in immediately.
3. We have to wait for the child’s dossier to be collected up to 6 months
Angelina’s child has his done with out the 30 days to look for the birth parents.
4 We have to wait for travel approval from the Province
Angelina gets right in.
5. We have to wait for a G & R date and then we are lucky if it happens on time.
Angelina gets one and it is as scheduled.
6. We have to wait one week for the child’s passport to be done.
Angelina’s child is given immediately.
7 We then have to wait to get an appointment to the US Embassy to apply for a Visa to the US.
Angelina I don’t think so.
8. We have to wait 24 hours for the child’s Visa to pass the security clearance to make sure our child is not a terrorist.
Angelina must not.
9. Our travel to VN will take up to 3 weeks.
Angelina’s is done in less than a week.
10. We are just a family wanting to adopt a little girl. So we wait. Angelina is a celebrity so she gets instant gratification.
Don’t get me wrong. I think that Angelina is doing a great thing by adopting especially an older boy which is harder to place. But how come she dose not get in line. I wonder what her dossiers log in number is if she even has one. We have been waiting over 7 months just for a referral. Dr Long where is my dossier? I am requesting to adopt an older girl so what is the difference. She’s a celeb! I’m just a mom!
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Pitt and Jolie To Adopt Child from Vietnam?
Pitt and Jolie To Adopt Child from Vietnam?
SanFrancisco Chronicle
The pair have three children -- Maddox, 5, Zahara, 2, and Shiloh, 9 months.
A source in Vietnam tells US Weekly the couple have filed papers with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration services to adopt a boy from the Tam Binh orphanage in Ho Chi Minh City, which they visited in November.
The pair have long been vocal about their desire to raise more international children.
Their son Maddox was born in Cambodia, while daughter Zahara was born in Ethiopia.
Jolie said recently, "If we're going to have 10 kids, we'd like to raise them while we're young."
