I-800A - Initial Review

After all the drama and issues surrounding the filing of our I-800A, today we received notification of an inital review of our I-800A by email. The following is what it said:

After a review of your application and supporting documentation, it was found that there were items that needed to be addressed. We have generated and mailed to you an official Request for Initial/Additional Evidence. Below is the exact text that was included in the request. Please let us know if we can be of further assistance. Thank you!

Personal interview(s) and home visit(s): Please amend your home study to include the number of interviews and visits, the participants, date and location of each interview and visit, and the date and location of any other contacts with the applicant and any additional adult member of the household.

Child Abuse Registry Checks: In reviewing your home study, we have identified that it does not include the results of all required child abuse registry checks. Please submit evidence that verifies child abuse registries have been checked for every state and country that the prospective adoptive parents have lived in since the age of 18. If you are unable to obtain results of these checks as the state or country advises you that the checks do not exist, please summarize this in your home study.

Specifically, please note the results from the State of Minnesota.

Prior Home Study: In reviewing your home study, we have identified that it does not include evidence related to any prior home study. Please submit evidence that the home study preparer has asked the applicant whether he or she previously has had a prior home study completed, or began a home study process in relation to an adoption or to any form of foster or other custodial care of a child that was not completed, whether or not the prior home study related to an intercountry adoption. Please include each individual's response to this question in the home study report.

Living Accommodations: In reviewing your home study, we have identified that it does not include a description and assessment of the living accommodations in which the child will reside. Please submit a detailed description of the living accommodations where you currently reside, which must also include an assessment of the suitability of accommodations for a child and a determination whether such space meets applicable State requirements, if any or Country requirement if living abroad, if such requirements exist.

In addition, please specify the exact number of children that you intend to adopt as the application states that you intend to adopt two (2) however the home study only approves you for one (1).

Our agency indicated to me that all the requested information is already in the NBC's possession. Our agency rep is out of the office until Wednesday morning, but she will send an email to them on Wednesday morning setting forth where they can find the information.

I am so greatful that after all the problems we've had with this entire I-800A that we may, just have our approval under 90 days! I truly believe in Christmas miracles!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Hugs ~ Denise

Sorry!

Sorry everyone, I tried something new with our blog and lost a lot of what used to be on there, so I will now have to find the time to re-do it all! Oh well, I guess that is a good use for a snow day, huh? Off to bake some cookies and make carmel corn now!

Fingerprints Done!

Despite a winter storm here in Minnesota, we ventured out to our biometic (fingerprint) appointment today and that is now behind us. I will contact the USCIS/NBC in about a week or so just to double check that our prints indeed passed!

For any fellow Minnesotaeans, please stay warm and safe if you must be out and about this weekend! Travel is not good!

27 Months as of 12/14/08

Yesterday marked our 27 months LID anniversary. Nothing new to report on the adoption from, with the exception of we go this Saturday, 12/20/08, to be fingerprinted. Hoping and praying that our prints pass the first time! Continuing to pray that we know who our beloved Madison is before Christmas, and thus we ask you to keep our family in your prayers during this most difficult wait!

The Roth Clan

4 Years Ago Today . . .

. . . our lives changed forever when we received the most wonderful call of all - our referral call! Yep, December 10, 2004 at approximately 4:10 p.m. It was a Friday too if I recall correctly! I got a phone call at work telling us we were the parents of a baby girl who just turned 10 months old on the 9th! I was in such a state of shock and I could not form a competent nor full sentence. We were really surprised as it had only been 5.5 months since our log in date with the CCAA! Needless to say, our lives have not been the same since that magical day! I can still recall it as if it just happened yesterday! After the inital shock wore off, I quickly called daddy, who was also in total shock! I love those memories most of all and when I think back over the past 4 years since referral time, it simply amazes me how truly blessed we are! Thank you God and the CCAA for giving us the most precious gift of all, our beautiful daughter, Samantha!

Hugs to All ~ Denise

Fingerprint Appointments!

Hip, Hip, Horray! Our fingerprint appointment notification letters arrived in today's mail! Both of us go on Saturday, 12/20/08 at 12:00 PM. Movement is good! At least we will have all our "ducks in a row" for when our referral arrives! (Scretly hoping and praying that we "meet" Madison before Christmas), which would be the best Christmas gift of all!

Hugs ~ Denise

WE ARE OFFICIALLY IN - YIPPEE!

We received in yesterday's mail our I-797C, Notice of Action. It feels great! We are now moving in the right direction once again! Still have no idea where our first I-800A is, but at this point, I do not care! Thank you God and please, oh please, let us meet our precious Madison before Christmas! It would be the best Christmas Gift Ever!

Next Top Model?

Just wanted to share some candid shots of the wonderful Miss Samantha as she does a little turn on the cat walk! She turns into a total ham and poses as soon as the camera comes out. Everyone says to put her into modeling, but our biggest fear would be the minute the photographer took out his camera, she'd turn shy and not cooperate. So for now, mom and dad will be her audience! Hope you enjoy the photos!

Thanksful

It's never to late to be thankful. Thanksgiving 2008 has come and gone but it is never too late to say what we are thankful for. I for one am thankful for my husband and my beautiful daughter, our families, my parents, our special friends, Robin, Roger, Keira & Kristi Maupin and all our other extended family and friends. I am thankful for our health, our good jobs, our home and the wonderful live we have. I am also very thankful to Samantha's birth mom and dad for if they had not made the ultimate sacrafice, she would not be a part of our family and some how I know her birth family and God knew that she belonged with us. I too am thankful for China letting us adopt a second child. We hope and pray that it will happen soon.

So, even though I was not able to post before now, I am truly thankful for everyone who has touched my life! God Bless each one of you.

Denise

Visiting Santa

Today we took Samantha to the Mall of America to see Santa. For those familiar with Santa at the Mall of America this year he is in a different location (by Lego Land) and it was a different Santa. Not sure if the "old" Santa is just there during the week and has weekends off or not, but the "new" Santa was great too! This is the first year Samantha has not been afraid of him. She walked right up to him and crawled up onto his lap. She was very chatty with him too. She told him she wants a Computer Cool School. In early December we to to the local VFW and have breakfast with Santa too. Looking forward to that, as well as making Christmas cookies and doing some other fun holiday festivities.

Hope you enjoy the photos!

Lost (No Not the TV Show)

Where or where has our I-800A gone? Oh where, oh where can it be? That is the question of the day! It's official, we consider our first I-800A package that was sent to the National Benefit Center's lock box on 10/14/08 as being lost! No one can locate it and the NBC has diligently looked for it and it has not surfaced. Thus, we are back to square one with filing our paperwork for USCIS/Hague Approval.

At this point, I'm looking at it as another bump in the road to our daughter and for whatever reason, maybe at some point in the future, we will understand why this bump happened. All we can do at this point, is move forward and resubmit our I-800A for processing and hope that the NBC/USCIS has a pickup in their approval time and/or keeps it right at 90 days. We've already lost precious time, but there is nothing we can do about it.

Like I said, just another bump in our journey to Madison! Hang on sweet pea, your family is trying very hard and diligently to get approval so that when we are matched with your referral, we will be ready to go!

Hugs from your mom, dad and big sister!

Start of a New Week

Tomorrow is the start of a new work week and we are hoping and praying for good news from the USCIS/NBC that our long lost I-800A has been found and will be entered into the system accordingly! Come on NBC you can do it!


UPDATE: Not a damn thing today and I even re-sent the email the the lock box support people asking them to send an acknowledgment that they had received our emails. If I do not hear from them by Wednesday, I'm going to call back and try and get to the bottom of this! Stay tuned . . .

EXTRA, EXTRA, READ ALL ABOUT IT!

I guess this headline says it all, huh?

I-800A Troubles?

Tomorrow it will be our 26 month LID anniversary and one month to the day that our agency sent our I-800A to the USCIS lock box in Chicago. As of today, the NBC still says they have not received it and when I checked with our credit union they indicate that our cashier's check HAS NOT been cashed yet. So, where in the HELL is our I-800A package? I fear it may have gotten lost in the mail. The NBC center contact (via email) was going to send an email to the local office here in Minnesota to inquire about the application. She indicated she'd let me know as soon as she hears back. If I do not hear from them tomorrow morning, this momma is going to make a call to the NBC personally to try and find out what the heck is going on! Come on, one month and NOTHING! This friggin process takes 90+ days as it is to get approval, and one months of nothing is for the bird! Sorry for the vent, but simply eating chocolate is not cutting it!

I'll let you know what I find out.

Where We Stand Today

We are now officially just 11 days shy of our 26 month LID anniversary. The CCAA continues to refer very few days each month, thereby an ever increasing back log continues in the referral department.

As many of your know, back in February 2008 we met with our agency about discussing what other options we had due to the ever increasing wait times in the China Non-Special Needs (NSN) Program. One option to explore was our agency’s Special Needs (SN) Pilot Program, United in Hope. After our meeting on February 28, 2008, we decided to proceed with a possible SN adoption. As we previously indicated a new list of children who would be available for adoption through the United In Hope Program was due to our agency on March 1, 2008. With the many changes to the United In Hope Program since that time and in order to bring these adoption into compliance with the Hague Treaty, the United In Hope Program was once again restructured.

On July 30, 2008 we had a meeting with one of our agency’s social workers so she could obtain the necessary information from us in order to complete our home study update. We also both had to have another adoption physical so our family physicians could complete yet another updated medical form. During the months of August and September our home study update was written, sent around for signatures and then sent off to the USCIS for processing, along with our I-800A form. We are currently awaiting fingerprint appointments.

We are also awaiting news of our referral. As I indicated above, our agency’s United In Hope Special Needs Program was recently restructured. We know that our agency’s contacts in China are diligently working on findings us a possible match. Just recently we had a little bit of movement and I consider it a step in the right direction. Our agency had us complete a new Letter of Intent / Motivation to Adopt Letter, along with two other forms. We are hopeful and take this as a positive sign that our referral may be "just around the corner". Any and all prayers would be most welcome! Thanks and we'll keep you updated should anything arise.

Basically, we are in a state of flux with regard to the adoption. We need the USCIS to speed up some, as we understand it is taking a minimum of 90 days to process the I-800A forms, we are hoping we will be on the short end of the wait time! We also need our local USCIS Office to send us our biometrics appointment date(s), i.e., fingerprint dates and last but not least, we need our referral! So that is where things stand as of today!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween Everyone! Today is a day to have fun - big and small kids alike! Today at daycare, Sammie and her friends have their annual Halloween parade and then in afternoon they have a Halloween Party. Tonight daddy and I will take her out trick or treating. She will be Cinderella this year.

On a side note, today is my mom's birthday, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!

I'll post some pictures later on tonight.

Movement

Today, we have had a little bit of movement on the adoption front and I consider it a step in the right direction. Our agency had us complete a new Letter of Intent / Motivation to Adopt Letter today, along with two other forms. We are hopeful and take this as a sign that our referral of Madison may be "just around the corner". Any and all prayers would be most welcome! Thanks and we'll keep you updated should anything arise.

Carving Pumpkins

Pumpkins All Lit Up


Sammie and the Pumpkins




Sammie & Mommy carving baby sis's pumpkin!


Tonight we carved our pumpkins for Halloween. We did four, one for daddy, one for mommy, one for Sammie and one for Madison, whom we are still waiting to join our family. This is one small way for us as a family to let her know that we thought of her and included her in family activities, even before she became part of our family.

Sun Country Famrs

On Sunday, October 19th, we went to Sun Country Farms with Tanessa and Justice. These are a few pictures we took from that day. We take Sammie each year and it is fun seeing how much she has grown each year. This was Justice's first year but as you can see, he had a good time with his cousin Sammie!

When You Thought I Wasn't Looking

I saw this posted on a fellow adoptive mom's blog and thought it was so very true and thus am sharing with all of you.

WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING (A message every adult should read because children are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.)

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I learned that we all have to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give your time and money to help people who had nothing, and I learned that those who have something should give to those who don't.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't feel good, and I learned that I would have to be responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be.

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and productive person when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn't looking.

I AM POSTING THIS FOR ALL OF THE PEOPLE I KNOW WHO DO SO MUCH FOR OTHERS, BUT THINK THAT NO ONE EVER SEES. LITTLE EYES SEE A LOT.

Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, friend) influences the life of a child. How will you touch the life of someone today? Live simply....Love generously.....Care deeply.....Speak kindly.

22 Months Today

22 months ago today we began our official wait for our daughter, Madison. Never in our wildest dreams would we have through that almost two years later our referral would still be no where in sight. The CCAA has officially placed children with families up through and included January 25, 2006. Although there is less than 9 months of LID's before us, with the CCAA only referring 3 to 5 days per month, we still have a LONG WAIT ahead of us. Our agency is still awaiting the next list of children who will be a part of the United in Hope SN Pilot Program. We keep hoping and praying that it will be out soon and that our Madison will be on it!

In the meantime, we are busy planning our Disney Vacation. Samantha is very excited and cannot wait until she gets to meet Cinderella in person! We are having lunch with some of the princesses (Belle, Ariel, Princess Aurora and a few others) and hoping to have lunch or dinner with Cinderella, the Prince, the evil step-mom and the two evil step-sisters! It should be a very excited trip for all three of us. I truly believe that Sammie is at the perfect age for a Disney Vacation!

We will try to update the blog a little more often, but at times, there really is nothing to write about.

JULY 4TH 2008

As promised here are a couple of pictures of Samantha on the 4th of July 2008! Daddy always takes pictures of her with United States Flag. He has since her first 4th of July home with us in 2005. I'll up load those later so you can see how she's changed.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Happy 4th of July Everyone! We hope you have a safe and glorious holiday weekend! We have a busy one to say the least. Tonight we are headed to Dale's cousin's house for a BBQ and then we'll watch the fireworks right from their backyard. The extravaganza is done at a park, which is just beyond their backyard. Tomorrow we head to Dale's brother's house for another BBQ. And on Sunday, we head to my parent's house to celebrate my sister's birthday (which was on the 3rd). Needless to say, even though it is a long weekend, we really will not have any time to ourselves. That's the way it goes some. We are going to fill up our "family pool" and hopefully find some time to go swimming since it will be hot here in MN. On top of that, our central air needs to be replaced so any way we can get a respite will be worth it. I'll post some 4th of July pictures of Samantha later on in the weekend!

Blessings to everyone!

The Roth Clan

Disney Port Orleans - Riverside Resort

Change in plans. We are now officially staying at the DIsney Port Orleanse - Riverside Resort. Here's a link http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/resorts/resortLanding?id=PortOrleansRiversideResortLandingPage. We will be there from 9/13 to 9/20. We are looking forward to having some good quality family time, just the three of us. Sammie is beyond excited. Just the other day she told daddy "When I see Cinderella, I'm going to have a heart attack". She just may - LOL! She is so into ALL the Disney Princesses. We are going to make sure and do a few character dinings with as many Disney Princesses as we can.

If any one has any suggestions on a "must see/must do" with a 4 year old, please let us know.

Disney Port Orleans Resort - French Quarter

Here's a link http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/resorts/resortLanding?id=PortOrleansFrenchQuarterResortLandingPage to the Disney Resort we will be staying at in September. I hope it works!

Ladybug Sighting

Today when I got back into my car after lunch there was a ladybug on my driver's side window. I know many believe that ladybugs are good luck and/or a sign. So hopefully this is our sign that our agency's next list of waiting children will arrive at our agency soon! I'm taking it as a sign of good things to come!

21 Months and Still Waiting

If anyone would of told me 21 months ago when we started this journey to adopt our second daughter from China that we would still be waiting, I would have said "no way, you're crazy". Well low and behold that is what has happened. I guess it is all apart of God's plan for our family and we just keep learning that we are more patient than we ever knew we could be. Don't get me wrong, IT IS VERY, VERY HARD waiting when all you want to do is be matched with your child and to bring him or her home into your loving family and get on with your life, so to speak. So much of the past 21 months as been "on hold" so to speak, not really wanting to plan a family vacation, so as to save money for the adoption, saving vacation time at work, so when we are off, we can have some paid time off, etc. We finally decided that despite the fact we continue to wait, it is really time to take our lives "off hold" for now and that is what we are going to do.

In September, the three of us are off to Florida for a much anticipate Disney Vacation! Samantha is excited beyond her wildest dreams and cannot wait to have breakfast with the Disney Princess, whom she really does idolize at this point - LOL! We are going to go all inclusive and stay at one of the Disney Resorts - the Port Orleans (I believe it is call, I'll have to check with Dale on that one, as he is doing most of the leg work)! We figure this will probably be our one and only "big" family vacation as a family of three.

In any event, when I know for sure the name of the resort we are staying at, I'll post a link.

20 months and 5 days . . .

Another month has come and gone with no word on when our agency expects to receive their next list of waiting children who will become apart of their special needs pilot program, “United in Hope”. We continue to hope and pray that it will come soon. At times, it might seem trivial and even selfish on our part to wish for this to come in now, especially with everything else that is going on in China with last week’s earthquake, but nevertheless, it is a wish that we pray will come true soon. We truly feel for the people of China and ask that you continue to keep them in your thoughts and prayers. We will continue to do what we can on our end to bring our file into compliance with Hague. The implementation of Hague has added a few new steps to the process, but all are manageable. We are hoping to have our home study update done this month, as well as request new fingerprint appointments for us to be re-fingerprinted for the I-800 Form, and we also will need to have our physicals updated and request child abuse and neglect letters from each state/country we have lived since the age of 18 years. Like I said, all is doable and we hope to have most, if not all, accomplished even before we receive our referral, thus facilitating only more waiting time on the part of the CCAA. Keep your fingers crossed that all goes according to plan.

Earthquake in China

Please keep all the people affected by horrible earthquake that hit central China in your prayers. It is such devastating news. We pray for all the people who have lost loved ones and those who still have no news about their loved ones. I hope the world as a whole can set aside their differences and help the people of China in whatever ways are possible. Again, please keep the people of China in your prayers as they deal with this horrific tragedy.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to Moms and Soon to Be Moms everywhere. Today as I honor my own mom and am honored by my daughter and husband, I cannot help but remember my daughter's birth mom, who if it were not for her I would not be the mom to the most wonderful, beautiful and miraculous person on earth! I am so very grateful to Samantha's birth mom and if I could meet her I'd tell her thank you a million times over for granting me the most precious gift of becoming a mother. Although I know she made a huge sacrifice when she made Samantha's adoption plan, I am ever so grateful. I'd like her to know that I think of her often and wish I could share with her the wonders of our daughter. I hope she knows in her heart that the daughter she gave to us is loved and cherished each and every day and that she is simply precious and very special. So on this Mother's Day, I want to wish Sammie's Birth Mother a Happy Mother's Day from both Sammie and me. We both thank you from the bottom of our hearts for letting us become a Forever Family! God Bless You!

A Sign???

Tonight we had Chinese takeout for dinner. Sammie had a double fortune in one of her cookies and I opened a few others. If these are not a sign that our referral is just around the corner, then I don't know what is. Here they are:

• "A new relationship is about to blossom. You will be blessed."
• "A short stranger will soon enter your life with blessings to share."
• "Soon, a visitor shall delight you."
• "You will be called upon to celebrate some goods news."

What do you think?

A Glimmer of Hope!

It's not much, but I checked in with our agency today about whether or not they have heard anything on when they expect to receive a new list of available children. I was told that as of last Friday they were still working with the existing list. They did indicate that they had heard from the head of their China Program and that he had recently spoken with their contact in China and that she has been working with the Nanjing SWI to clear new children for adoption, but that they haven't received the new list yet. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers and hope that a new list of children arrives soon!

Still No List

We'll another day has come and gone with no word of when our agency will get the next list of children waiting for their forever families! It is very sad and frustrating and I feel so much for the precious children that continue to wait for their families. If only they could get united with Forever Families quickly where they can be showered with hugs and kisses and the love they so deserve. For all families waiting, know that we feel for you and are there with you as we too continue on this, which at times, seems like a never ending journey. We know in our heart that it will happen one day - All in God's time!

Here's a couple more pictures

Sammie's 4 Year Pictures

The following are the pictures we had taken for Sammie's 4th Birthday.

This Long Wait

Never in a million years when we began our second adoption journey did we think we would still be waiting for our referral 17+ months later. At times it does not seem like this second adoption will ever happen . . . but in our hearts we know it will all in God's time. Doesn't make the wait any easier. The toughest is when Sammie asks when we are going to China to bring her mei mei (little sister) home. Just the other day she asked me what we were going to do with Bella (our mini schnauzer) when we go to China. I told her we'd find someone to puppy sit for Bella.

I know times are different now with China's International Adoption Program, but when I think if times had stayed the same way they were when we adopted Sammie, then we'd have already been home from China with Madison over a year already. On top of that, it seems that when we became interested in the waiting child program, then all of a sudden a slow down happened there too! We know it is just a coincidence, but still doesn't make things any easier.

Thanks for listening to my rant about the wait. It is so very hard, but we know it will happen for us one day . . . until then . . . we simply wait.

Denise

Just a Rainy Day

Well today is going to be a very rainy/stormy day here in Minnesota and then it is going to get cold through the weekend with the chance of possible SNOW! Yes I said SNOW! Come on already . . . bring on Spring in it's earnest!

What do rainy days mean for you? For me, they are days to stay in your jammies, curled up on the couch with a good book, or watching your favorite old movies or spending time with your hubby snuggled up on the couch - yeah Right, like that is going to happen at our house - LOL! Or in the words of my four year old daughter, let's put on our raincoat and boots and go outside and splash around in the mud puddles!

Whatever rainy days mean to you, enjoy them as they really are important to everyday life! Live, love and be happy!

Inception of the Roth Clan

The union of Dale and I believe was fate and began years prior to us actually beginning to date. We met in the early 1980’s when our siblings began dating and later married. In the beginning, we did not get along, I believe, in part, due to our ages. I was 13 and Dale was 18. He had just enlisted in the Marine Corps and I was in Junior High School. In any event, we saw each other periodically throughout the years when he would come home on leave from the Marines. Our lives continued on their own individual paths until July 1998, when Dale and I were unexpectedly drawn together by a family crisis. At the time, Dale was stationed overseas in Japan and was flown home on emergency leave. When he arrived at the hospital, and for whatever reason, when I took his hand to walk him back to see his brother, there was a connection between us and we have been together ever since.

We were married on November 11, 2000 in a beautiful ceremony. Our quest to become parents became a reality when we adopted our beautiful and talented little girl from China in January 2005. We began our second adoption journey in February 2006 and are currently awaiting the referral of our second daughter from China.

Stay tuned as the journey of the Roth Clan continues . . .