As most of you know our journey has been long-we started our adoption in August 2005!! We were logged in China for over 2 years. Circumstances continued to change and we were told that it would be March 2009 before we would get to China. At that point we closed our China file and opened our hearts to other options.
We met a great family in our neighborhood who had just returned from Ethiopia with their adorable little boy. We began talking and exchanging adoption stories and I ended up contacting the agency they used for their Ethiopian adoption: Christian World Adoptions.
Within a day we had found our sweet little girl! She is 7 years old and just beautiful. ( I cannot post her pictures as they are confidential until the adoption is approved)...Jeff and I sat down with the kids(we have 3) and talked about what it all meant. We asked how they felt about adopting an older child and if they were all ready to share their lives and hearts with her. Their unanimous response was..." Can we go get her tomorrow?!?!"
And so here I was 2 1/2 years later starting another international file. Of course all the documents had to be re-done to read Addis Ababa, Ethiopia instead of Guangzou, China.
I'll spare you the grind of the paper trail but suffice it to say I was able to have all our documents ready and to the US Dept. of State and onto the Ethiopian Embassy in Washington DC within a month. We got all the approvals needed. Next our Agency CWA sent our Dossier to Ethiopia-which brings you up to date.
Now we are waiting...first for a court date then for an embassy appointment...
In the meantime, Tess has been moved to the main orphanage in Addis Ababa. We received updated pictures this week and she looks happy and healthy!
I think about her all the time and we all talk about her. She is already loved and a part of our family.
