What's Next?

yesterday, up in the rooftop play area (more photos below text)

So now that we've passed court, many of you are asking what's next in the process, what's next in your plan? Albanian law requires a 15-day appeal period before the adoption decree is officially legal. We are not to get custody of Reni until we have those papers in our hands and notarize a custody transfer from the Sisters of Charity orphanage to us. Also, until the adoption decree is in hand, we cannot apply for Reni's Albanian passport to travel as "Reni Waggoner".

Since we adopted Ellie in December 2006, Albania has switched to using biometric passports, and with that change they shifted passport production from the individual district police headquarters to a centralized private company in the capital. Furthermore, we heard from someone that biometric passports make it easier for Albanians to travel abroad (I really feel badly for them in this department -- not many countries smile at Albanian passports) so many Albanians living abroad have understandably been returning to Albania to apply for a new biometric passport to ease their travel headaches.

This affects us in two ways. First of all, it used to be that with the adoption decree, Bethany could go to a Ministry office and get a document that would expedite the production of an adoptee's passport so that it could be obtained in less than a week, or as quickly as one or two days. With the private company, you submit your request and get in line with everyone else. Secondly, the surge in passport applications has extended the wait to as long as four weeks, even with the passport office working 16-hour days, 6 days per week.

With our adoption decree not being released until August 12 or 13 (which in itself is a God-miracle -- Altin was able to get the judge to agree to sign the papers yesterday which the courts will hold for us until the waiting period expires, which is during the judge's August recess -- go Altin!), we can't apply for Reni's passport until then. And with the delays, it could be as long as 6 weeks (from now) before he has his passport. Add a couple of days to that timeline for the Embassy appointment and doctors/lab visits and we're looking at September before we can bring Reni home.

While that sounds so far away, we are reminded of all of the hurdles God cleared for us along the way to speed things up, from the drop-in fingerprint appointment in May (which wasn't supposed to be allowed) which saved us 6 weeks, to getting permission to apply for the I-800 before getting the reply from the I-800A, which saved us another 2 weeks, to coming to Albania before getting our court date which allowed us to get a date before the judge's recess and that saved us who-knows-how-many weeks... We don't think it's exaggerating to say that it may have been Thanksgiving before bringing Reni home, so while we're sad at the thought of leaving him here when we return on August 4 to Kentucky, September doesn't sound so bad. In fact, it's amazing!

Plus, we are able to have this wonderful summer experience as a family during a time when our job on campus is quietest so we have had the least stress in that department (thank you to our amazing housesitter and cabinet member, Rachel, for taking care of the place in our absence and for Mark who has stepped in and is dealing with dryer repairmen so she can process the guestroom laundry!). We have really had a great time creating memories as a family and watching Ellie experience her country of birth. I don't know if I have shared this here or not, but it has been a difference experience to watch adult Albanians interact with a child -- most adults here seem to really dote on kids. Poor Ellie has been pinched and kissed and hugged in so many places (just yesterday I was cleaning purple lipstick off her ear from the courthouse guard and after the taxi driver left Ellie with a hug she said, "Ouch! He pinched my bottom!" ) And this is with very few of them even knowing she's Albanian. When they learn that little fact, she is the recipient of even more love! I think in America we have tried so hard to protect our children that many American adults are afraid of showing attention or affection for fear of coming across with ulterior motives.

Another thing I am grateful for is that most Albanians don't understand her thoughts which come right out her mouth out loud without a filter. Again, just yesterday she said of a man smoking a cigarette in swimming apparell on his front step, "Look! That man has no clothes on!" Then, of the substitute taxi driver, "His teeth are BLACK!" Last week while in Tirana we were at a coffee bar with Vera and Ellie abruptly turned to point at two ladies at an adjacent table. She said, "Mommy, are they STRANGERS??" To that, one of the women turned to Ellie and in a not unfriendly tone of voice said, "I do speak English!" We all got a laugh out of that!

Ellie is picking up a handful of Albanian words and sprinkling them into her conversation. Yesterday at lunch she wanted to clink our glasses and said, "Gezuar!" (though it came out something slightly differently, but close enough.) I find this really fun and hope she remembers them!

So back to 'what's next'... we bought our tickets in June without even knowing our court dates and made a best guess to schedule our return for August 4. We are going to stick to that return date and let Bethany handle Reni's passport application on our behalf. We think that Nathan will probably come back to Albania sometime around Labor Day to collect Reni and fly back to the States with my mom who was already scheduled to be here to host a team.

Since I will not be returning, we have to complete some paperwork at the Embassy before we depart. We will stay in Elbasan for Reni's 1st birthday (Friday) and return to Tirana on Sunday which will give us Monday and Tuesday for a possible Embassy appointment, last minute-shopping, cleaning and repacking and then LONG day of travel on Wednesday (24 hours from our departure at Rinas to touchdown in Lexington).

Sorry this was so lengthy and wordy! Enjoy some photos from yesterday below...

yesterday afternoon we took a little walk with Reni. I'm sorry I didn't get a photo at the beginning of the trip. He was so excited, sitting tall and gripping the sides of the front tray like he was a king on a throne. He couldn't take in enough of the cars, trucks, and motorcycles that zoomed by.

The neighborhood around the orphange doesn't have many attractions (that we have discovered yet, at least). We stopped on the main road for some ice cream bars and water. This is Ellie's daily request, though she usually only takes a couple of bites before declaring she's finished.