Continued from Part One...

In October of 2006, a new IBESR director was assigned. Her name is Madame Beaudin, and so far she has improved the process in IBESR and signed out hundreds of files.

The new hang-up is now with Civil Court. Adoption files are getting stuck there for months. Who knows what the reasons are? Civil Court was recently vandalized. They say they need time to clean-up before they can get back to signing files out. In Haiti, that could mean just about anything.

I have heard that files have been held up due to pride, stubbornness, and possible lack of bribes. If you ever travel... more

Probably the most common question we have received during our Haitian adoption is, “Why does it take so long?”

I recently received the comment from Thomasina:

Wendy,

I'm following your story with great interest. Somehow, though, I missed the part where you talk about why the government of Haiti (or whoever) is drawing this process out for you and your children. Why can't you go and get them? Please link me to your blog entry where you explain. Sorry for my naiveté about such things and best of luck to you!

After reading her comment, I realized that there may be many of you who do not understand why it can take so long to adopt... more

Our adoption coordinator and a group of adoptive parents traveled to Haiti on January 11th. They returned home last week on the 18th with heavy hearts, adorable photos, and great travel stories. I should have been on that trip. I had been planning on joining the group up until a month before they left. I suddenly felt like I shouldn’t go. I was still exhausted from the previous trip. I realized it would be a big financial burden right after Christmas. Our kids at home were dreading our departure, and I started to wonder just how good it actually... more

Last week, I received a lovely email from a new reader. She was sharing with me how her heart was for adoption. She had spent quite a bit of time with research for Chinese adoption, only to discover the new rules would exclude her from being able to adopt from China. She had felt drawn toward Haitian adoption in the past, and with the recent news about China, started looking more at Haitian adoption. She told me that she was happy to find my Haiti blog, because there wasn’t much available in regards to personal stories about adopting from Haiti. She is right.... more

Continued from September 25, 2006...

Thursday, September 28, 2006

I haven't felt like writing anything at all. It has been very hot and humid--zapping all of my energy. On top of that, Georgia has decided to show her true colors. She definitely has attachment issues. Worse than that, we feel concerned about her in other ways. I find it so upsetting, I can barely talk or even think about it. In July we met her... more

Continued from September 24, 2006...

Monday, September 25, 2006

1 am

I was awoken at about midnight to the sounds of diarrhea. Talley had had a little right before bed. She went all out this time. She was covered in poop! If that's what you could call it--it was so liquidy. I changed her, cleaned her up, re-applied the scabies medicine, got her dressed in clean clothes and comforted her until she fell asleep again.... more

Continued from Surviving the Wait--Part Two...

If you already have children at home, then your waiting will be different. In some ways, it will not be as difficult as it is for those without children. You will be busy with the children already home. You will feel just as worried for your new child and be just as desperate to get them home, but you will also have children to cuddle and love and keep you on your toes. Part of your wait will... more

Continued from Surviving the Wait—Part One…

Here are some things one could do to make the waiting more bearable, if you do not already have children at home:

1. Get the new child’s room ready. This might include cleaning out a room already in use. You may want to paint or wallpaper the room, and choose an appropriate bedding set. You may need to buy a crib or new bed, put up new curtains, shampoo the carpet or refinish wood flooring. This project... more

One of the drawbacks to Haitian adoption is the length of time it takes to complete an adoption and have your child home. It seems that many international adoption programs have been getting longer, as well. The difference between other programs and the Haiti program, is how you wait.

Once you have a completed adoption dossier (and sometimes before), you are presented with the referral of a child. Then your paperwork begins its long journey in the Haitian system. With many other international programs, the long... more

It has been brought to my attention that the new IBESR rules are out. I found this wonderful information on the Haiti IBESR Updates website:

The following is a list of the newest adoption requirements as posted from IBESR to three orphanages:

• Copies of each parent-to-be's photo IDs is now required as part of the dossier. This has always been required. However, it is now being enforced. Copies of the photo ID should be front and back and can be a driver's license or passport. • Parent(s) can be at least 30 years old. (If married, one must be 30, the other at least 28.) • If you are married, you should... more