not really an update

Rumors are flying once again. Apparently, four agencies have had their final paperwork sumbitted to all the Ministries that need to approve it. (No mention has been made of who those four agencies are, though.) The adoption world seems sure that re-accreditation is "imminent". (Actually, that was a quote from Alina Levitskaya, Director of the Department of Youth Policy, Upbringing, and Social Protection of Children of the Russian Ministry of Education and Science. Ms. Levitskaya was in Washington, DC to meet with senior staff within the U.S. Department of State to discuss the status of Russian intercountry adoption and the accreditation of U.S. agencies.) I remain skeptical.

This is not my typical frame of reference. My friend Kristen once said, "Do you ever get the feeling that Kate was raised on a steady diet of Hayley Mills films?" This comment gets a chuckle from those who know me in real life. I do tend to be a bit of a Pollyanna.

But for now, no glad game. These are strictly the facts: No one has accreditation. No one knows when accreditation will be granted.

My agency (notice this is neither in the facts nor the fantasy paragraphs...because I don't know where it belongs) says that accreditation is coming soon. They are encouraging all families whose paperwork is not complete to complete it so that it can be sent to Russia for translation. They feel that accreditation will be granted first to those agencies who have the most parents ready to go.

That's all I *know* for right now. My papers are in and translated (well, actually, that's an assumption I should verify). I would think I was top of the stack. And, with the age range I'm requesting, I would think that my wait would be short...one accreditation is granted.

Well, I told you it wasn't really an update.

(p.s. for Sybille: I'm on week two of my cold. It's wandered from my sinuses to my throat. My doctor in the US would say that colds last two weeks if you see a doctor and fourteen days if you don't. Knowing what I do about healthcare in Russia, I choose the don't option. I should be in good shape next week.)