what's next?

I forget that not everyone adopts from Russia. Forgive me.

I am travelling to a blind region (I prefer to call it a "stepping out in faith" region). This region is totally blind...unlike some which are just really nearsighted. (Ha! Laugh at the jokes, people.)

I will not receive any further information about d2b before I travel--no name, no birthday, no picture, no video, no health records.

I'll go to the region on 14 June, meet with the MOE on 15 June, and then have five days of visits with her. (This is because I have a great agency. Some agencies don't get this much face time.) Probably on day 2 we'll have a doctor come in to review her medicals records with me and perform an independent assessment. This will include developmental tasks as well as a physical exam.

At the end of five day, if all is well (and the only reason for declining a referral in Russia, according to my agency, is a medical one) I will sign my "intention to adopt" papers. And go home. By myself. That's the end of "trip one".

A court date will be scheduled 6-9 weeks later (although someone in my region recently had only two weeks between trips one and two). That's "trip two". I will again spend a week in-region, visiting with d2b (yea, agency) and then having court. In July and August things really slow down because people are on vacation. This could work in my favor, as judges try to clear their calendars before going on holiday, or against me, making me wait until September. Let's hope it's the former!

In Russia, there is a ten-day wait until any judgment is finalized. In the past, since it was unlikely the new parents would appeal the decision and they presented "compelling reasons", many regions waived this ten days and granted custody immediately. Not so mine. I expect to have the "ten days" enforced, though it could be counted as either calendar days or business days. I will probably return to St. P, unless we are the exception to the rule and circumstances (everyone at camp, chicken pox, etc.) allow me to have custody during the ten days.

At the end of the ten days, I'll return to pick up my daughter. We then have to get her Russian international passport and do an exit interview with the US Embassy in Moscow. That is "trip three". So far, my region is not taking an extraordinarily long time to issue passports. In some regions, new biometric passports are taking so long (over a month in some cases) to be issued that parents are choosing to leave the country and make a fourth trip. If trends change, and the passport will take a month, I *should* be able to return to St. P with d2b to wait that out and then go to Moscow for the exit interview.

We fly to the US. D2b becomes a US citizen when she clears immigration (and not the infinitely more romantic "when the wheels land" or "when she touches American soil" that I'd prefer). Then, we turn around and fly back to St. P. We might stay a night. But, I'm anxious to use my maternity leave with her in our home in St. P rather than at T@rget (much as I love and miss the big bull's eye). We just need to settle in to real life. And, our real life is here.

I'm double-checking with the consulate, but I should be able to do her social security and US passport applications here.

So, that's what's next. I'm still hoping we're home before my birthday. (mid-September, shop early and often)