As most of you know, we originally thought we'd adopt from Haiti. As we've explored this further, we've found out that the adoption process from Haiti is pretty much gridlocked right now. There are exceptions, of course, but in most cases the government is being extremely slow to process the paperwork and children are remaining in the orphanage for much longer after being accepted by a family. This means that there's not enough room for new children and the turnover is becoming very slow. The orphanage we were considering has put a hold on accepting new applications from adoptive families as a result. They have also increased their fees from $5000 US to $9000 US because they do not have enough money to provide the basic needs for the children while they are in their care (because the children are staying at the orphanage for about a year longer than they used to stay).
So, after much prayer, we've decided to look at other countries. Nicole spoke to the international worker at Hope Adoption Services (the adoption agency we're using) and there are some African countries where adoptions seem to be going more smoothly at present. Ethiopia, Zambia, and Ghana are a few countries that we're going to examine a bit further. Pray for us that God gives us a clear sense of direction. We know He has chosen a child who is meant to part of our family!
We also have registered for the educational courses that are required as part of the homestudy. We'll be taking one course in May and a three-day course in July. In between the two courses, we'll begin the necessary paperwork. Presently, we are still selling stuff. Nicole will be putting the online sale items on craigslist, kijiji, and ebay. Pray that we are able to get a fair price for all the items we are selling . . . there's still a lot more money to be raised!
