We sent in the first part of Packet II, which included some signed disclosures, the application and fee to start the Federal background checks, and paid the fee to start the home study. We have a few more documents to get notarized, which we will have done this week. Part of this packet also requires us to take an online course, which is actually a primer for international adoptions. We are enrolled in that and are in process to complete it. It is about 20 chapters long and we have worked through about 5 chapters so far. We have plenty of time to get this finished, but we are picking off a few chapters every few days to get it done. This works perfect for us, especially with Alli's schedule.
We had passport pictures taken today for Alli's passport and had multiple copies of both of our photos made for when we are in China. Alli needs 9 pictures, I need 7 (I already have my passport). Should've only taken a few minutes, but it ended up taking about 2 1/2 hours! First we tried Walgreens, and had to have mine taken twice because the first were really blurry. Alli's were okay, but not that great. We made our way down to the County Clerk's office, photos and documents in hand. The nice lady at the counter was a bit concerned that the pictures may not cut it- not sharp enough. We also found out that Alli's birth certificate was really only a certificate from the hospital and was not the real deal from the state. So, we headed down to City Hall to get a bonafide copy of her birth certificate, and while there, the very helpful ladies behind the counter suggested we try Ritz Camera, because they typically gave 6 copies when you order passport photos and heard that the quality was usually good. Piece of cake, right? Sure.
We stopped back at Walgreens and got our money refunded for the blurry pictures and made our way up to the mall for pictures and lunch. When we got to Ritz, the barely-out-of-high-school employees that happened to be on didn't know how to charge us for the extras- apparently they had never been asked to make that many copies before. Once they figured that out, they realized that their photo processors were down- they were waiting for a new hard drive to come in and didn't know when that would be. So much for that idea! We skipped lunch for the moment and headed to Severance Photo, which is where I was going to go initially due to the fact that it is where I had my pictures taken for my passport last year, but "figured" it would be cheaper someplace else. It ened up costing us HALF what it would have costed us at Walgreens. And the pictures were sharp to boot! We were finally able to get Alli's passport documents filed and grabbed some lunch. Check! Another one down.
We still need to get the rest of our references in as well as Exemplified copies of our birth certificates and marriage certificate. So it will be another trip to City Hall for our birth certificates and also to see John Knapp to get copies of our marriage certificate. We have a few other things to round up as well, but we are getting there. We should have another packet of info ready to go by week's end...
We'll keep you posted!
Love,
Gary & Alli
Putting our Hope in things that Last
2 weeks ago
2 comments:
As you could imagine, the majority of my friends here in Germany are expatriates. Being that we are all "auslanders" working or going to school in Germany, the subject of passports always comes up. It becomes a who's who discussion in the world traveler circles. Anyway, of all the passports I have seen, the overwhelming majority of photos look like genuine police mug shots! Mine is no exception. Perhaps the blurriness would have softened my hardened criminal scowl I seemed to have on my face...ah well, it makes for good conversation….what in the heck was I so miffed about?
It seems like the paperwork is moving right along. Speaking of paperwork -Will the newly formed family be traveling around China via auto? I was looking at my International Driving Permit (which has expired, in the process of getting a German license now) and noticed that the permit does not list China as a "Contracting State". However Chinese is one of the 11 languages in the permit. www.aaafoundation.org/ states:
“What if the country that I'm visiting is not listed on the back of the International Driving Permit application?
Some countries do not appear on the list, because they did not ratify the treaty that brought the IDP into existence. China is the country asked about most frequently. China has not ratified the treaty; however, the IDP does include a Chinese translation and may be helpful as identification.”
I read that as nope we don’t recognize it, but it might be worth a call. If you need one, the process should only take 20 minutes (smirk) at the AAA office. After filling out a short request form all you need is two passport-sized photographs (chuckle) with your signature on the back of them, a photocopy of your NY drivers license, and 20 bucks.
I guess that's it for me, I cannot fight the Sandman any longer.
Bis Spater!
PS An adoption in German is eine adoption….finally an easy word….LOL!
Sounds like things are moving along in the process. Good luck with everything. Can't wait till you get it all completed and are on your way to China to pick up your little girl!! We are keeping you in our prayers. We love and miss you both.
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