Answer a few questions...

This should cover some of the basics, but let me know if you have any other questions.

- We are at the very begin of the process. We have started the homestudy process and are waiting for the background check to come back. Hopefully we pass. =) Then we have a few home visits... Hopefully we pass that as well. The social worker doing the homestudy basically holds the fate of this in her hands. They can decide on a whim whether or not we make fit parents, based on any criteria they see fit. During this we all take our pre-adoption education, I believe that is 10 hours and we can do some of it on line.

- We have also sent in the first part of our application, with the first part of the fee, to the agency. We went with Wide Horizons for Children. http://www.whfc.org/ I researched a lot of agencies, and for a lot of reasons chose this one. I had the best feeling about them and unlike a lot of the agencies out there they do not work on a sliding scale. I just didn't think that system was fair. And I chose this one BEFORE I knew that Angelina Jolie used them. I swear. We are working on the second half of the application to them, which includes medical statements from the doctor, saying that we are healthy.

- We also have to start on the dossier now. That is what officially goes to the Ethiopian government, once the homestudy and USCIS (immigration approval) information is done. That is when we are actually put on the list to wait for a referral.

- When I say that we are at the very beginning I mean it. We are looking at about 18 months before we bring home a child. Originally we had planned to have a child escorted home. Ethiopia is one of the few countries that allows this. But now, I think that we have reconsidered, and at least I will be traveling over there. Ethiopia has a lot of interesting sites, and I would like to see where he is coming from and also meet any of his family that is possible.

- Yes, I said he. We are requesting a boy. No I have not hit my head recently. And we are also requesting an infant which is anything 0-12 months at the time of referral. This is also why it will take so long. As with any country, it takes longer for infants.

- The children are tested for AIDS, when they come into the care of the state and before leaving the country. They are also tested for Hepatitis and syphilis I believe.

That should answer most of the questions I've gotten so far, but if you have any others, just let me know!!