Better Late than Never...

So, I'm extremely behind in my postings these days. It's just been rough since we've been back from our vacation at the Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. So, now I am finally getting to post a few pix from our trip. We were there from August 30th through September 9th. It was a wonderful 10-day vacation that we both just loved!! We woke up every morning and had beautiful scenery and some great hiking. The weather, for the most part, was decent. We did have snow and hail one day. Thankfully for us, it was a travel day from when we drove from Jackson Hole to Yellowstone National Park. Note: these are only 12 out of the 1500 photos that we took. I am sparing your eyes... Here are the highlights of our trip.

Here we are enjoying an evening cocktail inside the Old Faithful Inn. It was so amazing there. Definitely have to go back!!

This is what a traffic jam looks like in Yellowstone...

Wednesday Funnies

In honor of my parent's visit to Madison on Monday, I thought a little family humor would be in order. Plus, as Robert already knows... I'm always "right."

Seeing the Fall Colors

This past Sunday, Robert took another flying lesson that I got to join in on. We went out (with his flight instructor) to look at the beautiful fall colors of Door County, WI. The views were just amazing. Here are just a few of the views out the airplane window. It was just breath-taking! We left around 8:30 am and got home around 4:00 pm. It was a very enjoyable day.

USCIS Announces Adoption Policy for Hague Transition Cases

Grandfathered Form I-600A Affected

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced yesterday that prospective adoptive parents already in the process of adopting a child from a country that has implemented the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention) who filed a Form I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition, prior to April 1, 2008, and who have received the one time no-charge extension, may file one additional Form I-600A, and continue to proceed with their intercountry adoption through the “orphan” process. The new Form I-600A must be filed before the current approval expires, and only if the prospective adoptive parents have not yet filed the corresponding Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.

Well, the petition worked! Finally something good that USCIS did. If only they could make it so that we only had to file for the paperwork once with no expiration until the adoption is completed. It still sucks that we'll be continuing on with all of this nasty paperwork and extra money outlay, but I guess it could be worse if we had to transition over to the I-800 form. The I-800 form is only good for 15 vs 18 months (with the I-600) and requires a more major home study rewrite which would have cost us more money and more extensive background checks. As it currently stands, we may still not be completed with our adoption by the time our 3rd I-600A form expires. Our current one expires in April 2009. Gotta see if there's a way to drag it out a bit... Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Please Help By Signing this Petition!

Those of you who are tangled up in international adoption and specifically adoption from China are well aware of the implications of the Hague and our I-600a approvals. For those of you not involved, the I-600a is the the clearance you get from the US Government that allows you to return to this country with your new child. Without this approval, you can't get on your plane home with your baby. The US just became Hague compliant which means they now participate with many countries around the world to prevent child trafficking. Yes, good. Very good. However now the thousands of families like us who are in the MIDDLE of this adoption process are being asked to spend more money, more time, and perhaps delay their process by having to get re-approved by the US Government. Mind you that all of us spent close to $1000 to be I-600a approved at the onset of this process, then most of us have already had to spend money to get re-approved when the I-600a expired 18 months later, and now we may have to become I-800a approved which requires much more hoop jumping. We were initially told that people with a valid I-600a would be considered "transition" families and would be grandfathered in. Now it seems that may not be the case. There is a petition being signed to keep us "transition" families grandfathered in and I am asking ALL of you to click this link and sign it. You can also read more about this in greater detail on that blog. Whether you are in the process of an adoption or not, please help us by signing this petition. The Joint Council, in collaboration with Adoption For All organizers David Yurkovich and Dianne Pearce, will present the petition and all signatories to Congressional leaders on October 18th. To ensure that your signature is included, please sign the petition no later than October 16th. Thank You!

100 Pearls of Chinese Wisdom

"Fate brings people together no matter how far apart they may be."
- 100 Pearls of Chinese Wisdom

Viruses

First off, I've had this nasty virus for the past few days. I woke up with a sore throat on Wednesday and it has progressed from there. Not fun! All I've wanted to do is sleep all day - so I have.

The other kind of virus I had a visit from was of the computer sort. If you were on my contact list in my yahoo e-mail account, then I'm sure that you received a lovely "Dear Friend" e-mail from someone posing as me. The people who send out these nasty Malware viruses should be shot on site. It is such a violation of our lives. The sender of the e-mail not only sent out e-mails to everyone on my contact list, but also deleted all of my contacts. So, if you'd like to hear from me, please e-mail me again so I can have your e-mail address back into my contact list. I have also changed my password to help protect it from further invasions and have added further securities to my account.

L'Shana Tova

To those celebrating Rosh Hashana - Happy New Year! May you all have a very sweet New Year!

October Matches are In

We don't know the exact cut-off yet, but our agency has referrals thru February 15, 2006. The exact cut-off could either be the 15th or the 16th, but more likely the 15th. Again, as usual, this is a 6-day referral month. I think that means only 149 more referral days to go... so short, but yet so long to go...

China's Latest Disaster: Tainted Infant Formula

The problem first showed up in China in infant formula made with contaminated milk.

Nearly 53,000 children in China have been sickened by it or other products contaminated with the chemical melamine. Four babies have died. More than a dozen countries, from Asia to Africa to Europe, have banned or recalled Chinese milk products. The United States, meanwhile, said inspectors would expand testing for Chinese products that may contain high levels of milk or milk proteins.

Authorities in China have arrested 18 people in a nationwide investigation. They include two brothers who face charges of selling contaminated milk; the brothers could face death if convicted, according to China Daily, a state-run newspaper.

The raw milk used to produce powdered baby formula had been watered down, and the chemical melamine was added to fool quality checks, the newspaper said.

In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration said its investigators had not found the Chinese infant formula in question during visits to more than 1,000 stores. They were mainly in cities with large Chinese communities, such as Los Angeles and San Francisco, California; Seattle, Washington; and New York.

The FDA plans to continue such checks, it said, and "has broadened its domestic and import sampling and testing of milk-derived ingredients and finished food products containing milk, such as candies, desserts, and beverages that could contain these ingredients from Chinese sources."

Melamine is commonly used in coatings and laminates, wood adhesives, fabric coatings, ceiling tiles and flame retardants. Some Chinese dairy plants have added it to milk products to make it seem to have a higher protein level.

Melamine is the same industrial contaminant from China that poisoned and killed thousands of U.S. dogs and cats last year.

Health experts say that ingesting melamine can lead to kidney stones, urinary tract ulcers, and eye and skin irritation. It also robs infants of much-needed nutrition.

Regarding the children in orphanages, this is what I've heard:
A letter was sent out to all the orphanages as soon as the crisis was recognized. Orders were to have all children examined at local hospitals and that the government will cover all costs, including any necessary treatment. All orphanages using identified tainted brands have changed to either fresh milk or to a brand that has been identified as safe. There have been reports of children with kidney stones and have or are in the process of being treated.

I just can't wait for the day when China does something right for once! Like maybe a speed-up in the referral process!!