Oh... the waiting.

Have I ever mentioned that I'm not good at waiting? Back when I lived in Las Vegas, I was notorious for exiting the freeway at the slightest sign of a backup. An hour later after exploring back roads I never knew existed, I'd either find myself at my final destination or Arizona. I always need to feel like there is some forward momentum in my life, even if not necessarily in the right direction.

I've temporarily turned my adoption energy towards organizing the house. I'm attacking it with the mindset that "everything is trash until proven indispensable". With any luck my filing from ten years ago, should be caught up in a matter of days.

Uzbekistan - The Process

Looking back I realized that I never fully revisited the new adoption laws of Uzbekistan. I'm not a lawyer. I do not speak Uzbek or Russian. I am not an expert on international law of any sort. My interpretation is simply "the word on the street" and could prove to be totally false. With that disclaimer in place... here it goes:

Uzbekistan is now requiring that the prospective adopting parents need to meet their potential child (called a "referral") in person before the Ministry of Education (MOE) will process the adoption petition. I believe the parents also need to meet with several government officials (perhaps at the MOE level?). It seems that only one parent is absolutely required to travel, but they must be in possession of a seriously strong power-of-attorney. Just about the time their internal clock adjusts to the time change it's back on the plane to head home for my favorite part again.... WAITING.

While you wait impatiently at home (now you've met your future child, so the wait becomes THAT much harder), the MOE processes and approves your petition to adopt the child. My understanding is that this takes approximately a month. I just hope they don't call extended family and friends for personal references, because my mom can't understand people who speak "Texan" - much less "Uzbek"!

After this is where my understanding of the process gets even foggier. After receiving approval from the MOE, your paperwork proceeds to the regional guardianship office and mayor. Somewhere around this time, an invitation to travel is extended to you and the scramble to repack begins. The parent(s) [again, it seems that only one parent is absolutely required to travel] meet the mayor and possibly other Uzbek officials prior to the finalization of the adoption. Then there's the issuance of a new birth certificate, passport, visa, etc. Once the Uzbek paperwork is in order, then it's off to the U.S. Embassy to complete the process required to bring an adopted orphan into the United States. You can check out the USCIS website for all of those details.

My understanding is that the first trip will be approximately one week and the second will be approximately two weeks. Keep in mind that the process can change at any moment. There have been two major overhauls to the Uzbekistan adoption process in just the past four months. Be flexible, be patient and be prepared to wait. Ugh! I hate that part!!!!!