Paperwork!

Some of you may remember that great character, “Roz” from the movie, Monster’s Inc. Her trademark line, “You haven’t completed your paperwork!” runs around inside our heads these days. Because we submitted our adoption dossier back in November 2007, a few of our documents have now expired and have to been done over again prior to traveling to Kazakhstan. “Done over” involves getting each expired document reissued, getting it notarized, getting the notarization authenticated by the appropriate county court clerk’s office, and then getting each authenticated, notarized document “apostilled” by the appropriate state’s Secretary of State. (An apostil, which is as an official seal on a document, deems the document internationally valid.) This was the route we ran for all of the documents in the main dossier, so, while tedious, we're familiar with the process.


Fortunately, it’s not all about paperwork and packing lists and crossing “t’s” and dotting “i’s” during this period leading up to the phone call with our travel dates. Today is a HAPPY DAY, as the baby room is officially done!

This has been a joyful, important process, as it has helped me already begin to bond with our future daughter (we've requested a girl) by making her new home a special place – my first gift to her. In honor of her name, Lilly Grace, I’ve used a garden flower theme and to specifically honor her Asian heritage, I’ve incorporated little Asian-inspired elements like cherry blossoms and a great vintage paint-by-number painting, which you can see here. Steve kids me that after all of this work, we may wind up with a boy!

Thank you all for your loving support to us during this process – we appreciate your emails, calls, cards and donations to the baby house for the welfare of the other children there. We’re glad you’re a part of this journey with us.

Tonya