Flying blind, or not?

Don't say "I told you so."

We got an email from our agency saying that two of the ministers who have signed for our agency's reaccreditation have resigned and now the accreditation has been delayed. The president of the agency is flying to Russia to try to find out if there is some workaround, or exception or anything to keep the accreditation on track. But the accreditation is currently on hold. Thankfully our agency still has regions open that will work them to process independent adoptions. They have been sending families throughout the summer and into the fall, with success. So this doesn't worry me too much.

I talked to our agency director today to get more information about Yekaterinburg. I found out that since July we have only had one family ahead of us on the list get a referral, and we are currently at #7, with no estimate for how long it will take for a referral if we stay on the list. If we choose to go to Yekaterinburg, we will travel during the first two weeks of October. (Can you feel my heart beating??) That's in two to three weeks.

We talked at length about the challenges we would face with Yekaterinburg. While I don't know all the details yet, there are approximately 24 additional documents I will need to compile between the first and second trips, including medical examinations from 5 specialists here at home, that must include notarized reports, licenses and certificates of specialty. Thankfully this precludes the 8-doctor visit in Russia. Our agency facilitators in Russia have talked to the judge to determine exactly what she is looking for in these additional document requirements and in what format they should be given. A small set of families have also traveled for their first trip at the end of May, and are returning to Ekat now to complete their adoptions. (This is 3 1/2 months, however, the August holiday was right in the middle.) The director said he estimates that the length of time between trips will be 2 to 3 months, which he considers a drawback because usually for his families in other regions it's a 3-5 week wait. (Huh?? Wow... I almost can't believe that.) Tomorrow I'm going to call the dossier coordinator to find out more about the document requirements. Another drawback is that we will be flying blind. But others have done this. There are reportedly many healthy children in Ekat. And the families that have already traveled have arranged for doctors from Moscow to fly out and examine the children.

Today has been tumultuous. We will be talking to the director tomorrow again. We're looking at our calendar, talking to the grandparents. Trying not to get excited.... but it's hard not to. Otherwise we may be waiting for a referral for another four to six months. I know there have been problems with others trying to adopt from the Ekat region. But if families with our agency are returning for their court dates this month, after having made their first trip at the end of May.... there is some hope, isn't there? They've made it through the paperwork hassles. Maybe we can too.

Am I being naive? Maybe so. I have never done this before... and I'm trusting our director, and trusting the stories of all those that have gone ahead of us. I'm thankful that the wait so far hasn't been painful, but it could be. I've got this carrot dangling in front of me now... I'm afraid to not go for it. I've tried to remain incredibly optimistic throughout this whole process, and having my two children and my husband has helped me immensely. I'm afraid that if we don't take this opportunity, then we will be indefinitely stalled. This is not necessarily true; we will still be #7, but we'll have no idea when we'll be #1.

We'll know more tomorrow. Please say a prayer for us that we can discern whether Ekat is the right move for us. Thanks.