Raines Adoption

2012-02-12T12:30:00.000-08:00

For more information visit: here

Amharic prints- for sale

2012-02-08T12:09:00.001-08:00

In case you're interested...

After having the boys' names transcribed into Amharic script, I was inspired to find some beautiful Amharic words to use as framed prints around our home. We have a friend who lived and worked for many years in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and she recently assisted in some translations for me. You can purchase your very own print here.

Two Years

2012-01-06T05:02:00.000-08:00

Two years together as a family!

"...but fatherhood isn't the product of biology. It is born from love. Love is a declaration, a banner held high in battle. It is relentless pursuit. It doesn't always feel right. Don't fall for the fickle love of this world; it is no love at all."

January 4, 2010

January 4, 2011

January 4, 2012

~Praise God from whom all blessings flow~

Three

2011-10-25T20:20:00.000-07:00

Happy 3rd birthday!

ps. When did I become the mother of boys?

Bring the Rain

2011-08-01T17:46:00.000-07:00

"But this isn't just another annual drought -- this is the worst crisis the region has seen in 60 years. To put that in historical perspective, the situation is looking more grim than the massive drought in Ethiopia in the mid-1980s that prompted the Live Aid concert, and the drought in Somalia in early 1990s that led to the well-known United Nations peacekeeping mission."

-CNN

Coming changes

2011-03-20T19:08:00.000-07:00

If you take a step back and follow the trend of almost any country's international adoptions you'll likely see them quickly speed up and then quickly, sometimes drastically, slow down.

This week, the Ethiopian Ministry Of Women's Affairs (MOWA) proposed changes in the number of adoptions to be processed from 50 per day to 5. "Given MOWCYA's curent caseload, the US Embassy anticipates that this change could result in an overall decline in case processing of some 90%." adoption.state.gov

I just read that in sub-Saharan Africa (which constitutes most of Africa) 1 out of every 8 children is an orphan.

"Of the 143 million orphans worldwide, more live in Ethiopia than in any other country in the world."

Family for a Year!

2011-01-06T12:37:00.000-08:00

One year ago...

we packed a half dozen bags, boarded an enormous plane, got picked up at a foreign airport by a man we'd never met, and first held the 15 month old boys that have become our sons.

I've recently gone back and read through my husband's amazing writings from our week in Ethiopia. Written after our first day with the boys:

"This is the consequence of a world fractured by sin. The fight to rebuild it is beautiful but ugly. It's hard because it's redemptive, and redemption comes with great cost."

This first year has been exactly that.

January 4th, 2010

January 4th, 2011

It's ridiculous how much we love these kids! I'm so thankful for my husband and now my boys!

~Praise God from whom all blessings flow~

Do More.

2010-10-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

Here's an organization working in Africa.

Creating jobs that help women and, in turn, restore families.

In Ethiopia and beyond...

fashionABLE

Happy Birthday!

2010-10-19T06:34:00.001-07:00

Happy 2nd Birthday, little boys!

We had a great day celebrating the gift of these two boys. They are amazing little creatures with personalities as big as their smiles. It is so much fun getting to know them more and more each day.

Adoption is forever a part of our life and we are so grateful God granted us the chance to experience the mysterious beauty of it all.

All done

2010-07-12T18:32:00.001-07:00

It's a good feeling to wrap things up. And under these circumstances it couldn't be better.

As the title of our blog states, these pages are dedicated to the Raines Adoption. We've been home for 6 months but I've actually been thinking about this particular post since January, wondering when the right time might be to end this chronicling of our process. We received the boys' US "birth certificates" last month. As far as the US is concerned, these kids are about as adopted as you can get. Case closed. Ethiopian adoption complete.

Our paperwork continues to sit rather quietly in El Salvador. This summer begins the 5th year that our dossier has lived in Latin America. We no longer receive official updates or reports on the status of adoption in ES, but hear that progress is nearly immeasurable.

We do reserve the right to post on a whim, but for now are ending the unofficially official log of this adoption journey. Lord willing, we'll be here again someday!

One year ago

2010-06-06T11:39:00.000-07:00

A year ago, this week, we first heard about our boys, saw their pictures, and were on the road to making them part of our family.

Man's steps are ordained by the LORD, How then can man understand his way? Proverbs 20:24

May's days

2010-05-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

Garden work, playing like crazy, Mother's Day, TN court appointment...and the month is only halfway through!

A Mother's Day photo with the youngest two of my boys.

This picture was taken a few hours after we first met our boys. I loved those plaid shirts!

And here they are today, in those same plaid shirts, being recognized by the US court system as the Raines' boys.

Three Months

2010-04-06T18:34:00.000-07:00

April 4th was a great day at the Raines home. All four of us went to the Easter morning church service together. Praise God for His great mercy we see through Christ!
It was a great message and was the first time I had sat beside my husband during a worship service since December.

April 4th also marked three months since we first met our boys. It's amazing to watch them change and develop. They're tiny humans! G is now walking and A practically runs everywhere. They both have more than the barely 4 teeth they had at 15 months when we first brought them home.
The work of growing our family through adoption has just begun! We love this adventure that continues to prove itself the most difficult and beautiful thing we've experienced.

POA to AWAA for ES

2010-03-11T18:11:00.000-08:00

A new El Salvadoran lawyer has been hired by our first adoption agency. What does that mean for us? More paperwork. In order to continue to keep our file current we are needing to send an updated form. It is something we've done dozens of times before; I could probably walk through the steps blindfolded.

But executing the steps this go 'round was just a bit more tricky. Something about two little monkeys we've got hanging around these days...

Something new every day!

2010-02-03T12:09:00.000-08:00

Things have been moving along, here. Four weeks in and I can barely keep track of what we've been doing. We're exhausted!
In three weeks time, the boys have experienced the following things all for the first time: sleeping in a crib in their own room
falling asleep without their bottle
riding in a car seat
being fed something other than formula
being fed with a spoon
feeding themselves with their fingers
drinking out of a sippy cup
drinking milk out of a sippy cup while holding it themselves
meeting their dog
meeting the chickens
taking a bath in the tub
listening to Guaraldi
listening to a book being read
roaming around their home freely
...
How are their little heads not spinning!

It has been amazing, to say the least. These kids are awesome!

As far as the adoption process goes, we're working on US readoption paperwork and will also begin our first post placement paperwork soon.

Trip in review

2010-01-18T11:12:00.000-08:00

There is so much to write and there are so few minutes to spare right now.

So, in lieu of a thought out, thorough, written synopsis may I offer a brisk overview of our trip?

In photos, by my awesome husband.

About the boys

2009-12-27T15:29:00.000-08:00

Each time an adoptive family from our agency travels to Ethiopia, they take pictures and videos of all the children they see. From time to time, a little note accompanies the pictures. Here's a small taste of some of what we've been told over the past 7 months:

"G is just so so happy. You just look at him and he smiles from ear to ear! And I am so in love with A. He is so sweet and cuddly! They are gonna be a trip when they grow up."

"Your kids are sooooo cute and I can't tell you how lucky you are with both of them."

"Your lil' guys are so adorable and happy!! They smiled all the time. They were always together :)"

We can't wait to meet them!!!

November shower

2009-12-23T19:15:00.000-08:00

Here are photos from our shower.

What a gracious gift from our friends!

Is Ethiopia! Is children! Is time!

2009-12-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

We have our Embassy appointment! We'll be heading out soon after the first of January.
That's right. Three and a half weeks from now... Wow!

Yes, we're getting ready!

2009-11-30T15:29:00.000-08:00

We're waiting on travel dates. Hopefully they will be given to us in the next two weeks. Hopefully they will be for sometime in January...

How to become a family:

2009-11-20T20:46:00.000-08:00

For us, it all started a while back when little Drew was born and became a Raines.
Then in May of 2000, I became a Raines and our family was made.
And now today, we celebrate the day that two little boys become Raines by the decree of the Ethiopian courts and our family has grown. By two.

Thanks be to God!

There is no one holy like the LORD.
1 Samuel 2:2

2009-11-14T06:34:00.001-08:00

To everyone who was a part last night...

To be continued...

2009-11-06T09:27:00.001-08:00

Our case went to court today, but we did not "pass". There was a delay with our paperwork, but we are very hopeful.

Thanks for prayerfully walking with us through this never boring journey!

First Assignment

2009-10-27T05:50:00.000-07:00

We got our first court date assignment for Friday, November 6th!

On that day our case will go before the Ethiopian court for review and, hopefully, approval. And, no, we won't be present for the court date. We'll be sleeping.
(There's an 8 hour time difference!)

For the data conscious:
June- first heard about the boys
July- received official referral
August 14thish- dossier was submitted to court
October 23- received first court date

Happy 1st Birthday, little boys!

2009-10-20T06:43:00.000-07:00

Awaiting assignment

2009-10-05T08:22:00.000-07:00

Just a bit of an update:
What are we doing? We're waiting for the Ethiopian courts to re-open after their rainy season closing. It is estimated that things will start back up next week.

How long will it take for us to be assigned our court date? We have no idea. But that is the next step for our family's process.

How are the boys doing? They seem to be doing great! We see how they are growing and changing very much with each update we receive. What difference from when we first "met" them 4 months ago. The boys will turn 1 year this month!

Trajes Tipicos

2009-09-15T18:45:00.001-07:00

September is a month for holidays...

Happy Independence Day, El Salvador!

Photo by: memehuezo

September 11

2009-09-11T13:46:00.001-07:00

Melkam Addis Amet! Happy New Year, Ethiopia!

Mountains near Lalibela, Ethiopia
photo by: Moi of Ra

We're going to court!

2009-08-24T13:02:00.000-07:00

That's a good thing- to be in court!

Our dossier was submitted to the Ethiopian court on August 14th. Courts are actually officially closed for the rainy season Ethiopia experiences each year and so we know that we won't hear anything for at least another 6 weeks. But, when they do open back up we are already in the queue, which is great news!
Once the courts open back up, the next step for the Raines family is to receive an assignment for a court date. Hopefully we will receive info of our court date assignment before the end of October. After the court date is assigned, then we will wait what is an average of 2 months for it to occur. Then, if all the paperwork is in place and approved, the court date takes place and the Ethiopian courts may officially decree the boys to be Raines'.

I know that everything God does will remain forever; there is nothing to add to it and there is nothing to take from it, for God has so worked that men should fear Him.
Ecclesiastes 3:14

Flying paper

2009-08-04T18:03:00.000-07:00

Our dossier has made it to Ethiopia!
It will be translated over the next month and a half so we anticipate it being a quiet August around here, as far as paperwork goes.
The next step in the paperwork process is the assignment of an Ethiopian court date.

We'll certainly keep you posted...

(ps- So, how awesome is it that we are writing things like this?)

Dossier

2009-07-22T12:01:00.000-07:00

This dossier is in the mail!

Fingerprints, take IIII

2009-07-20T13:33:00.000-07:00

It's that time again!
Somehow it was a little more fun to do this this year.

July

2009-07-15T12:28:00.000-07:00

It is with great joy that we share with you some recent news in
the Raines house. A little over a month ago we were informed
about two boys in Ethiopia. We have begun to pursue them and are
officially on track to adopt them into our family!

They are 8.5-month-old twin brothers. We are thrilled! Thanks
for being a part of this journey with us and the one to come.

God truly has sustained us through your labor in prayer.

Why:

2009-06-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

The following is the answer to the question we frequently hear: "Why?"

The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths. Psalm 135:6
The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the LORD. Proverbs 16:33
Man's steps are ordained by the LORD, How then can man understand his way? Proverbs 20:24
The king's heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes. Proverbs 21:1
I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God
I will gird you, though you have not known Me; That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is no one besides Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other, The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the LORD who does all these. Isaiah 45:5-7
I have made the earth, the men and the beasts which are on the face of the earth by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and I will give it to the one who is pleasing in My sight. Jeremiah 27:5
Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass, Unless the Lord has commanded it? Lamentations 3:37
Then Job answered the LORD and said, "I know that You can do all things, And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted. 'Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?' "Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know." Job 42:1-3

While this is commonly Our response when children come home (and, Lord willing, ours will soon), let this be the answer We give for not having those children, just the same.

D.V.

Quote

2009-05-23T15:13:00.000-07:00

"Orphans at home and around the world can share our rich inheritance. They can run into the arms of Jesus and be transformed from orphans into sons and daughters.

We are not all called to adopt these children into our families. But we are all called to look at them, even though it makes our eyes burn, and be willing to let their needs disrupt our lives."

p146 Carried Safely Home

April

2009-04-03T13:22:00.001-07:00

"...nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You."

2 Chronicles 20:12

2009-03-05T12:51:00.000-08:00

The LORD is good to all,
And His mercies are over all His works.
Psalm 145:9

Artwork by: Marleyungaro

Homestudy update

2009-02-19T06:41:00.001-08:00

Time, again, to update!
We met with our social worker yesterday to formally update our homestudy. The original one was completed in 2006. It was interesting going over our old answers to questions, seeing how some things have changed and how some things have stayed the same.

Our agency made another trip to El Salvador last week and plans to head back down in March. More meetings, more conversations, more advocacy,...

¿Quién es Dios, si no el Señor?
¿Quién es la roca, si no nuestro Dios?
Salmos 18:31

Beginning Year Four

2009-01-08T08:49:00.000-08:00

This month marks the official end of the third year of our El Salvadoran international adoption process.

Here's a little more about what is happening in El Salvador these days...

According to El Salvadoran law, there is supposed to be a "Reunion Conjunta" every 45 days. This is when the government agency responsible for the adoptive families meets with the government agency responsible for the current adoptable children. Following this meeting is a "Comite" meeting. This is when the agencies officially make the referral decision to match families with children.
As far as we understand, the first "Reunion Conjunta" meeting of 2008 took place in September/October. This meeting only considered adoptive families from Spain. A second meeting did occur before the end of this past year and referrals were made. This was the first and only time in 2008 the process took place for US families. The process that is, by law, supposed to take place every 45 days.

The government agencies are under-staffed and handle all of the country's family/child issues.

There are over 150,000 orphans in El Salvador. There is much work to be done.

Agencies, such as ID4C are working along-side the government to assist in areas where they lack resources and personnel.

"Nothing in all creation can be hidden from God's sight." Hebrews 4:13

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-12T11:41:00.001-08:00

November

2008-11-20T06:48:00.000-08:00

National Adoption Month

Cry of the Orphan

Orphan's Ticket Home

2008-11-03T07:35:00.000-08:00

And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch out My hand...
Exodus 7:5

Two years ago...

2008-10-15T14:21:00.000-07:00

It's finished! The quilt I started...a while back.
But the important thing is that it turned out so very cozy and it is complete.
Next project?
You guessed it!

Independence Day

2008-09-15T14:59:00.000-07:00

Feliz Día de Independencia, El Salvador!

Central American countries received their independence from Spain in 1821.

(pictures from http://ayearinelsalvador.blogspot.com/2007/09/da-de-independencia.html)

Orphan's Ticket Home

2008-09-08T11:02:00.000-07:00

For those of you who supported the November 2007 fundraiser sale I participated in on behalf of orphan advocacy, this is where that money went. The first portion of this video shows what is being done in Ethiopia and what follows is a look at what is slowly taking place in El Salvador.

Fingerprints, take III

2008-08-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

Our fingerprints expired this month, so last week we headed to the new local USCIS office to get printed. These fingerprints are part of the documentation required by the US to give families permission to pursue adoption.
Just another part of the process.

27, 28, 29...THIRTY

2008-07-30T15:03:00.000-07:00

Any updates?
Hm.
Well, there is travel and change coming up this month. Our agency's president is taking another trip to El Salvador at the end of August. (Possibly August 23rd-25th.)
And our new family coordinator's last day of work at our agency is tomorrow.

We can now log month 30 of our process.

http://artemiaassociates.com/photogallery.html

Where can we go?

2008-06-30T07:46:00.000-07:00

You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You perceive my thoughts from afar.

You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me:
It is too high, I cannot attain it.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I look up to the heavens, You are there;
If I make my bed in the depths, You are there.

If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,"
Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day
Darkness and light are alike to You.

May is where we are

2008-05-31T13:05:00.000-07:00

I almost ran out of time! May is almost over! (I'm trying to at least post something every month so that each month will be included in the tally over there on the left.)

So, here we are. It is May 2008. This month marks 2 years that our dossier has been in the hands of the El Salvadoran government. We are still without any kind of time frame or time line. Our agency's recent trip to El Salvador did not yield any specifics in that area. However, they continue to express hopefulness as they have throughout the past two and a half years of our wait.

This week two friends held a prayer time in their home just for our family's adoption. Four families came to pray, along with 2 more families praying from their homes at the same time. It was really wonderful. We are so thankful for Community.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. Luke 11:29-30

AWAA goes to ES

2008-04-29T09:38:00.000-07:00

Brian Luwis, the CEO of our agency, is planning to travel to El Salvador next week. He'll be meeting with officials and checking on the progress of the program.

Without any more details to give, the best place I can direct you is the AWAA blog. A post should be coming soon with information about the upcoming trip.

"Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God."

Isaiah 41

27

2008-04-07T09:59:00.000-07:00

The number twenty-seven:

-A perfect cube.

-The number of completed piano concertos by Mozart.

-The age we were when we celebrated our 5th anniversary.

-The number of books in the New Testament.

-The number of words in the first stanza of "Tengo Una Munequita".

James 1:2

2008-03-14T13:21:00.000-07:00

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials...

James 1:2

26 months

2008-03-07T14:28:00.000-08:00

This is just another time-marker post.

Actually, some things have changed with our agency lately. Our family coordinator is leaving AWAA to go work for a sister organization called Identity for Children. We haven't heard from or talked to our new coordinator yet. Also, the local office for our agency is closing its doors. We'll still be served by them, but now those employees get to work from home. (Which we think is awesome.) The social worker we worked with for the past 2 years moved to Ethiopia back in February. We haven't talked with our new social worker yet either. It is strange that the people with whom we started our process are no longer around.

We're still here, though.

In quietness and trust is your strength.

(from Isaiah 30:15)

A picture is worth...

2008-02-07T16:27:00.000-08:00

Back when we submitted our dossier, we were asked to send along a couple of pictures of our family and our home. Specifically, we were to include one snapshot of our child's future room.

This is that picture:

However, twenty-one months later...

the scene looks a little different.

Want a picture that answers the constant question: "How's your adoption going?" This is it!

AWAA El Salvador program update

2008-01-29T06:35:00.000-08:00

Last week our agency's program coordinator for El Salvador travelled to the country to meet and discuss and figure. Due to the continuously increasing wait time that has been present since the opening of the program in 2006, AWAA will no longer be accepting application for new families after February.

In one sense, this comes as somewhat of a relief and in another sense, as not much of a surprise. For our family it doesn't change much about our status. And at this point we feel right about continuing in our wait. For new families it is a definitive statement about the current uncertainty of the details of this program (details that will, Lord willing, change). For years we've been fielding questions from interested families referred to us because of our "test family" status. Each time I respond, not knowing how to encourage someone towards a country that I love, but one that is no different from other programs at this time- long in the wait and unclear in the reasons for frequent changes. The hard part is that this country's program has been that way from the start.

El Salvador is in big time need of prayer. The doors could be opened up for the sake of the children. They really are there. Children are waiting! The main obstruction is the legal process: lack of paperwork, lack of aid ...

Why would you ever complain, O Jacob,
or, whine, Israel, saying, "God has lost track of me.
He doesn't care what happens to me"?
Don't you know anything? Haven't you been listening?
God doesn't come and go. God lasts.
He's Creator of all you can see or imagine.
He doesn't get tired out, doesn't pause to catch his breath.
And he knows everything, inside and out.

Isaiah 40:27-28

La casa de mi Padre

2008-01-17T12:56:00.000-08:00

This is yet another entry in the category "what to post when you have nothing about your personal process to post"...

Here's another organization working in El Salvador! - La Casa De Mi Padre.

From the looks of it, this ministry seems to be functioning in some ways similar to La Providencia. La Casa's website provides a little general information about El Salvador and has a video about the country, the ministry, and the children and families. I recommend it; it was great to watch. I guess I just love seeing the faces of the people there!

Matthew 25:40

The King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'

Agency trip

2008-01-11T13:43:00.001-08:00

Our agency coordinator will be taking a trip down to El Salvador the week after next. She will be participating in conversations and meetings during her quick trip.

We'll post an update, if any information is given to us. We are definitely looking forward to any information that may come.

Pray for productive meetings and good conversations and clear direction!

Advocacy for orphans in El Salvador

2008-01-08T14:30:00.000-08:00

"One of the greatest challenges orphans face is they do not have the necessary paperwork in order to be adopted."

"The most fundamental and important legal document in a child's life is a birth certificate....The child that is most at risk is the orphan, who has no chance of being adopted into a family without a birth certificate."

Below are two organizations advocating for orphans in El Salvador:

Identity for Children

An Orphan's Ticket Home

Two Years

2008-01-04T12:44:00.000-08:00

I was crying to the LORD with my voice,

And He answered me from His holy mountain.

Psalm 3:4

USCIS approval...again

2007-12-26T14:06:00.001-08:00

We recently got back from visiting family for Christmas. On the way into the house, I checked the mailbox filled with Christmas cards and letters (which I love getting!). Hidden in the stack was a letter with hand-written addressing from US Immigration. Inside the envelope was our updated approval notice.
This is the third big USCIS renewal piece we have had to complete in recent months. The first two being updated fingerprints and then an updated homestudy back in the fall. So for the mean time, we are up-to-date with our US paperwork.

Fall FUNdraiser Sale-Update

2007-12-02T16:42:00.000-08:00

Yes, that's cheesy- but we really did have a great time!
So this sale is really catching on! There were more sellers this go 'round than when the spring sale was held earlier in the year. It was definitely a success. Thanks to those who worked so hard to prepare the sale! Thanks to those who took the time to come shop to support us all and "to look after orphans and widows in their distress".

Here I am with a happy customer purchasing some urban hen wares.

Como se dice...?

2007-11-24T16:26:00.000-08:00

We have been trying to learn more Spanish over these past couple years. I did take 3 or 4 years in high school. However, my senior year highest level Spanish course was taught by the cheerleading coach. We spent most of the year making posters and spirit sticks.
So...ever since our trip to Honduras in 2oo5, we have slowly been practicing and learning. Here are some good resources we've found that I wanted to pass along:
1. Edufone is a great little site that my hsuband has explored more than I have, but I get the podcasts called "Finally Learn Spanish" and they are great.
2. Behind The Wheel Spanish is an excellent investment. We purchased those as soon as we got back from HO and have listened to them in the car during commutes and road trips. (It's also much cheaper than Rosetta Stone, which we read was not the greatest for learning Latin American Spanish.)
3. Native speaking friends. Thankfully, we have a couple of friends from Mexico, Honduras, and El Salvador that we're able to chat with every once in a while. It's a must. Plus it's fun! (and scary!)
4. La Charamusca is a podcast that I have listened to before. I think it is a talk radio show from El Salvador. Good to put on while cleaning around the house just to soak in the sounds of another language.

Vientidos

2007-11-05T08:05:00.000-08:00

We're still waiting to hear back from USCIS on our renewal approval. (We changed a couple of things about our request and will have to see what they approve.)
And basically that's about it for now.

22 months and counting...

"Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you."
1 Thessalonians 3:11

Fall Fundraiser Sale

2007-10-31T13:13:00.000-07:00

I'm going to be participating in a fundraiser sale for adoptive families coming up in November. You can find the when and where details here.
A percentage of the sales from my items will go to Orphan Advocates. (I've mentioned them before in a previous post.) "Orphan Advocates seeks to advocate on behalf of the international orphan for the opportunity to have a family, a home, an education, and a future." This organization will begin advancing their mission by providing assistance to El Salvador with the registration of orphans into the government's adoption system.
The lack of man-power is currently the number one wall between families and referrals from El Salvador!

Huevos and Hague

2007-10-23T12:12:00.000-07:00

The other morning for breakfast I had scrambled eggs, a tortilla, and hot coffee. While I was eating, I couldn't help but wonder if this was what our child was having for breakfast, too! You never know.

Today, I participated in a phone call with a woman from the Hague Convention accreditation group. She wished to speak with a waiting family as part of her site visit with our agency. It was a brief interview where she asked questions about the process we experienced with our agency so far. She also talked aside with me for a minute, giving me tips and encouragement about entering into parenthood with a toddler as our first child.
I recommend reading the "Information for Parents" PDF on the Hague site. I realized I didn't know much about it so I headed to the Department of State site and found this pamphlet. It's a good place to start in understanding the history and purpose of the Hague. Our agency has already made noticable changes on their web pages that discuss adoption from El Salvador. The Hague will be ratified in February of 2008, so adoption agencies are gearing up to comply. I know El Salvador is doing the same. They are working to ensure that the processes are in the best interest of the children there. We are definitely glad about that!

21 months

2007-10-16T08:27:00.001-07:00

A couple of things...

USCIS renewal
We mailed off our homestudy update and paperwork to our local USCIS office last week. On our end of things, the homestudy update was an easy process. Once we figured out what was required by the USCIS, which was difficult to discover, it was just a matter of making copies and mailing out the paperwork.

Orphan Advocate
This organization has been developed to offer help for orphans. One way they are doing this is by assisting El Salvador in the registration of children so that they may be adoptable. There's not much information available yet, because the organization is in the earliest stages. But the vision is awesome!
Because it is new, the site is not 100%, but their blog can be found here.

Timeline
We are in our 21st month of the process. Our paperwork has been in ES for 17 months. No update or news as to when our referral might come.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them— the LORD, who remains faithful forever.

He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry.

The LORD sets prisoners free, the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous.

The LORD watches over the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

The LORD reigns forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the LORD.

Psalm 146

Country notes

2007-09-24T14:26:00.000-07:00

If you were keeping track of interesting facts about your child's home country, and that country happened to be El Salvador, here's what you might take down for your notes:

1. Flag:

2. Size: Over 8,000 square miles (about the size of Massachusetts)

3. Capital: San Salvador (which means "The Savior")

4. Year of Constitution: 1983

5. Dates of Civil War: 1980-1992

6. Most recent volcanic erruption: 2005

7. President: Tony Saca

8. Awesome thing to see: El Trifinio National Park- the location where El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala all meet

9. Awesome thing to taste: PUPUSAS!

Anybody else got something to add?...

Updates and renewals

2007-09-03T11:07:00.001-07:00

It's time for us to update our homestudy and renew our I700 paperwork with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Our paperwork doesn't officially expire until November, but it was recommended that we get started with the renewal process considering the current long "lines" at USCIS. Updating the homestudy doesn't require a huge amount of work. It's simply communicating any changes in our family's information- new job, change of address, etc. I don't think much has changed for the Raines family, so this should be fairly straight forward.

And f0r those of you counting, current length of process: 20 months

How did we get here?

2007-08-08T19:44:00.000-07:00

I was recently looking back through some of our old posts and I came across one where I said I would write a little more about how we came to be waiting parents for a child from El Salvador. It's actually interesting timing for this post to take place. You see, two years ago this month we made a trip to Honduras to spend some time with a missionary and his family and participate in their amazing work. The ministry, called Providence World Ministries, specifically works with widows and orphans (although everyone who comes in contact with that place is affected). It was during our trip that we felt confirmation to go forward with what we'd been researching and thinking about for the past couple years- having children from Latin America.
When we came back from our trip, we connected with the only agency we knew to be working in this very difficult-to-adopt-from country. Turned out, we were a little too late. The agency was no long accepting any "test families" to complete what will be some of the first, agency regulated, Honduran adoptions. However, it was mentioned that El Salvador was opening up and we later learned that 1 final "test family" was needed for this new country. Sign us up.
That was back in January of 2006. (See my husband's inaugural post.)
So there you have it, for the most part. That's how we got here. Now, if we could only get there...

A little taste of El Salvador

2007-08-03T13:22:00.000-07:00

Last night, we had a cookout with a new friend (who is from El Salvador) and her parents and brother. The family members had flown in for the weekend to stay with their daughter here in Tennessee.
We had a blast practicing our Spanish. We found ourselves understanding quite a bit of what was spoken. For me, I'm just not able to say what I want to say as quickly as I want to say it. (That's probably not such a bad problem to have!) But it was good. It was a special thing for us. As we were leaving, Senora hugged me and with her sweet Spanish said, "I'll wait for you in El Salvador."

18 months

2007-07-24T13:27:00.000-07:00

We're hovering around the 18 month mark in our wait for our child. It is still unknown when we will receive our referral, so we continue to press on into the coming fall.
We have learned more about the actual process that is taking place in El Salvador. I've been updating what we've been doing during the wait. Time to talk about what's going on down there. (Now don't quote me on this but from what I've read, in combination with what we've been told by our agency, this is how things are happening.)
There are two major government agencies- The OPA (Oficina Para Adopciones/Office for Adoptions) and ISNA (The Salvadoran Institute for the Development of Children and Adolescents). The OPA investigates the circumstances of each child's situation and searches for relatives who may choose to care for the child. Once adoption is determined to be the best option for the child they are deemed "adoptable" by the OPA. This process can take up to 2 years. (A new law aimed at decreasing this time was passed very recently!) At this point, the child "goes before" a special matching committee. The committee reviews the files of a handful of nominated adoptive families and selects which family receives a referral for the child.
Our paperwork is currently in the hands of the OPA where they can nominate us at any time to go before the matching committee.

Psalm 9:10 And those who know Your name will put their trust in You.

Quilt for nino

2007-06-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

Just started working on the boy quilt made of greens and blues. Here's a sneak peak.

Quilting Bee

2007-06-04T09:44:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, some friends threw a quilting party for me! We all met together at Harriet's home and started quilting our girl blanket. Everyone added stitches and we finished about a quarter of the quilt. It looks so sweet!

Katie Jo, Beth, and Lindsey basting the quilt to the frame.

Jennifer and Michelle basting.

Melissa and Danielle carefully stitching away.

Fundraiser event

2007-05-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

I was able to participate in a fundraiser sale for adoptive families this weekend. I sold some handmade items from my business, urban hen. Thank you! Thank you! to everyone who came out.
There were 5 other families represented at the sale. We all had a great time. It's fun to prepare in sort of a different way for our children!

Thinking about God

2007-04-18T15:06:00.000-07:00

He touches the mountains, and they smoke Psalm 104:32 He scatters the frost like ashes Psalm 146:16 He leads forth a constellation in its season Job 38:32 He stretched out the Heavens by Himself Isaiah 44:24 He placed the sand as boundary for the sea Jeremiah 5:22

How precious are Your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!
Psalm 139:17

Yard Sale

2007-03-31T19:22:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a yard sale. The weather was beautiful! Thanks to the donations and help of friends, we were able to make some extra money to put towards the last leg of our adoption.
God is good to provide sweet, gracious friends through His church body. Thanks to everyone who gave!

Getting a little help

2007-03-23T11:32:00.000-07:00

This is Berkeley's own little way of helping us get things ready for our child.

(By warming the quilt squares before I sew them together?)

14 months

2007-03-06T14:57:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since we last posted. Although nothing has really happened, we seemed over due for something of an update.

We are still looking forward to expecting a referral sometime this summer. Now that the weather is turning to spring, it is feeling much closer. We did find out that once we do get our referral we will probably travel to El Salvador within 1 and 3 months. I have a hunch that once we get that picture, it is going to be a whirlwind of a wait! Right now we are simply reading a lot, thinking a lot, and praying a lot. In the next couple of weeks we plan to start clearing out our child's room a little more and begin to live with the idea of it being another person's room. We've also been listening to more Spanish podcasts and cd's. So with that, Hasta luego!

Cena de El Salvador

2007-01-22T18:51:00.000-08:00

This past Saturday, we had an El Salvadoran dinner party. I attempted to make some authentic food. It all turned out to be pretty tasty!

This is the beginning stage of the semita. The recipe called for making "worms" to go on top of the dessert. (I've gotten pretty good at this skill from teaching preschool.)

Dessert!

Friends...with clean plates!

Dossier Approval

2007-01-18T15:11:00.000-08:00

Our dossier has made it all the way through the approval process in El Salvador. We just got a call yesterday from our coordinator informing us of this milestone. There are several "gates" each dossier must pass through until it is finally approved. Once approved, it gets passed on to the office that assigns referrals to families. That's where we are! It's SO exciting!

(<- These are our "We're so excited! What are we doing!" faces from yesterday.)

What does this mean?
We have NO idea! Being a test family, we are one of the first 2 or 3 families our agency has ever brought this far, and so there is no history to compare our process against. There are no guarantees; there are no norms.
So...we wait. We wait some more, but with a new excitement and more wonder at God's timing and control. He speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets (Psalm 50:1) and...
He picks out our child.

Un ano

2007-01-10T13:24:00.000-08:00

1 year ago today we were approved for our adoption through AWAA!
We were talking this morning about how it has really gone by quickly. It's easy to think: "We've been waiting for ONE whole year and what do have to show for it?" But it has been such a good waiting time for us, so far. And so we were quick to remember how gracious God has been to build our family as HE wills.

And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My hope is in You.
Psalm 39:7

Good news of great joy

2006-12-11T09:51:00.000-08:00

'Tis the season to be...thinking about adoption. Huh?
Well, if you're waiting for your child I guess any season is the season to be thinking about it. But today I was prompted to think about it while I was cleaning up listening to some music. The song details the lineage of Christ from Abraham through David through Eleazer through Joseph to Jesus. Well, it got me thinking about the fact that Jesus is first the Son of God, then became the son of Joseph. And He was given Joseph and Mary's family line in order to fulfill the prophecy of the Old Testament. Not that He was biologically born of these parents, but of the Holy Spirit, but that He was adopted into this family and given the lineage that God used to fulfill his Word. God deemed that their family became His family. It's pretty neat. It really just got me thinking (and thanking) furthur about the beauty of Jesus that He came that we should be called Children of God. John 3:1-3

A night of Hope

2006-11-13T06:10:00.000-08:00

Saturday we were able to go to a Shaohannah's Hope fundraiser dinner. Our friends, the H family, were unable to attend the night and they so very sweetly invited us to go in their place. Katie Jo's heart was happy for us to get to go and be encouraged by people who love adoption.
It was such a neat event! We got to hear from Steven Curtis Chapman, Geoff Moore, Howard Dayton, and Kirk Cameron (yes, Growing Pains!).
We got to talk with another woman who has been trying to adopt two girls from El Salvador, but is not sure if it is going to happen. We were encouraged by her and by others we met in this wait for our children.

It was actually November of last year when we went to the agency meeting, hoping to hear that we could get started on our adoption from Honduras, only to find out that God had prepared a different path for us.

The LORD sat as King at the flood;
Yes, the LORD sits as King forever.
The LORD will give strength to His people;
The LORD will bless His people with peace.
Psalm 29:10-11

Espera

2006-10-23T13:09:00.000-07:00

Espera means "waiting" in Spanish. And that's what we're doing around here. I don't have any news to give or updates to share. I just wanted to write something. Maybe because I have the day off, or maybe because my husband has class tonight and I'm not working on dinner, or maybe just because waiting is hard today. So...I thought for a minute about anything that hasn't been recorded and then remembered that I'm working on a quilt! I actually started cutting out the squares this summer, but I haven't pieced it together yet. Right now I have approximately 213 squares. Lots of greens that I love! I decided last week that I'd try and embroider on some of the squares. So far I have a lower-case "r" cross stitched on one. And am working on 3 flowers (designed by my friend Wendy!) on another. I'm planning to work on quilting it over my Christmas break. I also want to have it up for a while so that when friends come to visit they can add a stitch or two of their own to our girl's quilt.
Esperanza means "hope".
Sure enough, it looks a lot like that "waiting" word.

News from the country

2006-10-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

Our family coordinator, Christi, returned from a great trip to ES. She sent us an email with a little bit of information about what she got to do and see. The pictures are beautiful. ES is so much like Honduras- I felt right at home looking at her photos. While there, Christi got to visit three orphanages and said their facilities were wonderful and caretakers were loving. She also met with 2 of the 4 judges from the family court and their response to US adoption was great. These women told Christi it was a blessing to their country and children. They told her that the court hearing was the fun and exciting part; nothing we would need to be nervous about.
She stayed in the Princess Hilton San Salvador. Looks nice! Looks almost too nice. It's possible that we would stay here, or somewhere similar, when we go down. So, without knowing when that will be...we atleast have a glimpse of what is to come!

9 month update

2006-09-21T15:48:00.000-07:00

We might have some pictures of what things look like in El Salvador in a couple of weeks. Our family coordinator from AWAA sent an email the other day saying that she is going to be traveling to the country next week. As head of the Latin American adoptions for our agency, she will be visiting several offices, meeting with some of the adoption judges, and possibly spending time in a few of the orphanages. She said that she'd try to send pictures and an update sometime next week, which I will share here. It's so exciting to know that she will soon have a broader understanding of what is a very new process. More to come later...

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1

Tunes in 2007?

2006-08-27T18:50:00.000-07:00

It looks like we're going to be holding off on the rescheduling of our benefit concert until next spring. We think it best to re-evaluate some things and see what we can work out for next spring/summer.
Just so you know, we still haven't heard anything from the ES government/OPA. I've been talking with another "mother in waiting" who is also a guinea pig for ES with our agency. It has been good to connect with someone in a similar boat. Who knows...maybe we will all receive some sort of update on our progress before the new year. (Is it already getting close to that season of cooler weather? Wow!)

Day 303

2006-08-03T18:16:00.000-07:00

Oops! I'm supposed to be counting in months now, right? Well, then actually that makes it a week shy of 7 months since our application was accepted by America World. ES government has had our paperwork for a little over 2 months. There hasn't been much news. Last week we had to re-do one more document, which was actually pretty nice. To know that they are already looking over our dossier can be exciting. It can also be quite confusing. Wonder what they'll be working on the remaining 11 or 12 months of our wait?
I found a couple of pages with recetas from El Salvador. We actually ate pupusas while in Honduras.My husband loves them! Maybe I'll just have another Latin American dinner night and try those out...

Benefit Concert- POSTPONED

2006-07-29T10:52:00.000-07:00

This morning we woke up to some much-needed, God-pleasing rain and a weather radar indicating a huge front was moving over Nashville. We decided to cancel the concert for tonight and reschedule for another day. All of the musicians were so understanding and ready to jump back into it...whenever that will be. It's been so good to plan this- seeing people offer their time and posessions and ideas and help- that I kind of can't wait to do it again!
We'll keep you posted. concert.draines.com.

Psalm135: 6-7
The LORD does whatever pleases him,
in the heavens and on the earth,
in the seas and all their depths.

He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
he sends lightning with the rain
and brings out the wind from his storehouses.

July 29th Benefit Concert

2006-07-14T06:47:00.000-07:00

Check out concert.draines.com to find out more!
Proceeds from the concert will help us with some of the upcoming adoption fees as well as support La Providencia. We are excited to partner with this ministry because, in a way, it was through our relationsip with them that we came to adopt our girl. (I'll be sure to write more about that in a later post.)

Timeline update

2006-07-06T14:45:00.000-07:00

Through an email from our ES family coordinator we found out that the current wait time for a referral has shifted from 10 months to 12-14 months. She also added that it could change again, to increase or decrease, along our journey.
A friend commented on the day count I've been keeping. Maybe I should go ahead and change that to months...or weeks. ? Hm. Either way you count it, we are praying for that unexplainable peace and the wisdom for waiting rightly.

The Weight of All Things

2006-06-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

The Weight of All Things
by: Sandra Benitez

I was searching our public library again for books pertaining to El Salvador. I actually found a few this time, even though they're all by the same author. Sandra Benitez. Although she wasn't actually born there, she did live most of her life in El Salvador. I haven't been that big of a reader in my adult life (whenever that started) but recently I've been influenced by a certain husband to pick up the practice. I'm liking it so far. So back to this book- I really enjoyed it. Even though it is fiction it is based on 2 historical events. One is the assassination of the Archbishop Oscar Romero which I'm finding through other resources is a huge event in ES history. There are tons of paintings and writings about his death. The other event the book builds its story around is the civil war that took place in the country from the 1980's-1990's. PBS has a short piece about this. (As always, read with caution.)
The whole time I'm reading this book I'm painting scenes in my mind using material from old-timey pictures and then I remember that this stuff happened not 20 years ago. I was born. I was more than a baby. It's just wild to imagine that there are so many different worlds in our world.

Dossier is in ES

2006-06-17T04:09:00.000-07:00

Our family coordinator from AWAA sent us an email yesterday letting us know that the OPA (Oficinia Para Adopciones-yes, it is what it sounds like) is reviewing our dossier. Actually, the only reason we heard something was because we needed to fix something, but that just meant printing off one document and taking it through "the paperwork process".
"The paperwork process": This includes the steps necessary for all of our documents to go through before they are sent to ES.
Step 1: notarize the document
Step 2: certify the notary through the appropriate county's clerk office
Step 3: apostille the document at the Tennessee Department of State
Step 4: copy all pieces of paper (x 3)
Step 5: FedEx original and 2 copies to AWAA
So...we did all this yesterday afternoon and it should be at our agency on Monday and our coordinator will look it over and get it to the OPA. At that point, they'll pick back up on the process they take each family through. What is that process you ask?
First, the document is translated. Then, it is submited to the OPA. Next, it goes to the Procurador and Director of ISNA for approval. Finally, the file is passed to the Comite de Asignacion. That is who will be assigning us our referral!
So, I guess this is really happening, right?
Day 166

ES: Open to the public!

2006-06-02T12:48:00.000-07:00

Originally uploaded by misoponia.

We just recieved an email from our agency AWAA
stating that they are accepting applications from adoptive families for El Salvador as well as Kazakhstan! I checked and it's not on the website as of yet, but you can call their main office at 1.800.429.3369 with any questions.
Dios es bueno!

And.....here we wait!

2006-05-29T06:57:00.000-07:00

As of Friday I think we've mailed off the last piece of paperwork for a while. Our dossier is being sent to be translated on Tuesday. They say it takes about a week or so. There's really nothing we expect we'll have to be doing for the next few months. It's somewhat of a nice feeling. We're going to concentrate on getting the fundraiser concert together for July 29th.

Here are some of the pictures we sent with our dossier...

Dossier is DONE!

2006-05-11T17:24:00.000-07:00

Day 129 So we're finished with our dossier. We just got out psychological evaluation back a couple of days ago and are now just waiting for that I700 form from the government. We sent it off 41 days ago and they say to allow 45 days to process so we're hoping it will be in the mail next week. Once it is in hand, we'll be heading out to the local government offices to have each piece of paper apostilled, make a bunch of copies, and then mail it out to our family coordinator. We also have to get some family pictures made this weekend to add to our packet. One that is requested is a photo of our baby's room, which feels kind of strange to start thinking about. We don't really want to start filling it with baby stuff quite yet. There's really nothing in there for her yet. It's full of the 'whatever' junk that just eventually finds it's way to the most un-used portion of your house. Anyway...I'll try and post some of the pictures we take!
Oh, more cool news is that AWAA is offering ESalvador to the public starting in June!

Psych Eval

2006-04-13T14:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are required to get a psychological evaluation completed as part of our dossier requirements. We actually just went on Monday, April 10th and met with "Dr. Steve" for about 2 hours. It really wasn't bad at all. The good doctor did a fine job of dialoging with us rather than just interviewing for facts to write in a character sketch. After our little talk, Drew and I sat down to a 570-some true/false question personality test and a bubble sheet. That took about 2 hours to complete. We went back this past Monday, the 17th and did IQ testing. I thought it was pretty fun. Hopefully we'll get the results of everything at the end of this week. I probably won't be posting those, though. So...at this point, we're just waiting to get our USCIS approval. Day 101
We are planning to do the fundraiser concert on Saturday, July 29th in Franklin, TN!!

USCIS Fingerprints

2006-03-30T11:27:00.000-08:00

Today we got our fingerprints done for CIS. My husband picked up our notarized, completed homestudy from our social worker and we rode together to Metro Center.

This means that we now will be waiting for the Memphis office to process our prints and send us a receipt. Then we're on our way to finishing up our dossier! Day 80

Day 51

2006-03-01T14:10:00.000-08:00

Well, as of last week we thought we'd be done with our homestudy this week. But...it's going to end up being in a few weeks. We were supposed to have our final interview/meeting with our social worker today, but that has been cancelled and rescheduled for March 15 or 16. It's kind of hard waiting. Yeah. It just seems like this will push everything back 2 or 3 more weeks. I'm having to remind my impatience that "The LORD will accomplish what concerns me." Psalm 138:8
We're waiting on a few more pieces of paperwork to come in and then we will be finished. Really, the only thing we'll have left is our psychological evaluation. Sweet! (And I finally found somebody that will do it!) Day 51

USCIS form

2006-02-25T05:25:00.000-08:00

We just got our U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services letter back. This is required before getting fingerprints which are required to adopt a child into the US. We mailed off for it on January 31st, so that means it took a little less than 1 month to process. NOW...we will be finishing up collecting our home study paperwork, probably by the end of next week. We have met individually with our social worker to discuss our autobiographies. This was fun for both of us. It was neat to have somebody's undivided attention while being invited to tell the story of our lives. Next Tuesday, she will be coming to our house to complete the final meeting with us as a family. Our social worker will then write up our home study document and we'll get fingerprinted and begin our first wait. We have been working on our adoption for 47 days now and things have been fairly easy to complete. This has been a great blessing for us, being so busy in our schedules right now.
The LORD performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed.
Psalm 103:6