Laura Sits Up!!

Today was an exciting day. Not only did we have great tummy-time practice...Laura sat up on her own today!! She is still a little wobbly, but she can sit unassisted for several minutes. She likes the new freedom this gives her as she is now able to play with bigger toys that have more fun things on them! Other than that, we don't have much to report about today. So, I thought I would take this opportunity to explain why we are in Colombia so long for the adoption process.

Colombia is a country that doesn't start the adoption process until the adoptive parents get to the country. Once you receive the child, you have an interview with the Defender of Minors. This person is like a social services representative. That interview is what gets the judicial process rolling. Each family is assigned to a court...some are slow, some are fast, and some just are normal. We have learned we didn't pull a fast court, but we don't know anything else at this point. In this first court, the judge has to review your file and approve it. Sometimes he (or she) asks questions of your lawyer before he does this approval. By law, the judge has 10 business days in which to sign. Next, the file is presented again to the Defender of Minors for approval. This time they have 5 days to sign. The case now enters a second court (but it is really the same as the first court). At this point, the judge again reviews the case (having 10 business days) and issues the final decree, called Sentencia. This is a very exciting day for adoptive families because it means the child is finally legally part of their family. After Sentencia is signed, it goes back to the Defender of Minors where they have 5 days to sign. Usually the Defender of Minors signs the Sentencia the same day the judge signs. After Sentencia, things get pretty busy. The following 3-4 days are filled with trips to the notary, a visit with the US Embassy doctor, and several visits to the US Embassy for passports and visas for the child. Once all that is done, it is time to come home!!

I say all that to say this...we have had our interview with the Defender of Minors and we think we are still waiting on the first judge to review and sign our file. It has potentially been 7 business days since the judge got our papers, so hopefully we will hear something this week. Even if we don't get Sentencia before Christmas, it would be nice to at least get through the 1st court. That would mean we only have about 2-3 weeks left after Christmas judges break. Hope this all makes sense...and enjoy the pictures!!