Not only are we (relatively) happy adoptive parents, and not only do I maintain this here blog (if what I do can be described by a word as serious-sounding as "maintain"), but My Laudable Spouse also works in an adoption-related field. She probably hears more of these stories than most.

The trying stories. The uncomfortable stories.

Not every trying adoption situation winds up as idyllic as this one with the ponies and all. Sometimes things don't work out, and people wind up in a situation like this one. That's... more

So, I'm still waiting for a C.A. (consular appointment).

Instead of the usual 36-72-hour turnaround the consulate has been experiencing after getting the T.A. (travel approval) from the Chinese government, it's turned into more like a week, they say. (Or, more properly, our agency says they say.)

So I still don't know when exactly we're leaving for China.

I'm guessing this is another result of a greater number of Americans adopting from China, but who knows.

We wait.

Three things about the place where I live, ease of adoptions, and the culture of diversity.

Sun-Sentinel reports: No China Consulate for South Florida...Yet.

This one is interesting -- right now, the only Chinese consulates in the U.S. are in Houston, D.C., New York and the two big cities in California. If you remember that MLA map showing where "Chinese-speaking"... more

The Hague:

OK, because of distractions (as previously noted), this will be a briefish overview of this commentary on this mammoth document of international law.

Ethica has some problems with the way the Hague Conventions have been written into the regulations in the United States:

In several critical areas of child and family protection, the regulations may actually... more

I was hoping to write a post about Ethicanet's response to the US signing onto the Hague's new adoption guidelines, but My Diligent Spouse just called me to say our TA (Travel Approval) has arrived at our agency.

So, China has said "Red Rover, Red Rover, send grant on over!" and the agency has now faxed the TA back to the US Consulate, who will then, sometime over the next 48-72 hours, give us an appointment wherein we will take an oath of naturalization on behalf of a small human being in our arms. At least he won't have to learn all the stuff my parents did when they got naturalized.... more

This is the hyperlinked version of a letter I just sent a possible traveling companion.

Thus far, it looks like my upcoming itinerary will run something like this:

Day 1-2: Depart West Coast US, land in Hong Kong two days later (crossing the date line). Day 3: Spend a night in Hong Kong being bleary and wiggy. Next day, wander around a bit. Day 4: Pop over to ... more

First, My Attentive Spouse points out that, regarding the prior rumor-mongering, 1. the TAs are somewhat more independent of the Consulate appointment (they're issued by the CCAA, who send them to the American agency, who then fax them to the U.S. Consulate to set up the appointment) and 2. the Consulate has finished moving off Shamian Island. I had a vague memory this was taking place, but sort of lost track. I think they're still just across the Pearl River.

She also notes that during the April Trade Fair, it's not unheard of for adopting families to stay "out in the burbs" (whatever that means in relation to Guangzhou). And that she looked up rates at the Victory Hotel. Normally... more

Undisclosed sources reveal an untold story: whispers abound in the proverbial grapevine of a second flight departing from the CCAA laden with referral folders. This bird is slated for takeoff sometime next week, possibly as early as Wednesday. These folders could be replacements for the ones that were lost (and now, as far as we know, are mostly found).

Or it could be that because they were sending those, the Matching Room Mystics decided to send along a few other new files that happened to already have been touched by the Magic Stapler.... more

Latest referral rumors:

Of the batch of 60-something referrals that were misplaced somewhere between the CCAA office in China and the adoption agencies (and eagerly waiting parents-to-be) here in the United States, the courier service found 38 files in a warehouse in Ohio. Apparently, a box containing two plastic packages had burst open, and one of the packages tumbled out. Or maybe a disgruntled courier employee was trying to outdo Ricky Jay's card-throwing skills and practicing with large manila folders to master a new level of awesome ability. It's hard to tell at this point.

This gives... more

My Knowledgable Spouse reports that not everyone was as lucky as we were today -- apparently many of The Stork packages haven't wound up where they're supposed to be. It *seems* like DHL misplaced a fat packet of referrals.

Whether or not this was passive-aggressive punishment for all the anxious parents-to-be haranguing the tracking information center ("IS IT HERE YET? IS IT HERE YET? IS IT HERE YET?") is not entirely clear. However, The recently cited Traveling Daughters Family are among the affected. I can't imagine the anticipation, and I don't think my cardiologist would want me to try.

Hold... more