Why Russia?

So we are in the process of adopting two children from Russia.  We were recently asked the question of "aren't there any children in the United States?" when we mentioned that we are adopting from Russia.  Why Russia?  Aren’t there children in the U.S. that need families?  Yes.  There are many children in the U.S. that need families.  There are many children in other countries that need families.  You can choose to adopt through foster care.  You can choose to adopt an infant in the U.S. (referred to as “domestic adoption”) and you can choose to adopt children from other countries (“international adoption”).  So which one is better?  None.  They are all great choices.  It’s up to each family to decide what avenue they choose to use.

So why did we choose to adopt from another country?  Well, after months of research we felt drawn to the international program over the others.  We liked the finality of the process.  We liked the fact that we who are fortunate to live in this great country could give children opportunities that they may never have in other countries.  We liked the fact that the Russian program allows us to adopt two children at a time.  We carefully prayed about it and felt that this is what we are supposed to do.

So, what is the adoption process?  The process is lengthy (and costly).  The general steps are:

• Find an agency
• Have a "home study" completed by a local social worker
• Submit the approved home study and lots of other paperwork in a package (which is called a “dossier”) that is sent to Russia
• Wait for a referral (which is when the agency staff finds available children that fit your application)
• Travel to Russia to meet the children
• Travel back home to gather more paperwork and wait to take the second trip to Russia to go to court and finalize the adoption

We're working with an agency that has a local office in our area.  We've completed the Home Study and submission of all our paperwork (for now) and we are currently in the process of waiting for a referral.  The paperwork we submitted is for 2 children (siblings) under 4 years old.  We found out in May that our dossier has been officially registered in Russia.  So the approximate time frame that we may receive a referral is January - April 2012.  The wait could be shorter or longer.

While we are waitng we will:  be busy working, finish up some projects around the house, get ready in any way we can for our future children (like painting bedrooms, looking for used furniture, etc.), save money, apply for grants and look for ways to finance the adoption, be involved in our church's ministries, learn some Russian, and read recommended books regarding parenting and adoption.

And the wait begins.....