Paper chase update

Nothing that's huge news to tell, but I figured that I'd update anyway.  We're plugging away at all the very exciting (sarcasm) details involved with the paper process:

• 8 passport photos each - check.
• Employment and income verification letter received and notarized - check.
• Bank letter (notarized) with 3 months of statements - check.
• Labs drawn for HIV, hepatitis & syphillis - check.
• Mark's birth certificate mailed back to CA for authentication - check.
• Additional birth certificates ordered - check.
• Marriage license found - check.
• Photos of home and family printed, assembled onto pages, and color copied - check.
• Copies done of passports and drivers licenses - check.
• Mobile notary with acceptable expiration found (that wasn't easy), hired, and met at my doctor's office to notarize her signature with her letter clearing my health - check.
• TB test documented for Mark and performed for me - check.
• Legal information researched, immigration office called to consult with, and information gathered to decide on which USCIS paperwork to use for our situation - check.
• Doctor letters verifying each of our kids' health received - check.
• Letters of recommendation from 4 families requested - check.
• Letter requested from health insurance company verifying that our future child will have coverage immediately upon us taking custody (I had to be pushy/insistent that a document of credible coverage wasn't sufficient).  It has taken weeks to get the letter written and is currently "under review" before it can be sent out to us - almost a check.
• Last 3 years of taxes copied - check.
• Notarized local police clearance - check.
• Judicial and reciprocal power of attorney letters typed, but not yet notarized.

So!  As you can see we've been busy trying to attack this paperwork.  Mark took a fasting blood test today that his doctor required in conjunction with his physical that is scheduled this week.  Mark found a notary in his office building that is willing to come to his doctor appointment to notarize his doctor's signature on his medical letter Friday also.  Once that is done and we finally receive the letter from our health insurance company then our home study documents will be complete and our case worker can finish writing up our home study!

Once our home study is complete we can turn in our I-800a application to immigration.  They will send us an assigned date for more fingerprinting and once that is done we'll wait on their favorable determination letter.  That is what will be holding up our dossier at that point since we are close to having all the other documents that we need for that to be complete.

Once our dossier is complete it will have to be authenticated and translated before it can be sent to Haiti.  So that's where we are in the process!  We're definitely in the hurry up and wait part of the adoption process.  We feel like we're frantically hurrying to get together all the paperwork we need...so that we can start waiting :)