Home Study Approved!

This past week we were informed that our home study has been approved!  This means that the first phase of our adoption process is complete.  They said it would take about six months to complete the home study, and it was exactly that.  We started at the beginning of the year, and here, at the end of June, we are finally approved and finished.

We will now move onto phase two:  the dossier.  The dossier phase, we have been told, will take between 60 to 90 days.  They said that it will be somewhat repetitive of the home study phase in that it will be another pile of paperwork.  This is the phase where we will get her the necessary official documents for customs, immigration, and to be approved to adopt from our target country, Albania.  

Each new phase brings a new cost.  The dossier phase is $5,500, which we just paid out of savings so that we can continue through the process.  For those who don't know, I will be running 4 marathons in 5 days in September to help raise some of the money for our adoption expenses.  We estimate that the entire process will cost us about $45,000.  That's a heafty price tag, but it will be worth it when we bring Sissy home.  If you are interested in learning more about the fundraiser, please visit our fundraising website at:  http://anython.com/running-for-sissy-simon.

We thank you for your continued prayer and support as we work to bring Sissy home.