advise?

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Kim, I am assuming that your agency does NOT do the homestudy for you, right? Some agencies do. I do know of someone who does homestudies for Guat adoptions, she is in St. Louis. Very nice, but maybe not on the "speedy" side. But if you told her of your urgency, she may pick it up a bit to get it done faster since you have your application in for INS. Be careful about your agency selection, and see if they have a "plan B" for you in case Guat adoptions are not heading in a good direction. It may be a lengthly process ahead. It may be a good idea to keep an open mind about other countries for adoption. I can tell you that once INS gets your homestudy with your application, you will get an appointment slip mailed to you, indicating when you need to be present for your fingerprinting. That usually shows up a few weeks after they recieve your application/homestudy. They usually give you a two week notice. After the fingerprints are done, the results usually are mailed within 3 weeks, but that can vary. We got ours within a two week time period. It comes in the mail, sent to you. This and many documents are made into your dossier, which is authenitcated by the secretary of state office, and then sent to the Guat consulate office in Chicago, and then finally to Guat to be translated. Most agencies like to wait to give referrals until your dossier is in Guat, with your INS approval. Once you get your referral on a baby, more paperwork will need to be done and sent to Guat, and then the real wait begins. There is a lot of paperchasing to do in the begining, but it can be done quickly! A good agency will help you get organized for both your homestudy and dossier. Get a binder and get the checklist of documents you need. It can be overwhelming your first time around, but there is a lot of support out here, and you can always find help. Good luck and I hope this helps a little!

Kathi, Thanks, No my agency hasnt said anything about a plan b. She keeps telling me that she will keep me updated on everything thats going on down there and the effects it will have on adoptions. My agency is in another state so some of the requirements are a bit different from Missouri based HS Agencies I have noticed they need or want different things. So finding a HS is kinda up to us. I never dreamed of all the paper chasing that has to be done. It is a bit overwhelming. But I know what the end result is going to be so I keep pushing forward with a smile.

I grew up near Florissant and know the area well, now we're in OFallon, we adopted our daughter, Skylar from Guatemala. She came home last April. Kathi is right about a Plan B but we have to keep hoping they keep adoptions open and hopefully improve ! I would just keep calling my agency or emailing them , asking for weekly if not daily updates of the goings on in Guatemala , especially with President Bush being there next week. It is all so overwhelming and I hope you have a smooth and speedy adoption journey. ~Kelly

Well my agency I chose for our HS finally contacted us. wheww I was starting to sweat bullets :) We should be receiving our HS packet by the end of the week. thank goodness. The director was out of town on another HS. Does anyone know if you have already filed your I600A how long do you have to send in the HS afterwards? thats the only thing thats holding up it getting processed. I wanted to thank everyone who shared their advise with us. it was very helpful.

Kelly, I used to live in O'fallon and moved here to Florissant. I grew up around O'fallon/St.Charles area. Isnt that odd :) thanks for your helpful advise. Any advise is is well needed.

Well we chose to change HS agencies, the other was getting no where FAST. it had been over 2 weeks since we filled out the app and still no packet. So I was referred to another agency and that SW is WONDERFUL!!! Thanks Brandee!!!!