Pictures from Pick Up Trip

With everything we have had going on, I had not had a chance to post our pick up pictures. Here is a link to them. Enjoy!

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?Uc=u7nq020.837rloj4&Uy=-2kc8o&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&mode=fromshare&conn_speed=1

First Voss Family Picture!

Here is our first shot together as a family on our flight back to the US taken courtesy of our Spirit Air flight attendant, Bill.

We.Are.Back.In.The.USA!

Well, the Voss family is now complete. We touched down yesterday in Ft. Lauderdale at 11:20am EST. We cannot be happier about finally having our son home and in time for Christmas. He truly is a dream come true and the best Christmas present EVER. I will upload more pictures once we are back in Jacksonville next week. But I will post this one of Gabriel at the Westin pool on Wednesday.

Thank you to everyone who prayed for us during this long journey. We truly appreciate them from the bottom of our hearts. And now the true adventure begins - PARENTHOOD. And we simply cannot wait!

Update from Guate City!

I just wanted to update everyone that we made it safely to Guatemala City and picked up Gabriel on Monday morning - for good! We are elated to have him with us and that tomorrow we don't have to give him back as we had done two times before. It still seems very much unreal to us that he will be coming home with us tomorrow. God indeed is very good. We went for Embassy day yesterday and everything went very smoothly. Today, his visa is being delivered to the hotel and tomorrow, we are off to the good ole' USA. Gabriel automatically becomes a US citizen once we touch down.

We will be in Miami for a couple of days, but as soon as I get back to Jax, I will upload his pictures.

Thank you for everything! Without you guys, this would not have been possible.

GC Bound!

Well, everyone, we are Guate City bound today!! I will try and blog a little bit while we are there. But don't worry, there will be a ton of pictures once we get back! I simply cannot believe we are on our way to picking up our son and bringing him home - for good!

Thank you for all your prayers, thoughts, well wishes, emails, and calls during this journey. They have absolutely meant the world to me.

Next time you see pictures, Gabriel will be in our arms!

We Got Pink!!!

That's right! At 3:13pm EST, I received the email from the American Embassy in Guate informing us that Gabriel received pink! Next week, we will he will be placed in our arms forever and we will be bringing our sweet, little boy HOME!

DNA 1 and DNA 2

I thought it would be cute to show a picture of what Gabriel looked like when he had his DNA taken out at the beginning of our adoption journey vs how he looks for his 2nd DNA test this past Tuesday. In the first picture he was a day shy of 1 month; in the second picture he was 6 months (and 7 days) old.

And The Countdown For Pink Begins.......

We found out today that Gabriel had his 2nd DNA test done on Tuesday, the 14th. From that point on we begin the two week countdown to PINK! So most likely we will receive pink the final week in November! Pink, for those that don't recall, is the US Embassy's notice to adoptive parents of their Embassy appointment to finalize the adoption paperwork and get the baby's passport and visa to travel home!

This 2nd DNA test began recently in August to aid in eliminating any issues with regards to switching babies. Our agency is incredibly reputable so we never feared that problem, but every baby adopted from Guatemala now has to have this test done. This is a good procedure to have in place - to be able to compare the baby's 1st DNA test with his 2nd DNA test.

Can we say we are the LEAST bit EXCITED?????????

Please Watch This

Please watch this video.

http://www.wisn.com/video/14602976/index.html

Two families from my agency (www.forthischild.org) were interviewed regarding their personal adoption journeys and they bravely told their story. We continue to pray that a grandfather clause is enacted for in process families to be able to finish the adoptions they began.

In the meantime, we keep Baby Nora and Baby Isabella in our prayers; that they may be reunited with their forever families very, very soon.

Good News x Two!

Today we found out that Gabriel's birth certificate has been issued with our last name! Funny enough they added my maiden name as his 2nd last name, but that is very traditional in the Latin culture. Now we can add him to our health insurance policy.

On another good note, I was checking my credit card statement online and noticed that we were charged for his 2nd DNA test today!! So hopefully his DNA will be taken soon and the results can be sent to the US Embassy in Guatemala quickly so that they can issue pink!!!

Steps left:

* The new birth certificate and the entire adoption file of documents are sent for translation from Spanish to English.
*After translation, the final file is submitted to the Embassy for pink slip and the lawyer is given a second DNA authorization slip (US office processes payment with US Lab and faxes confirmations to Guatemala lab).
*The child is brought into the Guatemala lab for a second DNA test. The Guatemala lab sends samples that same day to the US lab.
*When the Embassy receives the results from the lab in the U.S. indicating a match with the first DNA test, it issues the pink slip (probably within 14 days of the second test).
* Pink slip is picked up at 3:30pm - embassy appointment day and time will be printed on the slip. FTC sends Pink Slip to you by email and you book your flights.

*After receiving pink slip and before Embassy Day, Guatemala office will prepare the package for Embassy Doctor visit and make the appointment based on availability of the Embassy Doctor.
*You come for Embassy interview appointment (M, T, W, or Fri, currently one to two weeks after pink)
*Next business day – Visa is ready (3:00 pm M-Th; 11:00 am Fri. – FTC will pick this up for you)
*Next Day – you can fly home

New Pair of Kicks

As you all know, I love baby shoes and my mom found these and well, she just had to get them for lil' G. Aren't they *just* adorable?

November Doctor's Visit

Gabriel went for his doctor's visit on Wednesday. He is up to 14lbs, 1oz.

I picked up that cutie out for him at Target. I think it looks just adorable on him.

Shoes

Oh how I love baby shoes! I adore baby clothes too, but shoes always get me! Check out the three pairs I bought for little G. I can't decide which are the cutest, but when I saw the black ones, I had to get them because they are just like his daddy's.

Bittersweet

Oh what a bittersweet moment I experienced this afternoon.

We found out today at 5:07pm EST that Gabriel's birth mother signed off for the fourth and final time. Upon finding out, I started sobbing uncontrollably. I am beyond elated that he is officially our son, but my heart hurts for her tonight. She will never be far from my thoughts and one day I will tell Gabriel what an ultimate sacrifice she did for him ~ to have a better life. I knew this journey would not be easy for me. I have experienced a myriad of emotions on this rollercoaster ride especially since my birth mother gave me the same gift almost thirty years ago. I don't expect a lot of people to understand my feelings, but that is quite alright. My son and I already have things in common ~ a birth mother that loved us enough to make this sacrifice and adoptive parents to carry that journey out with unconditional love.

Happy 6 - Month - a - Birthday!!

Our little guy turns 6 months old today!!! We miss him terribly, but know that we will be on our pick up trip very, very soon!

Guatemalan Elections

Here's an interesting article on today's elections in Guatemala that my friend Beth sent me.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071104/ts_nm/guatemala_election_dc

What Needs To Happen Next?

Ok, for those wondering the order of things that still need to take place - here you go:

• Birthmother signs final decree (final time she signs off)


• Birth certificate issued (From Maza for those wondering - with our last name!)


• Passport issued


• Orange (request for DNA to be done)


• DNA taken


• Results to US Embassy


• Pink (Embassy appointment is issued)


• Buy plane tickets and pack our bags to go pick him up!!

Surprise Visit Pictures!

Well, today we received my favorite pictures - surprise visit ones. Isn't he just adorable!? I can't wait to bring him home for good. My sweet little man...

Here are the rest of the pictures: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/slideshow?a=67b0de21b35574b50534&sid=8CYuHDRqxbsi0&auto=1&idx=-1&m=1&d=1194712873756

Almost 24 hours ago...

It has been almost 24 hours since we got THE CALL and I am still having a hard time believing we are truly OUT of PGN. Thankfully I have my caller id to rely on that reminds me, YES, this did actually happen.

For those concerned as to why I would put my agency's number on my blog, need not worry. This is their main number that can be found on any internet search or their main home page. Besides, why not spread the word that we have the world's best agency???

Hmmm....need I say anything else?

Well, the reality hasn't sunk in just yet that our son is coming home soon. Considering I went to sleep at around 11pm and woke up at 4am, I am simply running on pure adrenaline right now. I still have so many people left to call and emails to answer.

I had seen this adorable onesie at Kohl's a couple weeks back, but didn't want to purchase it just yet. At 9am this morning, I was at Kohl's buying the last one left. I can't wait to see Gabriel wearing it.

My BEST Christmas present EVER.

7:12pm EST

At 7:12pm EST, our lives changed FOREVER. We got THE CALL. THE CALL that told us we ARE OUT OF PGN. That's right, we are officially Gabriel's parents. We are still in complete disbelief that in 7 weeks and 5 days our file was approved. Utter disbelief.

Thank you, Lord. We are in awe of you and the mercy you have bestowed on us.

What does this mean?

That in about 5 - 6 weeks, our sweet little boy IS COMING HOME!

October Social Pictures!

This morning we received Gabriel's October social visit pictures. Thankfully we got these to help us through our wait in PGN. Thank you for continuously keeping us in your prayers. We greatly appreciate them.

Pictures: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYuHDRqxbsh4

A Call for More Help - Pressure On UNICEF

We still have not received any sort of uncanned response from UNICEF as to their stance on everything that is going on. Our agency has asked us to spread the word and continue to pressure UNICEF until they quit sending us canned email responses that are so vague that no one understands which side they stand on and start to tell us where THEY REALLY STAND.

Here is the contact information so that you can begin emailing them.

Anne Veneman aveneman@unicef.org
Patrick McCormick pmccormick@unicef.org
Manuel Manrique mmanrique@unicef.org
Kate Donovan kdonovan@unicef.org
Max Gebhardt mgebhardt@unicefusa.org
Corina Peralta cperalta@unicef.org
Ben Amich bamick@unicefusa.org


Here is the letter to cut and paste.

Dear Mr. Gebhardt:

Why won’t UNICEF just say precisely what it is doing in Guatemala right now and what it has done in the past few months?

(1) UNICEF purports to disavow responsibility for Guatemalan adoption policy by claiming that it is up to the Guatemalan government to decide what “in process” means. Yet, it is UNICEF's involvement that raised the issue. Guatemalan law has always been clear that an adoption is “in process” upon registration of a power of attorney with the appropriate Guatemalan ministry. It was only after UNICEF and the Hague Permanent Bureau and the U.S. Department of State got involved with “advising Guatemala on Hague compliance” that the meaning of “in process” became unclear. UNICEF may not make the final call, but UNICEF certainly bears responsibility for this even being an issue.

(2) UNICEF's definition of “due process” begs several questions: What does “verification of the origin of the child” mean? Aren’t two DNA tests, one near the beginning of the process and one at the end, sufficient to “verify” the “origin” of a child? What does “informed consent of the biological mother” mean? Aren’t at least four opportunities during the process for the birth mother to declare her intent to parent the child sufficient to establish consent? Isn’t a report by a family court social worker, prepared after a birth mother is interviewed about the adoption process and the meaning of her decision to relinquish, enough to establish informed consent? Most of all, how is it "due process" for the rules to change midstream?

(3) I believe, after educating myself on the adoption process and on Guatemala generally, that the Ortega bill is a disaster and that bill #3635 is better. Why does UNICEF refuse to even acknowledge 3635? What is the basis for the claim that 3635 is not Hague compliant? Which provisions fall short? What is missing that must be there? Until this is explained by those who claim it (UNICEF, the Hague Permanent Bureau, the Department of State), I am persuaded by Focus on Adoption's analysis of this matter - see www.focusonadoption.com/pdfs/FOA%203635%20Support.pdf. FOA has published what the treaty requires, what 3635 does, and how 3635 complies with the treaty. UNICEF, on the other hand, is choosing to refuse to state publicly what it is doing in Guatemala and why it thinks only 3217 is Hague compliant but not 3635.

(4) Please explain the following remark and what UNICEF believe it means, precisely, for in-process cases: “UNICEF believes that the current legislation includes not only the law which allows private notarial adoptions, but also includes the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Integrated Protection Law of Guatemala.”

[Insert your signature]

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7 Weeks Today

Today marks seven weeks that our file entered PGN. I pray we get our OUT call very soon! We just want to hear the very good news that our file has been approved and we are officially Gabriel's parents.

I greatly appreciate everyone's prayers and thoughts during this time. We thank you for your continued support during this difficult time. It's all a waiting game...

Could this be the week we get the call???

Everyone Rejoices A Little More!

Three more families from my agency found out today they got out at 7 weeks and x days, previo free!!! This is amazing! That makes it 6 seven-weekers in one week!!!! We are truly rejoicing with them!