Today Mandy and I had our court date with the Ethiopian government. There were so many things told to us by our adoption agency of how to prepare for the meeting but nothing could truly prepare you for what we experienced. This morning we woke up around 6am and got all dressed up in our one nice outfit.
Over the last couple days of playing with our son it was very tough for me thinking about our court date and what if we didn't pass. Not passing meant not being with our son for even longer. The stress was really working overtime in my mind.
We got picked up by our driver and drove to our adoption agency where we met with the lawyer that goes with all the adopting families. He sat down with us and briefed us on how the meeting would go. He told us all the potential questions the judge could ask. He emphasized that there were no wrong answers and the court date is more to have us physically in Ethiopia and answering the most important question, "do you want to adopt your son?" Even though there are no wrong answers all I could think about at that moment was, "what if I say something stupid or give the first 'wrong' answer?" Mandy laughed at me when I told her I was thinking this.
After meeting at the adoption agency office we drove to where court was. We walked up about 4 flights of stairs and into a hot waiting room with about 10 other families that were adopting. In addition to these families were also Ethiopian families that were relinquishing their child. This part of the process was heartbreaking as we waited. You could see the look of excitement and happiness in the faces of those adopting while on the flip side you saw sadness and hearts breaking from the Ethiopian families. There were two different worlds being thrust into the same room to experience very different emotions. We quietly waited there for about 30 minutes as families were being called in. There was no rhyme or reason as to who got called in. I tried to stay calm but was very nervous (Mandy was fine). Finally the child care center name where our son is was called which meant it was our turn. Our lawyer walked into the room and then quickly whisked us in with him. We handed our passports to the judge's assistant and sat down on the chairs at the back of the room.
The room was a very long room and the judge was almost 20 feet away from us. She started to ask us many of the questions that we were told back at the adoption agency which we answered with a smile. After about 4-5 questions the judge told us that this decision is final and is irrevocable if we decide to continue. If we decide to continue and then back out later that means that our son could never be adopted by another family. She asked us, "are you willing to accept responsibility for this boy and be his adoptive parents?" We of course said, "YES!" She responded, "well he is yours!" I smiled instantly and wanted to run across the room and high five the judge and dance on her desk. I'm guessing she wouldn't have liked that. We left the room politely saying "thank you" in Amharic.
A wave of stress lifted off of my shoulders as we heard her say those words. He is ours and no one can take that away from us! Now we are one step closer to bringing our son home!
Over the last couple days of playing with our son it was very tough for me thinking about our court date and what if we didn't pass. Not passing meant not being with our son for even longer. The stress was really working overtime in my mind.
We got picked up by our driver and drove to our adoption agency where we met with the lawyer that goes with all the adopting families. He sat down with us and briefed us on how the meeting would go. He told us all the potential questions the judge could ask. He emphasized that there were no wrong answers and the court date is more to have us physically in Ethiopia and answering the most important question, "do you want to adopt your son?" Even though there are no wrong answers all I could think about at that moment was, "what if I say something stupid or give the first 'wrong' answer?" Mandy laughed at me when I told her I was thinking this.
After meeting at the adoption agency office we drove to where court was. We walked up about 4 flights of stairs and into a hot waiting room with about 10 other families that were adopting. In addition to these families were also Ethiopian families that were relinquishing their child. This part of the process was heartbreaking as we waited. You could see the look of excitement and happiness in the faces of those adopting while on the flip side you saw sadness and hearts breaking from the Ethiopian families. There were two different worlds being thrust into the same room to experience very different emotions. We quietly waited there for about 30 minutes as families were being called in. There was no rhyme or reason as to who got called in. I tried to stay calm but was very nervous (Mandy was fine). Finally the child care center name where our son is was called which meant it was our turn. Our lawyer walked into the room and then quickly whisked us in with him. We handed our passports to the judge's assistant and sat down on the chairs at the back of the room.
The room was a very long room and the judge was almost 20 feet away from us. She started to ask us many of the questions that we were told back at the adoption agency which we answered with a smile. After about 4-5 questions the judge told us that this decision is final and is irrevocable if we decide to continue. If we decide to continue and then back out later that means that our son could never be adopted by another family. She asked us, "are you willing to accept responsibility for this boy and be his adoptive parents?" We of course said, "YES!" She responded, "well he is yours!" I smiled instantly and wanted to run across the room and high five the judge and dance on her desk. I'm guessing she wouldn't have liked that. We left the room politely saying "thank you" in Amharic.
A wave of stress lifted off of my shoulders as we heard her say those words. He is ours and no one can take that away from us! Now we are one step closer to bringing our son home!
Yay! Hooray. Great post.
ReplyDeleteCongrats Mike and Mandy!
ReplyDeleteI love all these amazing updates! Keep them coming!
ReplyDeleteThese last couple of posts have been so descriptive that I feel like I was standing next to you and Mandy. Thanks for taking the time to let all of us feel your happiness and also your sadness or pain. I love you both.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing Mike and Mandy! I thought I smelled burning eucalyptus earlier today and I instantly thought of you both and the amazing country you're in. I'm praying for your time there and cannot wait to meet your son!
ReplyDeleteMelissa
Hi Again, So glad you passed court. I hope you can get custody of your son very soon and your enjoying your time in Addis. Love to see the new updates thank you for sharing.
ReplyDelete