New Court Process

We have been eagerly awaiting news of the new family court decision in Korea as to how they are going to implement a new adoption law put in place last August. Unfortunately there has yet to be an American family travel to pick up their child since the new law went into effect.  It is very sad and disappointing for everyone involved. The family court judges have gone back and forth as to how they wanted to proceed. Currently, the judges are requiring adoptive families to appear in court. In order to do this we must travel to Seoul, meet our child, wait a few days, go to court for 15 minutes, then one of two things: 1) go home and wait to travel back to Korea then spend another week in country or 2) wait in Korea for all the paperwork to be completed. (probably about a month).  Financially it makes more sense to stay in Korea plus this gives us a wonderful opportunity to experience our children's birth culture on a whole new level compared to our short one week trip last year with Evan.  We can make the most of it and be able to share that experience with Evan and one day tell baby sister all about it.

The first families scheduled for court are May 31st. We will be in prayer that this will be a smooth process and these families will be united with their children and the travel/paperwork process will go quickly!  

We still have no idea when we will travel but we still hope before the end of the year.  Please keep us in your prayers as we continue to plan for the extended travel, preparing Evan, and baby sister's adjustment.

We are looking at some short-term apartment rentals, different kid-friendly cultural adventures to plan for, and trying to plan for the things at home to run smoothly while we are gone (Going to miss our little firecracker Mocha)

yes, this is her halloween costume, don't judge me people; I have a toddler that wanted to play dress up!

I have included some of our travel pics from last year to get us excited about traveling again!  Just picture us with a toddler this year!  yikes!!

Q & A and how you can specifically pray

Since our New Years announcement we have had several questions, as you might imagine. Some wonderful friends have also asked, how can they  specifically pray for our family during this process. I thought I would attempt to answer some of those.

- How long will it take?
   Oh how I wish I knew this answer.  We are trying to keep our expectations low or realistic and guessing we will travel before she is two. One thing are well aware of is that with International Adoption there are no guarantees or exact timeline.  The Lord has blessed us with previous trials that have taught us some degree of patience. I pray that keeping up with Evan will keep our minds occupied and time will go a little easier than the first time! (one can hope!)
**Please pray that our minds will be at peace and Baby Mun will remain healthy and continue with appropriate growth and development.

- When is her birthday?
  March 13, 2012!  

- Why is Baby Mun at a different agency in Korea? (different than Evan)
   South Korea has 4 major adoption/social welfare agencies (I think 4).  In the past few years the agencies have been overwhelmed with babies and birth moms. We do not know if our birth mom attempted to go back to ESWS (where Evan started out) or if she decided to go a different route.  She does know that Evan was adopted in America, but other than that we do not know how much she knows.  We have sent letters and photos and continue to do so.  
** Please pray that God would bless our children's birth mother and He would comfort her during this difficult time. Pray that social and cultural constraints will change so that birth mothers would have the support to raise their children when possible.

- What is with this 'new law' and how does it affect you?
  South Korea has changed how the do adoptions, both domestic and international. The law started in August, I am not sure if much has happened since then, from what I understand the process is at a standstill.  All adoptions now need to go through the family court system. This adds a step and currently I am not sure if there is a real plan how to implement this change, what the court will be looking for (any other documents that haven't already been submitted when we accepted baby's referral - it is a huge amount of paperwork). Another step is the birth mother now has to officially/publicly relinquish her baby to the family court. Unfortunately, because of this new step many birth mothers are uneasy with the public relinquishment and are abandoning their babies to the agency but not making an adoption plan.  Because of this new law these children are not eligible for adoption (domestically or internationally) and will remain a ward of the state. Perfect children unable to be adopted, I am absolutely heartbroken!

**Pray for changes to be made that when a birth family is unable to care for their children that families (domestic or internationally) will step in and adopt these children. Pray that birth families will surround birth moms with comfort and support. Pray for wisdom and swiftness for the court administrators and other adoption officials involved.  


- What does Evan think about getting a sister?
ummm he's 2, not much going on in his world other than 'ME ME ME ME'  We showed him a photo, but really he doesn't care about photos unless he knows who it is in the photo. He doesn't understand the word 'sister', but of course the word 'baby,' but in his mind any baby = jealousy. Good thing we have a while to work on that.
** Evan (and us) is in for a real shock, pray that we will have wisdom, patience, and kindness in preparing him for a sister (and international travel). Pray that our transition home with Baby Mun will be smooth and Evan will enjoy having a sister and not too annoyed that our attention will be significantly shifted. The transition home with Evan was incredibly difficult and I am so thankful Dan was home all summer with me; pray for God's perfect timing and we are able to adjust appropriately.

- Is Baby Mun in a foster home?
  Yes, A lovely foster family with two grown sons, They have been fostering children for 20 years.
**Pray for perseverance and continued blessing for our foster family. It was very difficult for Evan's wonderful Foster family to let go of him after so long, Mrs. Choi's love helped Evan become such a great kid! Pray for our new foster family, for their health, energy, and continued loving care of our baby girl.