Dossier is at AWAA!

(Above: pictures of our dossier!....
BTW - Kristin Rogers (http://rogersadoptionstory.blogspot.com/), I sure wish I could take pics like you do. Our family photo pages can't hold a candle to yours! You're amazing! If I knew the date of our toddler's future wedding I'd already be booking you!)

So - after receiving our 171 on Tuesday, we decided to drive to Austin Wednesday to get our remaining dossier bundle state certified. When we arrived in Austin it took all of 15 minutes to get the bundle certified. Billy said, "Is that it? We drove all the way to Austin for a gold stamp?"
HAHA! It's so much more than that, baby! It is the end of 6 months of paperwork! Glory Hallelujah!!

We drove back to San Antonio and I reviewed the completed dossier and it's 2 sets of copies over and over again. When I went in to UPS to mail it I was so nervous! I just knew I was forgetting something or who knows what... It's hard to explain. Anyway - I'm standing there talking with the UPS lady about how important all this paperwork is and she's typing away getting all the info into the computer. Next thing I know, she calls out to someone else working there and says, "what kind of package do you call this?" He answered and she said, "it's not here on the screen". "Yes, it is" the other worker says as he comes over to point it out. "Oh, there it is" she says and she continues saying "I'VE NEVER SHIPPED THIS KIND OF PACKAGE BEFORE." WHAT????? - This is not what you want to hear when you're shipping 6 months of labor off to another State. She goes on to check off some boxes on the paper and asks me the questions that apply: 1. is anything breakable? no - and 2. is this item replaceable? She started to mark yes and I said "NO!" check "NO"! No UPS person out there needs to think this is replaceable. Let them feel the weight of this important delivery. You lose it, buster, you will be in BIG TROUBLE!

Well, in all honestly I didn't go into all that with her, but I did have her check "no". Okay - so it is replaceable, I guess...but I think I'd lose my mind trying to do that all over again and I'd certainly be out some major cash.... so I'm sticking with "no".

I haven't heard from AWAA that the dossier is in hand, but the tracking number says "delivered". I should hear something tomorrow. Oh - and if all the paperwork looks good and gets authenticated without any issues, our paperwork will be DTE (on it's way to Ethiopia) on Friday, June 13!

To give you an idea of how much longer USCIS took this time around - when we adopted from China we started our paperwork at the same time - first of January. With the China adoption we had to have all our paperwork authenticated with the US State Department and Chinese Embassy on our own and still I had our dossier in to AWAA and being shipped to China by June 10. This time around I don't have to do the authentication (AWAA will do that) and my paperwork is just now arriving in AWAA's hands. However - I guess none of that matters, becaues I will be "in line" for our baby girl exactly where God wants me in line. That works for me. I trust Him! He gave us beautiful Libby last time around. I can't wait to discover who Aria is and how precious a gift God designed for our family!

Thanks for keepin' up!
Cindy