TIMELINE


11/13/2011--Began Home Study with Lifeline
12/31/2011--Applied with ICIA
1/1/2012--India re-opens for adoptions
1/30/2012--Individual Home Study Interviews
2/18/2012--Saw first pictures of A and S. Requested file.
3/5/2012--Final Home Study Interview
3/6/2012--Found out age of children. Said no to referral because they were too old. Did not view file.
3/8/2012--FBI came back!
3/11/2012--Can't stop thinking about A and S. Requested their file. Received a video!
3/13/2012--Receive full referrals. Request a test for A.
5/19/2012--Project 5X7 Silent Auction Fundraiser
5/25/2012--Moved!
6/21/2012--Home Study inspection for new house
7/3/2012--Test results arrive at the ashram.
7/13/2012--We receive test results which are worthless.
7/18/2012--Felt led to accept referral.
7/19/2012--We verbally accept the referral of A and S.
7/20/2012--Home Study is complete! Mailed Home Study and Dossiers for legalization. Mailed off USCIS I-800A Forms.
8/18/2012--Received receipt in mail from USCIS. Waiting for fingerprinting appointment...9/10/12.
9/1/2012--Registered in lnd!a!
9/10/2012--USCIS Biometric Fingerprints for I-800A.
9/14/2012--Received I-797, Notice of Action from USCIS.
9/26/2012--Received ORIGINAL referrals in the mail. Officially signed our names across the photo of their faces and other pages to indicate that we accept and want them in our family.
9/28/2012--Both Hands / House of Heroes Project--Day One.
9/29/2012--Both Hands / House of Heroes Project--Day Two.
WAITED from 9/14-11/2 for orphanage to send forms to agency.
11/5/2012--Mailed off USCIS 800 Forms.
11/9/2012--Cases sent to SARA for ARC Recommendation Certificate/State Approval.
11/25/2012--Received I-797C Notice of Receipt from the lockbox in Texas. This letter will simply state that your application was received! It was marked 11/8/2012.
12/3/2012--Received Request For Additional Evidence from USCIS for S's case...missing Form I-864...delays. Found out that orphanage has forwarded our paperwork to SARA for state approval. (Paperwork went to SARA on 11/9/2012.)
12/4/2012--12/10/2012--Left messages with USCIS, but no results.
12/11/2012--Resubmitted S's form to USCIS via mail.
12/25/2012--Merry Christmas! I-800 Approvals for A and S were waiting in our mailbox! The I-800's had been approved on 12/21/2012.
1/7/2013--Received notification by mail that S's I-800 Approval had been sent to the Embassy in Delhi, lndia on 1/3/2013. Hoping the notification for A arrives soon!
1/11/2013--Received visa/passport photos for A and S from orphanage/agency.
1/14/2013--Received notification by mail that A's I-800 Approval had been sent to the Embassy in D31h1, lnd!a on 1/4/2013.
1/15/2013--Received the email from the U.S. Embassy in Delhi that they had received the I-800 Approval and for us to fill out the DS-230 forms to email back to them along the A and S's passport photos. Emailed everything back that evening.
1/17/2013--Confirmation email that embassy had received our DS-230 and passport photos via email. Will notify us as soon as Article 5 has been signed.
1/22/2013--Received Article 5 Letter for A and S. Embassy forwarded letter to CARA and we forwarded it to our agency. Now waiting for NOC!
2/1/2013--Found out that NOC is NOT our next step. Our paperwork is still with the state (SARA) waiting for approval. Waiting for the ARC (Adoption Recommendation Committee) to issue the RC (Recommendation Certificate).
3/14/2013--Still in SARA...
4/9/2013--Receive copy of Medical Certificates of children conducted by Civil Surgeon dated 3/12/2013.
6/18/2013--CARA receives the Recommendation Certificate from SARA/ARC. NOW we wait for NOC! CARA requests that we sign our names on the children's medical forms from the Civil Surgeon to be sent to the ashram.
7/19/2013--False alarm: NOW SARA/ARC signs Recommendation Certificate.
7/22/2013--Copy of Recommendation Certificate arrives at ashram.Now we wait for NOC!
7/23/2013--We received copies of ARC Recommendation Certificates via email. We get word that ARC Recommendation Certificates are sent to CARA.
7/24/2013--CARA issues NOC!!!
7/30/2013--Copy of the NOC arrives at the ashram.
7/31/2013--NOC!!! We received word that we have received the No Objection Certificate from CARA and that it has been delivered to the orphanage! Document is dated 7/30/2013 and was approved on 7/24/2013.
8/13/2013--Our paperwork is delivered and filed in local court.
8/14/2013--Our case is registered in local court and is visible on the local court website. Now we wait for a court date.
9/10/2013--Our case has been registered for four weeks with no court date scheduled. Found out the ICSW (Indian Council For Social Welfare) has to submit a paper to the court before hearings can be scheduled, but the woman in charge is on vacation. More waiting...
9/18/2013--Delivered gifts for A and S to the Parkisons and drove them to the ATL airport.
9/20/2013--The Parkisons unite with their daughter at the orphanage, meet our children, and hand-deliver our gifts to them! New pictures and video!!!
9/21/2013--We found out that our first court date has been scheduled for Monday, 9/23/2013. We have also been changed to another court with the same judge that heard the Parkison's case!
9/23/2013--Hearing #1...We were 20th on the list.
9/24/2013--Discovered that we are on the Daily Cause List for another hearing on Wednesday, 9/25/2013. This may mean that our case was not heard on Monday, or it could be our second hearing. Waiting to find out. This time, we are #9 on the list.
9/25/2013--Hearing #2
10/1/2013--Hearing #3. I got to FaceTime with the children via the Parkisons!
10/2/2013--Mailed off the applications for our travel visas.
10/3/2013--Found out that we have been assigned to a new judge and that the third hearing was not the last hearing.
10/15/2013--Hearing #4
10/17/2013--Court website updated to show that our case had been disposed...meaning we PASSED COURT! Our agency confirmed that the adoption is "final."
10/18/2013--Travel visas arrive.
10/19/2013--Written court orders were completed.
10/23/2013--We received a copy of the written court orders! Passports applied for this week.
11/13/2013--Official 2 year mark of our adoption process. Got news that the passports are still not ready. Found out from other families that passports were probably not applied for until yesterday, 11/12/2013. Passports may be ready Nov. 30th or Dec. 1st. Later in the day, found out passports may be ready on Nov. 23rd.
11/15/2013--Received approval to pick up the children from the orphanage on Nov. 29th! Booked our flights!
11/26/2013--Flew to India!
11/28/2013--Arrived in India!  GOTCHA DAY!  Thanksgiving Day!
12/5/2013--Arrived in America!!!
NEXT: TRAVEL!

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