A Meeting with the Lawyer

We had high hopes of getting a lot accomplished today but unfortunately that didn't happen. This morning Quincy picked up Shane and off they headed to Dr. Jabour's office (the pediatrician) to pick up the Medical Report he filled out for Aria's adoption. Their next stop was the Child Protection Agency to drop off the Medical Report and pick up Aria's birth certificate so we could apply for her Guyanese passport.

When Shane arrived, Ms. Jardine said she'd make a call to the passport office first to make sure we had everything we needed. She was told that because we don't currently have guardianship of Aria, we couldn't apply for her passport. This was a huge setback as we were hoping the passport could be processed while we wait for guardianship.

Our lawyer, Ms. Amin, was planning to finally meet with us this afternoon. She was supposed to meet us on Thursday, then rescheduled for Friday, and then pushed back our meeting until this afternoon. Everything that happens in the Guyana courts depends on her so we really needed this meeting to happen. Thankfully, she made it to our hotel to discuss our options. Unfortunately, we were left quite confused as Ms. Amin is saying one thing and the Child Protection Agency another. However, Ms. Amin seems to know exactly what she is doing and has all the right connections to get our case moving.

Ms. Amin believes we have a better chance of completing the adoption in a couple months rather than us getting Aria a U. S. Medical Visa which is not what the Child Protection Agency recommended. But regardless, Ms. Amin will be pursuing both avenues so we can have the best chance of getting Aria home as soon as possible. Ms. Amin asked if we could extend our stay a few days as she thinks there's a chance she could get us into court on Friday to file the 'First Order'. This is the beginning of the court process and would officially give the Child Protection Agency legal guardianship of Aria. The entire court process is still a mystery so we are just taking it one step at a time, but from my current understanding, after the CPA is appointed legal guardian, they in turn recommend us to the courts as Aria's final guardian. The process seems strange and inefficient, but it is what it is.

As for Aria, she was even more smiley and giggly today. She is such a sweet little pea. She loves back rubs and bum pats. She loves to be carried and snuggled. She's becoming quite a mama's girl. I can't get enough of her big brown eyes and adorable grin.

Please keep sending prayers our way as we continue to ensure Aria gets the medical care she needs and navigate the legal system to get Aria home quickly.