Still Grinning Like a Fool

I have been in constant contact this week with the attorneys in Guatemala regarding Ahren's case. They are working through our entire dossier and telling me what needs to be updated, what is fine, etc. The next step is to sign a new Power of Attorney using the correct spelling of his name. This POA allows the attorneys to work on the adoption for us. We also have a form that we need to send that is needed so they can apply for DNA testing. In Guat adoptions, all birth mothers and children undergo DNA tests to prove that that mother has the right to relinquish that child. It's sad but true that not all that long ago many children were abducted and sold for adoption so the U.S. instituted this step to prevent that. It's a simple test done from a swab of the inside of the cheek. But, although the test itself is simple, the process of getting it done is ridiculously complex (as are all parts of a Guat adoption!) First, the attorney has to stand in line at the Embassy to get permission to do the test. They only grant a certain number each day, so if they don't get there super early, they get turned away. Then, once they have permission, they try and schedule the test, bringing in the child and the birth mother at the same time. This can be tricky since the birth mother may live many hours away and have no transportation. Or, like our case, it has been so long since the child was born locating the birth mother may be a problem. One further complicating factor is that 70% of women in Guatemala are illiterate, so they can't just send a notice requesting them to come in if the birth mother cannot read and understand it.
Even knowing that I have more paperchasing to do, and that getting the DNA accomplished could be a big problem, I am still over the moon with happiness. It is now POSSIBLE to move ahead. For almost 18 months we have been loving and planning for this little boy. That whole time he was not legally available to adopt yet because he did not have a valid birth certificate. There are a lot of other complicating factors but I won't go into them. We are focusing on the future and the hurdles we still face.

Update on Levi: Still no bath. I tried bribing him (oh shush, I am desperate!) with new Spiderman bath bubbles and a Spiderman towel, but he didn't go for it. Chris was going to get in with him, but he didn't want that either. So this morning I had a long talk with him.

Me: Levi, why do you scream when it's time for a bath? Are you afraid of the tub?

Levi: I'm scared. There's gudders in the tub.

Me: Gudders? What are gudders?

Levi: They squirt water at your head. I don't like them.

Me: Oh, the squirters shoot water at your head. Did you know your bathtub does not have squirters?

L: (looking like he is thinking this over) Hmmmmm.

Me: Nope, no squirters there. Not even a button to push.

L: Really?

Me: Tonight I will show you. You can check it out for yourself. No squirters.

L: Okay!

I plan on having this conversation again this evening, followed by a thorough inspection of the tubs. Keep your fingers crossed. Maybe, just maybe, we can get back into our normal routine. The bath is an important part of the nightly ritual and is much needed for helping him to wind down, in addition to the de-stinkification reasons.

Oh, and cheer camp? He loves it. All the older girls fight over who gets to carry him around and who he gets to sit with. Today they had a huge waterballoon fight and that's all he could talk about since yesterday. He was pretty timid at the beginning of the week (like not telling the instructor when he had to use the bathroom...) but he is coming out of his shell quite nicely. And boy can he shake his bootie!! He has another boy in his group and they hang together. I may sign him up for the second session which is at the beginning of August, and sign him up for tot tumbling too.