Adoption Update #7

 Wow, two posts within a week. It must be lockdown in New Zealand!

A few things have happened on the adoption front since June when I last updated you on Bunny related news. In July I received NOC (a No objection Certificate) from India which means that their central adoption agency (CARA) have no objection to the match. I have to say that the number of adoption acronyms almost exceeds that of teaching which is quite unbelievable. Receiving NOC was another big step especially as I heard, not long after, that CARA was currently only working with about 4 people (for all adoptions in the whole country and internationally) as the other employees' work agreements had not been renewed yet and so therefore they were unable to go to work. I am not sure how long I waited for NOC, as I don't know when the request went in, but I know that some people have waited over 8 months. My wait definitely wasn't that long as the earliest my agency could have requested it was at the end of May. 

NOC was a big step that was ticked off, but more importantly, it allowed me to contact Bunny's SAA (specialist adoption agency, another acronym). I was hoping that this would happen before August 22nd as this is Bunny's birthday, but I didn't think that would be the case as timing in India can be out of whack at the best of times and even more so when the country is suffering through a pandemic. I was lucky then to be able to ask her SAA if I could do a video call with her on her birthday and perhaps every month or so after that. This was a big ask, and some SAA's don't let you video call at all or not until you have passed in the Indian courts. The SAA replied agreeing that a video call for her birthday would be a great idea and perhaps we could do video calls every fortnight! I was over the moon. Her SAA have been very helpful and supportive. They really want to see the children in their care safe in families. You would hope that they are all like this but unfortunately some take a long time to get things done and others don't provide a good quality of care. I praise God for the people who are caring for my little girl while we are waiting.

When I had been to visit the Notary he had suggested that I get in contact with a man who is from India and very active in the Indian community in Christchurch. After finally gathering the courage I contacted him and asked if he knew anyone who spoke Marathi (Bunny's language). He speaks Marathi! We have since video called (due to lockdown) and discussed some Marathi culture including dance, food and what the Marathi community looks like in Christchurch. It was exciting to hear that there is a strong Marathi community with over 150 members and a Marathi dance group in our city.

On Sunday August 22nd I joined the rest of my bubble for a 4th birthday party for Bunny. There was a cake, lots of yummy treats and even some birthday presents. 

My video call set up.

 I then stayed up late (thank goodness for lockdown) to have a three-way WhatsApp with Bunny's SAA director, who was out of town and Bunny with her other careers. It was an incredible 30 minutes as I was able to watch her have a birthday cake (they celebrate all the children's birthdays), the children sang to her, she played with some of the toys I had bought her and we talked to each other a little bit. At one point in the video she was holding the soft toy cat that I had bought her from Indian Amazon and said, "Bella, Bella." She had called her cat Bella after receiving a photobook from me and seeing Bella in it. I knew Bella was inside so I went and got her to join the WhatsApp conversation. Bunny thought this was great. Bella... not so much and deserted the conversation quite quickly after a few low growls. It was lovely to see Bunny laughing and playing with her friends and careers during the video call. I look forward to many more.

This week I received the news from her SAA that we are registered in the Indian court. Our first court date is set for 20 September. Court is an interesting process that I don't know much about. What I do know is that anything can happen. Some court cases can be over in 2 months. Some can take over a year and require PAPs (Potential Adoptive Parents) traveling to India to move things along. There have also been many judges passing away from Covid19. I'm praying that our judge stays healthy and motivated.

Some prayer points are: Praying for the continued health and safety of Bunny. That she would continue to receive good care and be protected from contracting Covid19. Praying for those that are looking after Bunny, that God would protect them and their families from Covid and bless them for the important work that they do and how well they do it. Pray for the Judge in our case, that they would stay healthy and be motivated to let us pass court in good time. Pray for continued funds for traveling to India, MIQ and taking time off to care for Bunny.

Thank you for your prayers and support. I couldn't walk this journey without this awesome community that has supported us so well. Bunny and I are very blessed to have you all. xx