THANKFUL for some pretty exciting adoption NEWS!

I love this time of year as our full turkey tummies turn towards wintery weather and the nostalgia that Christmas season beckons.  During the holidays I oscillate somewhere between feeling immense sorrow for the 'missing my mama' size hole in my heart to utter joy as I watch the magic of Christmas unfold through the eyes of our three children.  As we sat in church this morning my heart skipped a beat in awe of the huge flakes that floated softly through the air.  It wasn't more than ten or twenty minutes, but it seemed a total indulgence to behold this tiny slice of beauty that is rare in Portland and on the 1st of December!  It didn't stick, but that's ok with me... I know it's blanketing the mountains and that is enough!

Ok, so get to it already... what's the news you might ask?  Well it's really two fold.  First, we officially passed our homestudy!  Our social worked called us tonight to congratulate us.  She is still working on the final draft of the document, but she is approving us to adopt from Thailand!  Some of you might not understand how big of a deal this is... but it's HUGE to us!  We are so excited to be able to take the next steps in making sure we have gathered all of our paperwork for the next process, the Dossier so we can get this show on the road.  

Second, we are going to be featured on the Connected Ministries website social media platform this week in order to commence our first big push for fundraising.  As some of you might already know we have been accepted to partner with Connected Ministries in order to provide tax deductible donations for our adoption process.  Connected Ministries is a non-profit that exists to support adoptive families.  What is even more exciting is that we have a donor that is will to match dollar for dollar up to $10,000 for all donations made in the month of December.  That means that your $50 donation will really be $100 or $1,000 could be $2,000... but likely you can do that math on your own. :)  All donations made will immediately receive a tax deductible receipt from Connected Ministries that will be emailed directly to you.  They will then pay directly to our adoption agency Holt International as our bills post.  

Let's talk about adoption finances for a minute.  Why are the costs so dauntingly high?  Our adoption will cost about $40,000 by the time we are done, so where does this money go?  I figure I would want to know if I was going to donate, :) so see details on the fees below.

You guys... God's hand has been evident in this process all the way.  We have had money to pay for each step in the process thus far!  The exact amount has been provided through what we have saved or through what others have given to us.  Just recently Trav and I were discussing what the next payment would need to be after our homestudy is approved, $3,000.  Just last week Travis received word that a family (thank you, thank you, thank you!) who shall remain nameless was giving us exactly $3,000.  They had no idea that this was the exact amount we would need to pay next week to continue our process.  This is the second time this perfectly timed donation has happened during this process! 

As we have mentioned before Holt International is the agency we are using for our adoption process. They provide many services which enable us to navigate this very complicated process. The money/fees that we pay them all goes to 1) the administrative costs of the agency 2) other programs that the Holt runs all over the world some of which include child sponsorships and camps for adoptees 3) their partnerships with organizations already in the various countries from which they help adopt from; these partnered local agencies provide food and shelter for the children in need via orphanages and foster homes which give these children places to live temporarily or sometimes unfortunately for their whole lives.  So your donation serves not only to help us bring our Lilabeth home, but to provide basics for other children in need as well.

This is why it is expensive. It makes sense and really to support the needs of these adoptees all of these ancillary services are costly but so important!  In this way our little Lilabeth has been the recipient of adoption fees from previous Holt adoptions as Holt international supports the local children's service (Holt) Sahathai Foundation (HSF) in Thailand.  HSF has been providing Lilabeth's care and needs thus far.  As mentioned before fortunately, we have been able to partner with the connected hearts ministry so that 100% of your donation will go to help with our adoption process fees directly which in turn will support these needed ministries through Holt International.

Please CLICK HERE to launch the website for Connected Ministries to make your tax deductible contribution.   Remember all contributions made in the month of December will be matched dollar for dollar!  (up to $10,000)

As we all reflect on how we are thankful this year, words cannot express my gratitude for the Sahathai Foundation for providing a safe and loving place for Lilabeth to live.  I had the opportunity to talk with the social worker who met Lilabeth last year and she had nothing but good things to say about the sweet caregivers who are loving on her while she waits for us, her forever family.  I am also so grateful for many of you have prayed for Lilabeth and this process and words cannot express our gratitude for the kindness of those who have given so generously already to help us bring our little Lilabeth home.

We are stepping out in faith as we have already invested financially and emotionally into this process.  This often seems like a daunting sum of money that is beyond our grasp, but we firmly believe that there is a way! God wouldn’t have helped us find this little girl who we already think of as our daughter otherwise. Please help us bring Lilabeth Muaysai home!!! Please also share this blog or the connecting ministries website below with friends and family who might be interested in helping along the way!

https://give.connectedheartsministry.org/campaign/kroeger-family-adoption-fund/c257272

WE ARE SO THANKFUL FOR EACH OF YOU!

This pic was taken on a last minute adventure to Frog Laek on Mt Hood two weeks ago!

Here are the details of the fees that we have or will need to pay over the next year as we prepare to adopt Lilabeth.  Items in green we have already paid for!  

Application Fee — $350

This fee covers the cost of a thorough review of your application to confirm your eligibility for the Thailand program. This fee covers all Thailand program support services as you complete your homestudy.

U.S. Processing Fee #1 - $1,950

Processing expenses for Holt include — but are not limited to — personnel costs, administrative overhead, operational costs, monitoring and oversight compliance with the Department of State's accrediting entity, staff training and education, communications and publications costs.This fee also covers all Thailand program support services as you complete your homestudy. You will be billed when Holt receives and approves your application.

Intercountry Adoption Accreditation and Maintenance Entity (IAAME) Fee - $500

This pass-through IAAME Fee is a mandatory and non-refundable $500 fee to the Department of State's accrediting entity, which is responsible for monitoring and overseeing all U.S. International adoption activity. 

Adoption Homestudy Fee — $2,500-$2,900 

A social worker will conduct a home visit and interview all household members to gather information for the assessment. Once all the necessary information has been gathered, the social worker will write an extensive report about your family to meet state, U.S. and Thailand requirements. This report will be reviewed and approved by the Thailand program 

Adoption Homestudy Update Fee — $500 

We will likely not need this.

U.S. Processing Fee #2 — $3,000 (to be paid next week!!!)

This fee covers Holt's cost to facilitate the adoption with agency and government officials in both the United States and Thailand. Processing expenses for Holt include — but are not limited to — personnel costs, administrative overhead, operational costs, staff training and education, communications and publications costs. This fee also covers all registration and translation costs related to submitting your dossier once you are matched with a child.

Adoption Program Fee — $13,360 *** This is our next big fee that we will need to come up with!

The adoption program fee covers all costs related to a child's adoption process in Thailand. This includes, but is not limited to:

• The care of your child prior to adoption, including — but not limited to — costs for food, clothing, medical care, foster care and any other services provided directly to your child
• Child's Thai passport, visa medical exam
• Costs associated with obtaining child updates
• Costs for personnel, administrative overhead, training and education both in the U.S. and Thailand
• Legal adoption services and communications, working with government and agency authorities (including fees related to these services)
• Child welfare projects in Thailand

Holt provides ongoing monthly support to our partner agency in Thailand, Holt Sahathai Foundation, which carries out all adoption related activities in Thailand on behalf of Holt.

Post-Placement Reports — $1,200

After a child is placed with your family, a social worker will meet with you and your child to discuss your adjustment as a family, provide support and identify potential supportive resources. The social worker will write a report documenting your child’s growth, development and adjustment. This report meets state, U.S. and international requirements. Thailand requires three post-placement visits in the first six months following the placement of a child.  There is an additional fee of $100 per report for post-placement reporting for families that adopt two or more children.  For families living in a non-branch state, fees range from $900-$1875 for post-placement services.  Additional post-placement reporting may be required until your child’s adoption is finalized, depending on your state’s adoption requirements.

Court Report Fee — $250 

Depending on the requirements of the court in your state of residence, a court report may be required to finalize your adoption. If your adoption finalization requires Holt to generate a court report, a Court Report Fee will be invoiced to your family prior to the report being issued.  For families living in a non-branch state, fees range from $100-$500 for a court report. 

USCIS application — $860-$1,330

All U.S. families must receive approval from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) before bringing a child to the U.S. for adoption. USCIS requires families pay an application fee, fingerprinting fee and, in some cases, a renewal or change fee.

Adoption Education Classes — $150-$500

Psychological Evaluation or Other Third-Party Evaluations — $1000

Thailand requires that a psychological evaluation report be conducted for each adoptive parent.  Countries or homestudy preparers may also require additional third-party assessments regarding other areas they identify as needing further evaluation.

Dossier Preparation — $100-$1000
Due: Prior to dossier submission (first 6 months of process)

The homestudy and dossier process requires families to obtain official copies of documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates and divorce decrees. Some of these and other documents are required to go through a process of notarization and/or certification before being submitted. The cost of collecting and certifying these documents will vary depending on the state from which the document originates.

Preadoption Medical Review of Child Referral Material - $250-$1,000

Child’s U.S. Visa Fee — $325

Families pay the U.S. visa fee for their child directly to the U.S. embassy in Thailand.

Adoption Finalization — $25-$1,500

Holt requires families to finalize their child's adoption in their state of residence. Depending on your state's requirements, you may need to obtain help from an attorney to complete the court finalization process.

Certificate of Citizenship — $1,170.

Because adoptions from Thailand are un-finalized, we will need to apply for a certificate of citizenship once the adoption has been finalized in U.S. court.  USCIS requires families pay an application fee in order to issue a certificate of citizenship showing proof of U.S. citizenship.

Airfare, Lodging, Meals, Transportation — $5,000-$10,000

We may have to travel twice due to Lilabeth's Burmese heritage as we appeal to Thailand courts prior to being able to bring her home. 

Travel expenses vary greatly depending on the length of stay in Thailand, the number of people in the travel party, and the time of year that you travel. These expenses include international and domestic airfare, lodging, meals and ground transportation, other than traveling to official adoption appointments.