TECO got all of the authenticated paperwork back to Heartsent. All of our papers should be at St. Lucy's by Christmas Eve. I'm thinking they probably are closed on Christmas Day since it is a Catholic orphanage, though Christmas is not a holiday in Taiwan. So while we have a week off, hopefully the papers will go to the judge in Tainan. We are told there are 3 judges in Tainan, the slow, the medium and the fast (sounds like the 3 little pigs).

So what happens next goes something like this - time frame is 4-6 months. Heartsent thinks it will probably be April when we we get first decree:

1- Judge gets papers and asks birthmother to come in and relinquish her rights.

2 - Judge looks over all of the paperwork, and a rep from St. Lucy's petitions on our behalf.

3 - Judge approves and issues a First Decree. There is a 14 day waiting period, just in case some family member wants to contest. The First Decree is the MOST IMPORTANT one.

4 - Judge issues a second/final decree..She is legally our daughter!

5 - St Lucy's gets Yu-Lin's passport and translates paperwork for the American Institute (our version of an embassy).

6 - Travel to Tainan

Xmas presents to Taiwan

Now that we are officially Mommy and Daddy, we were allowed to send Christmas presents straight to Taiwan for Yu-Lin. I found a great doll call Ling who speaks English and Mandarin. Bob thinks we might need the doll more than Yu-Lin!

I also put together a Christmas stocking full of goodies and a scrapbook that I made with photos of us and where we live. Each page is in Mandarin, so that hopefully her foster mom can explain to her. I hope they are preparing her for the adoption. Everytime I look at a little kid, I think about what would be going thru their head if they were taken away from everything they have ever known and handed over to people they can't understand.