FEATURED WAITING CHILDREN

 

This handsome little boy is 3 years old. He has bright eyes and is very engaging. He appears to be struggling with a mild to moderate form of cerebral palsy. His motor skills are delayed. He walks independently but falls a lot. His speech is impaired, possible due to hearing loss. He has a noticeable crossed eye. He will need specialized care including physical therapy.

This precious little boy was found by the police outside of a bank in July 2011. Investigations were held but there was no trace found of his parents or extended family. Although he has not had the opportunity to attend preschool, his caretakers say that he is very bright and that he plays well with the other children. He is under treatment, but suffers from epileptic seizures and wears the helmet to protect his head in case he falls.

 

 

Several children arrived home with their forever families this past month! They are:

• boy age 6 from WA Foster/Adopt
• boy age 5 and girl age 11mo from WA Foster/Adopt
• boy age 11 from WA Foster/Adopt
• boy age 15 from Ethiopia
• boy age 3 from China

Welcome home and congratulations AAI families!

AAI 30th Anniversary Cookbooks are still available for purchase! If you haven't gotten your copy yet, click here to download the order form and buy one today. All proceeds will help us continue with our work for many years to come!

This spiral-bound, glossy cookbook contains 30 recipes from 30 countries to celebrate our 30 years of providing adoption services to families all around the world. The recipes are simple enough for cooks of any skill level, but tasty enough to satisfy the most refined of palates! Try the Vegetable and Bean Tostadas (Mexico) with a side Shopska Salad (Bulgaria) and finish with a Coconut Cream and Rice Dessert (Vietnam)! The cookbook also contains family stories and snippets of AAI history to read through while you wait for the food to finish cooking.

The following article about the Children in Families First Act (CHIFF) is from Sen. Mary Landrieu's website. AAI encourages all families and friends to write to Sen. Landrieu and thank her for her commitment to children and the concept of adoption. We also urge you to write to your own Senators and Representatives to help move this bill forward!

 

Amid partisan conflict in Congress, dozens of lawmakers from both parties - including staunch liberals and conservatives - have united behind a bill that supporters say addresses a heart-rending issue beyond politics: the millions of foreign children languishing in orphanages or otherwise at risk because they have no immediate family.

 

The bill would encourage more adoptions of foreign orphans, which have declined steadily in recent years, and reflects impatience with current policies overseen by the State Department.

 

"Every child needs and deserves to grow up in a family," says the bill's chief advocate, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-New Orleans. "While our foreign policy has done much to keep children alive and healthy, it has not prioritized this basic human right."

 

Titled the Children in Families First Act, the measure has been introduced in slightly different forms in both the Senate and House. Its co-sponsors range from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a hero of the Democratic left, to Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., a favorite of tea party conservatives.

 

"It's not a slam dunk, but it is very possible," Landrieu said of the bill's chances. "We need voices from all parts of the political spectrum to make a change that many of us think is extremely important."

 

Continue Reading...

About once a month, AAI gets a frantic, even tearful phone call from a parent or an older adopted child. The gist of the call: the child is now a young adult, over 18, and running into one kind of hurdle or another.

 

The US State Department, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Intercountry Adoption Division states: Non-U.S. citizens may face difficulty obtaining educational scholarships, qualifying for certain jobs, and enjoying other rights and privileges of citizenship. A lawful permanent resident might also be subject to removal from the United States if convicted of certain crimes or if other grounds of removal apply.

 

Many of the children adopted before the "two visit" rule for Ethiopia were admitted on an IR-4 visa, meaning they were not granted citizenship upon arrival in the United States. Especially in these cases, please see the USCIS page After Your Child Enters the United States and see the section about IR-4 visas. Regardless of your visa status, all parents are urged to read this link. It is well organized, straightforward, and will direct you to take any steps that may be necessary. Please also be sure to read the Welcome Home Packet you received from AAI for more information.

 

If you take care of business within the first year of homecoming, between the packet and this State Department website, you and your family can be spared a measure of angst down the road. Thanks!