Possibly moving forward again...

Looks like we've hitched our wagon to a new horse (I don't get what it is with me and horses this week). After reviewing our preliminary adoption application, it appears that the coordinator for China's Special Needs program has given us the "green light." According to my IFS worker, our " family would be perfect for this program!"
So, this news has potential promises and potential frustrations:
Promises:

• The IFS China Special Needs program has no waiting list. There are more children than parents. We just have to search through the list of about 2000 kids to find the child that is right for us. Unfortunately, our chances to adopt a healthy infant are significantly reduced. I guess, at this point, we can't afford to be choosy, but I still feel frustrated about how much we will miss during the initial years of her (or maybe his now) life.
• IFS quotes that we can bring home a child in 9-12 months.

Frustrations:

• The list of children is a Shared List (meaning that any accredited agency and thus any approved parents can choose from this list). Its not exactly first-come-first-serve, but we will be competing with other parents who are are equally deserving of a new addition to their family.
• Our home study (provided it exists somewhere) was written for Ethiopia, a non-Hague country. China is a Hague country, meaning that the home study will have to be rewritten to include details and disclaimers that are required by the Hague treaty. Technically, the home study should be written by a Hague accredited provider, but since we were not aware of this little hiccup at the time, we didn't search for one. IFS has agreed to perform a "clinical review" of the revised home study (for a fee, of course). The less complicated non-Hague home study has taken four months, so I am hoping that a revision will not take as long.

If you want more info on the program, check the IFS website or the blog dedicated to the IFS China Special Needs program.