Friday we appeared with the girls in our local probate court to finalize their adoptions. For D it was just a formality in order to get her a birth certificate in English. As much as I enjoy the looks on people's faces when I hand them her 4 page Chinese birth certificate, especially since page 1 is completely in Chinese, things will be easier if the birth certificates are in a language there is a chance your average American can read. For K though, this is the next stop on her route to becoming a US citizen. We legally changed her name from her Ethiopian first name (which is now her middle name) to the name that we have been using all along. Next we apply for her Certificate of Citizenship (which costs a small fortune by the way) then a social security number then a passport (then taxes and FICA and all the other fun things we get to do as citizens) And it all needs done by August so we can pay OUR taxes. But it is finally done (I won't mention how long D's paperwork has been sitting unfiled in my "to do (eventually)" box. The girls now have the same legal standing as the boys.Hanging out in the hearing room before the magistrate comes in.
Officially a family in the eyes of every governmental body that could possibly have an opinion on the matter.
Our Magistrate was a good sport about posing for pictures with us. I did have to bribe D with a sucker so that she would pose in the photo. Did she take my lesson about never being in court again seriously? Those of you who know her in real life can assume that she didn't.
K already has ambitions of being the one behind the bench- she is ready to work on those files just sitting there waiting for someone to "sign" them
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