Update on Savannah-Hope's adoption

Thank you for your prayers regarding Savannah-Hope's adoption journey. I have had requests for more specific information. Here is the scoop:

Malawi does not have a stable international adoption program like China or Ethiopia. Very few children are adopted out of Malawi because the government frowns on international adoption due to past trouble with child selling. But all along there have been and continue to be children adopted out of Malawi, but they have been "under the radar", done quietly and at a very small scale. Last year when Madonna went to Malawi and decided to adopt an orphan, she being who she is, drew alot of media attention to Malawi's adoption policies or lack there of. Suddenly the government policies were being looked at and Malawi adoption was under the microscope. The social welfare department of Malawi became very leery of adoption due to the media hype.

Good Samaritan decided to not pursue adoptions in Malawi until the "Madonna issue" had blown over. When Savannah-Hope was found many Malawian social workers and attorneys were unwilling to have any part of Savannah's adoption specifically because of the Madonna drama.

What does this have to do with our adoption of Savannah-Hope now?

Good question! Guess who is back in Malawi and has chosen to adopt a child from the exact same village where Savannah is from? hmm..... Madonna! So now we are back under the microscope...not that we were trying to do anything illegally....but because of the attention Madonna drew to herself the Malawian Government required her to do an "interim adoption". An interim adoption is when the adoptive parents become foster parents for the child for 18 months before the adoption can be finalized. We weren't going to have to do this with Savannah-Hope as it is not a Malawian law...but a social welfare policy (but not often practiced). But now that Madonna is in the same village and the government is again being extra careful about adoptions....this maybe the only way we can pursue Savannah's adoption.

Madonna has been granted permission to "foster" her kids outside of Malawi. That will also be our request. This week we feared that Savannah-Hope would have to be fostered in Malawi which would mean we couldn't bring her home until March of 2009! We are now being told that we can foster her here in the states....but the official word wont come until later this week. There is still some chance that she could be adopted without fostering first....but we wont know that until later this week as well.

Please continue to pray for all who are involved in this journey. I have faith that God has a perfect plan for Savannah-Hope. I am asking God to guide us on that path and trusting Him each step of the way. I are still hoping to have her in the U.S. by Christmas. Thank you for your prayers.