Referrals and new program information

Referrals came earlier this month for two of our families both with a LID of 5/30/06.  Their new children were both girls from the Gansu province, born in December of 2009.  Congratulations to the new families!  The last group of referrals went through June 2, 2006 LIDs, which means those families waited 56 months from the time their dossiers were logged in until the time they received their referrals. 

We currently have 3 regular China and 2 Waiting Children families in China that are scheduled to return the end of next week.

Information on our new waiting child program, called Jing Yi Program, is up on our website now.  To find out more about this program and to see information on the children currently available in this program, please go to our website at:  http://www.ftia.org/waitingchildren/JingYiProgram.asp

The Chinese Consulate will be using a new form for families to obtain their visas, effective June 1st.  The new form is now 4 pages long, however it’s not yet up on their website.  For now, you can find the new form here:  http://big5.fmprc.gov.cn/gate/big5/www.chinaconsulatechicago.org/chn/qzhz/qz/P020110127196754166806.pdf

"Oil and Water: The Attachment Disordered Child in School" by Lawrence B Smith L.C.S.W. - C., L.I.C.S.W., is a great resource full of strategies and ideas for you and your child's teachers.  You can find this article, courtesy of EMK Press here:
http://www.emkpress.com/oilandwater.html

Happy Year of the Rabbit!

Today is the official New Years Day in China.  All businesses are shut down as families return to their homes to celebrate the start of a new year.  Before shutting down for the holiday, the CCAA sent out referrals and they arrived in our office on Wednesday.  FTIA’s referrals went to families with a log-in date of May 30, 2006.  Congratulations to those happy families that waited so long for their new children!!

This New Year, according to the Chinese zodiac, will be the year of the Rabbit.   The year of the Rabbit is thought to be a calming year, since it follows the aggressive Tiger year.  The Rabbit is traditionally associated with home and family, artistic pursuits, diplomacy and keeping the peace.

Xin Nian Kuai Le!!!  Happy New Year to You!

Red Couch Photo and Chinese New Years

We have four families coming home this week from China with their newest family members.  Here they are on the infamous red couch!  (Note: if you are reading this from the yahoo group, please go to the blog at   ftiachina.blogspot.com to view this photo.)  We will have 4 families leaving for China right after Chinese New Year.

This week a new shared list of waiting children came out and we had 3 successful matched and they’ve all received their PAs!  We also received another PA this week, making a total of 4.  Congratulations to these families on being one step closer to their new children!

For those of you that adopted in 2010, here is an informative video explaining the Adoption Tax Credit:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQryETwRziA&feature=youtu.be&a

Next week will be the start of the Chinese New Year holiday in China.  Most offices in China will be closed from February 2nd through the 9^th.

Xin Nian Kuai Le!!!!!  (Happy Chinese New Year!!!!!)

Red Couch Photo & 6 TAs!

Three families came home this weekend, and here they are posing on the famous red couch! (If you are reading this from yahoo, please go to ftiachina.blogspot.com to view.)

Also today we received 6 TA's!!!  Two are for waiting children families and four for regular China families.  Congratulations!

Program Updates

Program Updates

This week we received one TA for a Waiting Children family

We have 4 families that are headed to China this coming week to meet their newest children.  We wish them the best on their journey!  We have 3 families currently in China that have met their children and are doing well.

Journey of Information

Be sure to check out Jimmy with our Journey of Hope program.  Jimmy wasn’t included on the original list of children as his file wasn’t yet prepared when we visited the province.  Jimmy is 9 years old with mild developmental delays.  There is a video linked to our website that shows him performing during the Journey of Hope program. 

We’ve also appointed Sunny as our new A Child’s Plea child, meaning that FTIA will waive our agency fees for the family adopting her.  Sunny will lose her chance to be adopted if she doesn’t have a family by September when she turns 14.  You can learn more about Sunny & Jimmy on our website under the Journey of Hope program at this link: http://www.ftia.org/waitingchildren/JOHList.asp 

New Program Information

Posted on our yahoo groups this week was an announcement about our new China Waiting Child program in Guizhou province.   We will be sharing more information on this program on our website and this blog in the near future.  Please be sure to watch for it.

Happy New Year!

Program Updates

Last week we received one LOA & one TA for Waiting Children families.   This week we’ve received 2 PA’s – both for Journey of Hope children!

 LOA’s seem to be coming quicker for China Waiting Children families.  For families that have had their dossier logged in for several months before they submit their LOI, the LOA has been coming in about a month or less after their PA.  For families that have PA before submitting their dossier, the LOA has been coming between 1-2 months from the time of LID. 

Last week we received 3 referrals for families with LID of May 29, 2006.  The children are from Jiangsu province, ages 8-12 months, and are 2 boys and 1 girl!  The 2 boys were for families that had put their gender preference as “either.”

A new shared list also came out last week and so far we’ve had one LOI submitted for a child on this list.

We have 3 families that are headed to China this week to meet their newest children in the New Year.  We wish them the best on their journey!

Important Information

The adoption tax credit was extended through December 31, 2012.  The refundability of the tax credit will remain in effect for 2011; however it will not be available for 2012 adoptions.  Also it’s our understanding that the adoption tax credits carried forward from previous years will also be refundable, which means that families who adopted as far back as 2005 but who didn’t have enough tax liability to use their entire credit can take advantage of the credit with their 2010 return.  For further information, we suggest you consult with a tax accountant.

Other Information

Remember that our office will be closed on December 30 and 31 for the New Year holiday.  We will be back next year on January 3^rd!

 A new film, Change of Plans, will air January 8th 8/7c on FOX.  This is a pro-adoption film supported by Moms4FamilyTV.  This heart-warming, funny film surrounds a married couple with no kids, who--through unfortunate events –ends up adopting 4 kids from Africa, Asia, and South America. The film reveals how fulfilling life can be when you look beyond your own plans and invest in the lives of others.  You can watch the trailer for this film at:  Change of Plans - Trailer

We’d like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year and look forward to more referrals in 2011!

Happy (busy) Holidays!

Program Updates

We received 2 TA’s this week for China Waiting Children families.

This week we have 8 regular China program families and 4 China Waiting Children families returning home with their newest family members.  We hope the children all make an easy adjustment to their new family life.   See my previous blog for the “red couch” photo of this group.

We also have 4 families heading to China at the end of the year and 1 so far in January. 

We have been told that the next group of regular China referrals have been mailed & anticipate their arrival on Monday, but don’t know yet what LID’s these referrals will cover.  Our next LID group is May 26, 2006.

A new list of shared files will be released on December 21^st, which will be Monday night for us.  

Other Information

For the holiday season, our office will be closed December 23-26 and December 30-January 2.  Should any families be matched with children on the shared list during this time, we will be available to assist them.

Continuing on with our 10 part series of sharing the Ten Things Adoptive Parents Need to Know:

This is the final post in the ten week series of  Ten Things Adoptive Parents Need to Know, which was developed by Richard Sudsberry, MA, LMFT, LMHC, who is a clinician specializing in attachment and children.  As a reminder, we will be hosting a webinar on January 6^th, 2011 entitled Ten Things Adoptive Parents Need to Know.  Registration is limited and the invitation to register will be coming by email early next week.

The last concept is Playfulness.  Be an interesting parent.  Playfulness fosters innocence, innocence fosters vulnerability, and vulnerability fosters emotional regulation and cooperation in relationships.  The holidays present a perfect time for playfulness.  Enjoy the snow, time with family, and the joy this season brings.

We hope you will join us for the webinar!

Happy Holidays!

Betty