Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Readopted, Then Saving

This morning, we went to the Montgomery County Courthouse to readopt Jada. Foreign adoptions, while accepted in Pennsylvania, aren’t accepted in all fifty states, so we were encouraged to readopt Jada before a judge in Pennsylvania, which would then be accepted in all fifty states.

The ceremony took about five minutes, as first I and then Amy were sworn in and asked a few questions. The important thing the judge wanted to here was that we wanted to care for Jada as her legal parent. To which I answered, “Yes!” When Amy was on the stand, she said, “Absolutely yes!”

The judge then signed the decree, making us Jada’s legal parents. He then graciously posed for pictures with the three of us and with Amy’s parents, who took the day off from work to join us in this very last step in the adoption process. What a momentous and happy day it was.

We returned home and Jada got down to saving, a not always American habit. Every time Amy’s parents come over, they put a little change in the basset hound piggy bank in Jada’s room. Today, Jada was able to drop the nickels and quarters in herself. I gasped the first time she did it. I’m so proud of our little girl.



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