Update- kind of

At the beginning of June, court dates started to happen and adoption decrees started to be signed.  Everyone had a sense that things were moving but no one was hearing anything.  Then suddenly this last week, the U.S. Embassy in Sofia announced that they would be issuing final visa interviews and initial visa interviews.  And now THREE families are currently in the country right now quarantining for two weeks before they get to pick up their kiddo/s around the 4th of July. And if you thought it was difficult to quarantine at your house... in Bulgaria, you are not allowed to leave your hotel room. Not once and not for anything. 

As of yesterday, the IAC (international adoption committee) met for the first time since the beginning of March and three additional (that we know of) families have been soft matched. We have also heard that the IAC will resume preparing adoption files of new kids who are eligible for international adoption. So we can assume they are proceeding as usual. This is VERY good news.

We have no update for us and what it means for families who have their official referrals and accepted dossier paperwork.  We had our agency reach out to the NGO to ask about the status of trip one and apparently they are working on a plan.  So we will wait some more and wait to hear from them.  Our hope is that given the circumstances that we will be given the option to skip trip one. We are really hoping this is the case since all of our paperwork is already at the embassy and then it would only take a few weeks to get a court date and then about a month after court to bring him home.  BUT we know this is very wishful thinking. However, we have every reason to believe that Bulgaria is doing what they can during this very strange time. 

If we will need to complete trip one then we have decided that just one of us will go to Bulgaria… quarantine for two weeks and then spend five days with little D and fly home.  If we are allowed to skip trip one and only go for pick up trip and quarantining is still in place just one of us will go.  So pretty much any way it shakes out and quarantining is required (which we feel that this will obviously be happening for the foreseeable future). I will go alone.  It is not ideal but it is doable.  

Pretty much my head has been swirling with all the possibilities of how this will all work.  And on a completely unrelated note doctors no longer think I have internal shingles but now believe that I have xiphodynia and something is wrong with my xiphoid process bone. Blah, super fun times.  I have never been in so much pain for so long.  Hopefully, I will get some answers soon!