Twice Adopted

This morning, the four of us got all gussied up and headed to court. Ahh... litigious American society. Thankfully, our case was one of the few consisting of a happy nature. I'm delighted to report that as of today, William has been officially re-adopted in the United States.

William automatically became a U.S. citizen upon our adoption of him. However, he came home on an IR-4 visa, requiring that we re-adopt him in order to guarantee him an American birth certificate. The process will also make certain things like changing his name, getting a social security card, and even qualifying for college loans much easier.

The procedure lasted less than ten minutes. I was called up to the witness stand (what a creepy experience!) to answer some simple questions. I had to think extra hard when the friendly judge asked me for my age. Apparently, time and sleep deprivation have robbed me of brain cells.

William held up like a champ despite having missed his morning nap to be in court. He played the part of cute, compliant baby very well. Afterwards, the judge invited us up to the stand for a family picture with him. I'd show it to you but I don't know if Your Honor wants his picture on some random family's blog. Afterwards, we headed to Friendly's to chow down on some celebratory pancakes.

I must note that we owe a tremendous debt of thanks to our friend, Paul, a local attorney who was kind enough to take on our case pro-bono. He, along with his wife, Heather, are inching very close to receiving the referral of a daughter from Taiwan. We can't wait to find out who William's newest friend will be. Whoever she is, she will certainly have two top-notch parents. Thanks, Paul!