How we got to Vietnam

People often ask us, "Why Vietnam?" The answer is simple. We want to be parents and in Vietnam, there are babies that need families.

We attended an Adoption Workshop in February, 2006 and knew then that we would be adopting. We officially began this journey in May with our application to Dillon International, Inc. We flew through the application process at rapid speed and on August 2, 2006 we were introduced to our son, Ben, for the first time. It was 10 days before his first birthday. We fell in love with him instantly. He came with a smile that melted our hearts.

Our documents were sent to Vietnam and we began the 3 to 6 months waiting period - the most difficult part of the entire process.

Over the next four months, we received additional photos of Ben and worked on preparing our home for his arrival. (Thanks to all our friends and family that have helped shower Ben with gifts. He is obviously so loved already!)

On Nov 14th, I casually checked my email for the 35th time that day. It was 10:54am - and there it was - an email from our agency that WE HAD A DATE! This is what we had been waiting for all these months. It is FINALLY going to happen. We applied for our visas (still waiting for them to arrive) and bought our plane tickets. We leave Dec. 3rd and fly to Dallas, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Siagon). It is approximately 29 1/2 hours of travel. We will stay in HCMC for 1 night and then go to Vinh Long on Dec 6th to meet Ben! Our Giving and Receiving Ceremony (G&R) is on Dec 7th, and Ben is ours (officially) and he will be with us from this point on.


After the G&R ceremony, we will spend one more night in Ben's province. We will then go back to HCMC to get Ben's passport. This will take approximately 1 week. We will then fly to Hanoi, where we will get Ben's visa. This could take one to two weeks because of the U.S. Embassy's hours of operation. We have been told to expect to stay in Vietnam approximately 3 weeks. In the meantime, we will be getting to know Ben in his birth country, which we believe will be a wonderful experience for all three of us. Countdown: T minus 2 weeks and counting...