Readoption Day!

Yesterday was Jonas' readoption day! Readoption is confusing to some people, so let me explain. Jonas' adoption was finalized in Ethiopia when we "passed" court on 10/16/08. However, because we were not present for that court hearing, USCIS requires us to readopt him here in the U.S. in order for him to become a U.S. citizen. Up until now he was an Ethiopian citizen with a Green Card. The other thing that readoption does is it allows us to legally change his name. The court in Ethiopia gave him the name Ekra Raymond Hammond, so yesterday we were able to officially change it to Jonas Ekra Hammond!

We were so happy to finally finish the adoption process that we started in August of 2007! The court hearing was held in the Judge's chambers and it was quick, easy, and fun. It was a celebration!

The Judge let Jonas run free around his office.

But Jonas failed to appreciate the significance of the day. He wanted to leave the office and explore other areas!

Before we left, we got a picture of our family with our lawyer and Judge Calvaruso. We never expected to go to Jonas' readoption with two kids of our own!

That night we celebrated at a Chinese Buffet with Uncle Jason and Aunt Jenny. The Ethiopian restaurant would have been more appropriate, but the Chinese Buffet better fits Jonas' attention span right now. :)