Readoption Day

Today was a success! This morning we met our attorney at the court house. Brandon and I sat in a little lobby full of adoptive families not sure what to expect, but anticipating tears. For those not familiar with the adoption process, a friend of mine put it best when she said "it's like getting married twice." Marley was already adopted legally in Ethiopia. But in order for us to get a U.S. birth certificate and then citizenship, we needed to readopt her here in the states.
It was a quick and pleasant hearing. There were only a few people in the court room. Marley sat in the lap of the Guardian at Litem. He was a friendly man, and Marley decided his lap was more entertaining that ours, so there she was. They doodled on paper the entire time. The lawyer asked Brandon a bunch of questions, to which he answered "yes" to and then the judge smiled very kindly to us and proclaimed that Sifen would now be named Marley Haset. We chose the name Haset, which is Amaric, because it means joy. We will be getting her Missouri birth certificate in the mail in the next few months. I cried. Of course.
So today, Marley was adopted again!