Re-grouping ...

Yay - at 11.34pm last night we thankfully received word that despite being kept in hospital now for observation our surrogate is still carrying our baby and apparently ".... her uterus was relaxed..." Pheeewwww .... and breathe again.

Regarding the visa debarkle!! This is the email that firstly alerted me to the fact we may have a problem - this was their first email to me regarding my husbands visa application received and bare in mind we live 300km from ADELAIDE i.e. in SOUTH AUSTRALIA ....
 

This is in with regard to your visa application. You are to appear before the Consular Officer for interview with a copy of the agreement for surrogacy with {our surrogate}. You are also required to provide copy of the Australian legislation which permits you to enter into this kind of agreement.

So of course once I'd picked myself up off the floor I had to email back to politely explain a couple of things firstly -  we live in South Australia and would therefore find it rather difficult to attend an interview in Sydney (approx 1,500km away). Secondly that my husband could not attend any interviews anywhere just at the moment becasue he was stuck out on a rig in the absolute middle of freakin' nowhere and that he wouldn't be due back into Civilisation for another 7 days. I also explained that our applications had been sent to Sydney in the first place as it was the recommended option (i.e. recommended by them) on their web site.

So that was all 7 days ago now. In the meantime my tourist visa turned up 4 days ago (Tourist Visa). My husband has been without his passprt for 2 weeks. And for the benefit of anyone caught up in this little nightmare in the future here is a list of ALL documents requested and sent SO FAR by them:

• The Passport
• The completed MEDICAL visa application
• A letter from SCI (Dr Shivani) certifying who our surrogate was and that she was indeed 'our' surrogate and the expected date of birth of our baby and the approximate dates that SCI would request us to be in India.
• A letter from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship with our reference number and DNA Testing offer
• A letter from SCI (Dr Shivani) declaring my husband as the sole intended parent (i.e. and not the surrogate) of the child born via surrogacy and outlining the genetic connection to my husband.
• The fully signed copy of our agreement with our surrogate - yes all 7MB worth and 34 pages.
• Then it seemed that 'Page 32' was mising from said agreement and so 24 hours later that had to be retrieved and sent across ............  
• And NOW - this morning - a copy of a Marriage Certificate and...
• "an undertaking signed by you and your husband stating that you will take good care of the child born through surrogacy".

From where I'm sitting - it seems to be never ending and increasingly frustrating - the GOOD news of course is that our surrogate is more comfortable now and I didn't need to get on the next flight out of Adelaide! So my husband (who I got taken off the rig early) and I back home now re-grouping and breathing and murmering 'it'll be alright - it'll be alright'. Of course I am also busily arranging accommodation that may or may not be needed earlier than expected and the Green Leaf man is being very accommodating - phew and thank you so much!!

Jacaranda xx