This is where we are

The news is that there is no news. The most important thing is that Harriet is safe and for that I am grateful. Alas she is not willing to show her face yet and there is nothing we can do about that except just wait. The best case scenario now is that she will be born and I have a few days with her before I go back to work. Jay will have to deal with the consulate and registration by himself with me doing as much of the work by telephone as possible. Today we got an email from our UK lawyer who copied to us the extensive correspondence between him and the Home Office. This depressing chain of emails starts positively based on an existing precedent but it can't apply directly to us, the problem being that our surrogate is married and so Harriet will be 'illegitimate' and ineligible for automatic citizenship. Despite having the details for a few months now and referring our difficult matter to their senior management weeks ago their opinion is that they need a letter to give it individual attention although happily they are going to give detailed guidance on this type of issue in the "near future". The likelihood is that Harriet will need to stay out in the US until a decision is reached. Maybe I'll see her before she's three months old, maybe I won't.

Of course I should have checked this out before but the cast iron nature of our legal relationship in the US meant that I really didn't see that there would be an issue and certainly the idea that it boils down to legitimacy is so absurd and so unfair. That said, the US law is yet another pain. We paid months ago and signed all the documents before we came out after hassling the lawyer to get his act together. Then we had to resign the documents for reasons unknown and wait yet again. We were promised that the judgement would be here today but it has not arrived. I hate being beligerent, chasing people by phone, email and text for any information but it's all I've go to do.

I'll skim over the fact that our surrogate was involved in a car accident yesterday (she was not hurt, everything is fine) and the fact that the doctor has the wrong due date. Here we are stuck staring at the walls of a hotel room, starved of any sense of control and going slightly mad. Let's be clear, I am not writing this because I'm looking for any commiserations or even any word of encouragement. Everything will be fine and will be sorted out in due course and years hence it will all be a good story or least good legal case history. I am writing it because the whole point of the blog was to keep people informed and involved in the journey during the good times and the bad. Writing about these problems is significantly easier than when I wrote about our losing the twin and I return to the place I opened this. We are so grateful for her and so glad that she is safe and well. We couldn't ask for more.