CANADIAN CITIZEN

We received in the mail today the news we've been anxiously waiting for, Aislin is officially a Canadian citizen! She now has all the rights and privileges of a Canadian! We are so thrilled! Her letter from the government ends with "Welcome to the Canadian Family"...

On this very same day an article done about us appeared in the "Citizen" which is the local paper....here's what it had to say:

You Me and Baby makes three
JENNIFER DEMPSEY The Amherst Citizen

BROOKDALE – The past two years have been a waiting game for John and Tara Camilleri. But good things come to those who wait and in February, the couple was finally able to bring their adopted daughter Aislin home from China. The Camilleri’s opted for international adoption after discovering it could take up to 10 years to adopt a child domestically. In February 2005, they travelled to Halifax to attend a seminar put on by Children from China, a Halifax-based adoption agency operated by Linda Kirby. The agency works hand-in-hand with Chinese Centre of Adoption Affairs, a Chinese organization that co-ordinates the adoption process in that country. It was at that same meeting the couple decided that was the route they wanted to take and so began their long and arduous journey to parenthood. An extensive background check and home study had to be conducted on the couple by a licensed social worker that took about three-and-a-half months to complete. Once recommended for adoption, their application was submitted to the Department of Community Services. The demand for Chinese children is high as more and more families from throughout the world choose to adopt. Unfortunately, this results in long wait times. “We waited and waited and waited,’’ Tara recalled. “It was very hard.’’ In fact, there were times when the waiting was almost too much for the couple who grew increasingly anxious to become parents. However, in November of 2006, the couple finally received a photograph of their then 11-month-old daughter. Rather than wait for the photo to be delivered to their home, the ecstatic couple drove to Halifax to pick it up in person. They were overwhelmed with emotion when they saw her for the first time. “She was even more beautiful than we had imagined.’’ It was pouring rain that memorable day and Tara said she tucked the precious photo of their daughter beneath her jacket to prevent it from getting wet as they scurried to their vehicle. That same photo now hangs in their living room, a precious reminder of the day they finally got a glimpse of their daughter. Over the next few months, the Camilleri’s and a handful of other Maritime families also adopting children from China were required to attend monthly preparatory meetings in Halifax put on by the adoption agency. Once the final paperwork was complete, the couple flew to Beijing, China, to be united with their child. The agency arranged virtually every detail of the trip including flight, hotels and travel Visas for which the couple was extremely grateful. “There’s no way we could have done it on our own,’’ John admitted The agency even arranged for some sightseeing tours for the couple that spent two days in Beijing before embarking upon the final leg of their trip that was a three-and-a-half hour flight to Guangzhou, the city in which the adoption centre was located. Once there, the Canadian families began to be united with their children. One-by-one, the babies were brought out and placed in the arms of their new parents. “She was the fourth baby,’’ said John. “She liked us right away.’’ Following a brief stay at the adoption centre, they were permitted to return to their hotel with Aislin where they would spend the next 24 hours getting acquainted with her. It was love at first sight for John and Tara, and Aislin spent the next several days nestled in the arms of her parents. “For three days she wouldn’t let us put her down,’’ her adoring father said. In a rare turn of events, the couple was permitted to visit the orphanage where Aislin had spent the first 13-months of her life where she was given the opportunity to see her caregivers one last time. The threesome then returned to Beijing where they spent an additional five days awaiting the completion of Canadian documentation. During that time, a Canadian physician examined Aislin at an international health-care clinic and her passport was finalized. “Although we couldn’t wait to get home with Aislin, we missed China,’’ John admitted. Exhausted by the 23-hour trip home, Aislin spent her first two days in Canada sleeping. She has now settled into her new lifestyle despite having to adjust to a new language. Although slightly developmentally delayed because of a lack of stimulation in the orphanage, Aislin continues to grow in leaps and bounds. In fact, John and Tara are amazed by her developmental progress. “It seems she’s doing something new each day,’’ said her proud father who is director of sales at M&S Food Services in the Amherst Industrial Park. “She just started kissing last week.’’ Although purely on a liquid diet when she arrived in Canada, Aislin is now eating a variety of solid foods. Although a long and tedious process, the couple says they would definitely recommend international adoption. It has been a couple of months since Aislin joined the family and the Camilleri’s say they now feel complete. It has been a bit of an adjustment for the couple that spent the past four years of their marriage without children but they now say they can’t imagine life without their little girl.