[kvondera]

Kim,
I am assuming that your agency does NOT do the homestudy for you, right? Some agencies do. I do know of someone who does homestudies for Guat adoptions, she is in St. Louis. Very nice, but maybe not on the "speedy" side. But if you told her of your urgency, she may pick it up a bit to get it done faster since you have your application in for INS.
Be careful about your agency selection, and see if they have a "plan B" for you in case Guat adoptions are not heading in a good direction. It may be a lengthly process ahead. It may be a good idea to keep an open mind about other countries for adoption.
I can tell you that once INS gets your homestudy with your application, you will get an appointment slip mailed to you, indicating when you need to be present for your fingerprinting. That usually shows up a few weeks after they recieve your application/homestudy. They usually give you a two week notice. After the fingerprints are done, the results usually are mailed within 3 weeks, but that can vary. We got ours within a two week time period.
It comes in the mail, sent to you. This and many documents are made into your dossier, which is authenitcated by the secretary of state office, and then sent to the Guat consulate office in Chicago, and then finally to Guat to be translated.
Most agencies like to wait to give referrals until your dossier is in Guat, with your INS approval. Once you get your referral on a baby, more paperwork will need to be done and sent to Guat, and then the real wait begins.
There is a lot of paperchasing to do in the begining, but it can be done quickly! A good agency will help you get organized for both your homestudy and dossier. Get a binder and get the checklist of documents you need. It can be overwhelming your first time around, but there is a lot of support out here, and you can always find help.
Good luck and I hope this helps a little!