Wednesday was Gotcha Day, finally! We woke up Wednesday morning all packed and ready to go. We decided that we were going to get the kids from the Orphanage and wait for the passports and the final paperwork in Kyiv. We got up and were ready to go by 8:30 AM. I took two bags down stairs to meet the driver and I didn't see him at first. Then I saw the van a few hundred yards away near the front of the Orphanage. I started walking toward the van with the bags and the driver started to run toward me. He took my bags and asked if we had more and I of course said yes many more. I went back upstairs to the apartment and Yulia was there. She said the driver had to leave to drop of the juvenile services inspector so he was gone. We would have to come back and get the bags later. So we headed over to the Orphanage we thought to get the kids. When we got there we had to sign more papers to get the kids released from the Orphanage. We took pictures with the director who was so sweet and excited for us. She said she was glad that Mariah had a good family. We all started to get a little teary eyed, as you can imagine. Then we left the orphanage and jumped in the van with the attorney. We drove to the bank where we had to sign more papers. This took about an hour. We bascially had to sign all these copies on a little white piece of paper on the top of each page. Then they had to review it three or four times. Then pass the papers to a teller to review two or three more times. Then we were finally done. The reason we had to do this is because each child has their own account. When they are adopted the remaining balance in the account is transfered over to the orphanage. The money that was transfered over was going to be used to finish the roof on the orphanage. All the buildings here have flat roofs and they were started to put an A frame roof on the orphanage. We were glad that the money was going to a good use. Then we were off back to the apartments to get the remainder of our luggage. We grabbed our luggage and loaded it all in the van. We then went back to the Orphanage to pick up Mariah for the last time. We went into the Orphanage and asked for the kids. They were all outside so we went out to find her. When we found her they had not changed her cloths to the ones we brought for her so they took her into the Orphanage and changed her clothes. We she came out she looked so cute. We said good bye to her caregivers and waved at the other kids. We did not have a party because they are too small. Then we loaded into the van and headed to the passport office. We were supposed to be there by 11 AM. Debbie went in with Mariah and Yulia. It took about an hour for them to do the paperwork and get another digital picture of Mariah.This is another example of how the Ukraine people have gone out of their way to help us. This office was not even officially open. I am not sure why they were not open, but I do know that they worked with us to accomplish everything we needed to have done. We are so thankful! When they came back Yulia said we had to be back at 2 to pick up the paperwork to drive to Dnipropetrovsk which is the capital city of the region. The drive was approx. 2 1/2 hours. We realized we were probably not going to make it in time to catch the 5 PM train to Kyiv. We ate lunch at this restaurant that actually had Italian food and some other things. I thought I would venture out and , it was excellent. I ate about half of it then I gave it to Debbie, but Mariah ended up eating most of what was left! This was here first real meal outside of the orphanage and she loved it! It is exciting to see her eat well. We went back to the passport office picked up the paperwork and we were off to Dnipropetrovsk. After about 20 minutes driving, Mariah fell asleep in my arms. This was so exciting, the first time for her to sleep in my arms. The drive was a little wild as the roads here are very rough. We were thrown about and bounced around. No car seats in Ukraine, so that was interesting. When we arrived in Dnipropetrovsk it was about 4:30 PM and we drove straight to the Passport office. Debbie, Brigette and Yulia went in and the rest of us stayed outside with Mariah. I had the pleasure of changing her first dirty diaper. Wow, diapers are not much fun. It took them about a half hour to finish up. It was now 5 PM and we knew we would not be able to catch the train. The next train was not until 10 PM and it was an all night train. The other option was to have our driver take us to Ukraine by car. We decided that was the best option because we didn't have anything to do for 5 hours while we waited for the next train. So we headed out toward Kyiv. The drive was going to be, we thought, about 5 hours. It ended up taking about 7 hours, at least. The drive was hot and rough. We stopped for dinner once and for changing diapers twice. We finally arrived in Kyiv at about 2 AM. We were all totally exhausted. I think we all had been bounced around and thrown around as much as we could possibly stand. It was so nice to get out of the van. The best thing is, Mariah slept almost the entire trip. Our apartment in Kyiv was near where we were the first time we arrived in Kyiv. It was on the second floor. We had two rooms (Living Room and One Bedroom) kitchen and bathroom. We were glad to have a washing machine, etc. We all passed out of exhaustion. The boys are just doing awesome, it is hard to believe how much these little boys have been through with us. It is hard for an adult, but they have been amazing!!! So we lived through Gotcha Day.It was hot, tiring, and bouncy, but most of all, exciting and a huge blessing!It will definately be a day to remember. . .
She is lovely!
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