One year ago!

November 13, 2006....the "due" date of our adoption. The one date that we waited for, for almost 2 years!

One year ago today, Jason and I walked hand in hand through the door of the SDA, leaving Gene behind. Walking down the hall, through a room with parents who were already in their meeting, through another door into a small office. Closing the door behind us, the translators asks us to sit down. There are 2 other ladies in addition to the translator...the psychologist, and a "reporter" who recorded the whole meeting. They explained to us that they had preselected 5 young girls, all under the age of 3. All were healthy with the exception of developmental delays. "Are you ready?" they asked. Jason and I scared out of our wit just nodded our heads in agreement. She laid down the first profile in front of us, before she could even speak I busted out in tears. I couldn't contain myself any longer. "Are you alright?" the translator asks. "YES, this is just the moment I have been waiting for 2 years, I am just excited". She gives us some details of this little girl (who turned out to be Angelina White), then she lays down the second profile...Olena. The picture was beyond beautiful. She had this huge smile, and huge brown eyes, and a brown fuzzy head, she was 6 months old and absolutely perfect. They went on to show us 3 more, all of whom where beautiful but at this point I couldn't stop thinking about the first 2. After seeing all 5, the psychologist asks "Do you have any questions?"
Jason, looks at me, "what do you think?"
"I really love Angelina - the first one, she reminds me of the gerber baby!"
I pull out her file and Olena's lay them next to each other and look at both pictures again. The translator, points to Angeline's file, "the caregivers say she is really really cute!"
"she is, but maybe this one instead" I grab Olena's file.
Jason perks up and smiles, "Yes, she is the one! I know it, she looks like my sister!"
"OK." I hand the file to the psyhologist. "We want to meet her!"
"No questions about her, or the others?"
"No, we don't care - we want to meet her"

That was it. It lasted maybe a whole 10minutes. We showed them the photo album we brought, they loved it! they asked us about our home and our family, and gave us many compliments. A few minutes later, the translator hands us a piece of paper and shows us a map. "Here is where she lives, Myckolayiv! and here is her name and birth date. "
she hands me a paper with some writing on it.

'Olena Sergivena K. 1.20.2005'

They hug us both and send us out the door. We walk back down the hallway and the translator pushes the door open, Gene, and a room full of families and there facilitators are all staring at us. Silence....."we found our daughter - she lives in Mykolayiv" I wave the piece of paper in the air like a trophy. Gene snatches it from my hand, and grabs his cell phone, he starts making all the necessary plans. The families and everyone else, surround us, asking us questions, hugging us, crying, it was complete chaos, but also a moment of complete relief, and happiness.
And that is how is all began!!

Happy Appointment Anniversary!