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The time had finally come to go get MY baby, My Jaelynn. As much as I wanted to be there at dawn (and that's about 430AM in Kiev in May) I had to wait for my ride. I felt sure I could fly there, I was so excited! I checked her clothes again and made sure that I had bottled water and hoped that I brought enough formula (By the way, I used the last of the formula about 30 minutes before the plane landed in Phoenix.) By breakfast I was wound so tight I couldn't sit still! I was getting Jaelynn today, she would be only mine today. (Can you tell that I still get excited just thinking about it?)

Orphanage Director with Jaelynn, all dressed up and ready to go. Jae is wearing a onesie, a LS t-shirt, and the sweatsuit-like outfit you see. The director was worried that she wasn't dressed warmly enough, so I got out a blanket I had brought, just in case. Poor baby was sweating before we got to the car!

We arrived at the orphanage at 10 am and had to wait for the director. We waited for about 15 minutes and then all went into the directors office. She was given copies of all the papers and called someone to get "Christina" Then she delicately brought up the request for help for the orphanage. I had already inquired and they needed a new refrigerator, which cost about $200. She had me put the money in an envelope and sign a statement that I had given it of my own free will (as in I wasn't buying the baby, just giving a donation to the orphanage). Then they brought Jaelynn in and I..finally..got to change her. I gave the director the gifts to distribute to all the staff (most were off due to the celebration of Kiev Days that weekend.) We took Jae to the car and I got to experience the thrills of Ukraine traffic while holding a baby. Others have commented that they seriously thought about using Duct tape as a safety device and I had thought they were kidding until that day! Jae dosed off as we got to Kiev. When we were within 2 blocks of the Apt, we had to divert due to a bicycle road race. We drove around for another 20 minutes while the driver found a back way with no police.
Finally I get Jaelynn into what is my temporary home and what does she do?? Sleep, for 3 hours. I just sat and watched her sleep, occasionally reaching out to stroke her to be sure that she was really there. I couldn't believe that I finally had the baby that I had come to Ukraine to find, that she was mine and we were together.

I fed Jaelynn for the first time the day she came home with me. I didn't know exactly what to expect. I had brought 4 cans of soy formula with me and some disposable Avent bottles with the fast flow nipples. Jae had a weak suck, but I was able to squeeze the disposable bag enough for her to eat well. She didn't like to be burped and I finally figured out that she didn't want to give up the bottle until she was full. I'll bet that she didn't get a second chance when she was fed before. Her feeding schedule and food from the orphanage included formula 3Xday (for a total of 19 oz), ceral 2xday, curds (I think it's like cottage cheese) 2xday and egg yolk and vegatables 1xday. For me, she just drank 7 oz formula every 3 hours during the day and then slept from 9p-6a. I thought that this was a fine schedule! She napped about every other feeding for 2-3 hours, too. I spent alot of time just watching a sleeping baby and being happy.
That night, in celebration of Kiev days, there were fireworks downtown Kiev, which we could see well from the Apt. In my mind they were celebrating the joining of my family. Just one small piece missing (in Arizona, waiting).
Sunday was a slow, get to know the baby day. Jaelynn was very easy going, content to eat, play and sleep. We went for a walk along the riverbank with Olga and, as was predictable, she didn't think that I was dressing Jaelynn warm enough and wrapped her in an extra blanket. By the time we got home, poor Jae was again soaked with sweat. Olga went to her sister's and Jae was stripped to her diaper to cool off. This resulted in a much happier Jaelynn!

Jaelynn, in her diaper, cooling off. I call this one Bright eyes, for obvious reasons. When Olga came back, I dressed her in a sleeper, to avoid a culture clash.

This is Olga, the kind lady who gave up her apartment for almost 3 weeks for me. She is also a great cook and trys real hard to communicate when the translators aren't around! She loves the babies and had pictures of many American families that have stayed with her as they finalize their adoptions. She took me shopping once or twice and also took me for a walk along the riverbank. She is a great lady and I was sad to leave her when the time came.

Final processing, Kiev and Warsaw