Bringing Dariya home: SDA appointment

We were up good and early to get ready for our SDA appointment.   Unfortunately the clock in the apartment was an hour behind the actual time so poor Nico and the Johnson family were waiting on us a bit extra this morning but we arrived at the SDA an hour early as the Johnson's appointment was at 10 and ours was at 11. 
Around 11 Yulia came and got us and took us upstairs to this small office.  We were there for 10-15 minutes.  The lady presented Dariya's file and Yulia translated for us to understand. 
We weren't asked any questions just had to show our passports to make sure they matched our paperwork then we were told all the information about Dariya and signed a record book showing that we had seen her file.

Dariya is older than we thought.  Her birthdate on the RR website was listed as August 2, 2008 (8/2/08)but it is actually February 8, 2008 (2/8/08).  In Europe they always list the month first...we should have known as Jason still does his dates backwards to me. 

She was born in the city where she currently resides, which is great news to us as we won't have to travel the country to obtain her birth certificate. 

She was the first pregnancy to her parents and has no siblings (well of course she does Aidan, Alayna & Liam).  She was abandoned at the hospital after her parents found out about her down syndrome diagnosis.  (Just typing that I am in tears now...)  She walked at 2.  She weighed 7 pounds 7 oz. and was 20.9 inches at birth.  She is listed as normal physical development.

They then showed us her picture and said after court they will exchange it for the one we have off the RR website.  As soon as I saw her picture I started to cry. 

I now know why God wanted us to bring individual pictures instead of the photo book (we lost the first one and the second one didn't ship in time before we flew over) so I printed pictures to bring and put them in a little photo album.    Both Yulia and the woman from the SDA looked over them and LOVED the pictures of our Alayna.  The tutu picture from the step up for down syndrome had them showing everyone in the office.  Then they got to the ones of Alayna doing therapy at IDC.  The SDA lady asked if she could keep those pictures to show Ukraine what they need to be doing with their children.  I then asked if there are any therapies that go on in the baby houses and she replied, "no".

When we were finished Jason and I decided to walk back to our apartment so we could shop the street vendors and check out the city on the way home.  We bought some great items from Alex (thanks Angela). If you are coming to the SDA soon shop with him, he will do you right.

Sunday and Monday are holidays here so we won't get to meet Dariya until Tuesday.  Friday afternoon we will pick up our paperwork allowing us to visit her in region and to submit to her regional court to be her parents.   We are going to leave "K" on Saturday and head to Dariya's region as our apartment is half the price there.

Will add pictures later, having trouble getting them from camera to laptop.  Oh and for those of you traveling here soon, my straightening iron for my hair wouldn't get warm at all, guessing the difference in the outlets wasn't enough for it.  I have some crazy hair going!