Hannah Dong En Is Ours and We Are Hers!!!!

Here she is! Hannah Dong En. When she walked in, she looked tearful, but said "Mama, Baba, and goh go (big brother)" to each of us in turn. Then she burst into heart-rending sobs for the next hour or more. After we got back to the hotel, she slowly started to warm up to us.

Other than needing some dental work, she looks healthy and very well cared for. We can tell she is very smart. Last night, we looked at a picture book a friend gave us (thanks Chris and Emilie) and she pointed out a duck on one page, and an identical duck on another page. She was also playing a lot with some special necklaces that another friend gave us (Thanks Lish!). On her own, she began matching the objects (or "charms") on the necklace to the objects in the book, e.g., cat to cat, star to star, etc.


The orphanage director gave us a binder about an inch thick with all her preschool records. We were so grateful. We asked about Dong En's foster family and learned she had lived with them until March when she was returned to the orphanage. They sent her to a second foster family in September. When we asked why, they said they didn't know her adoption would occur so quickly. She had come to us directly from her second foster family that day and was inconsolable for quite awhile.

We gave the director two gift bags for each foster family. We put our address in each one and pleaded with her to give them to the families who she acknowledged must miss Dong En terribly.

She has a big little belly and we've already learned she can eat . . . well, eat like her new baba. We learned the hard way, that unlike her brother, whom we must prod to eat, we'll need to gently end her meal when it seems like enough.
She has been unbelievably cooperative, and at times quite playful. We are excited about getting to know our beautiful, sweet, smart new daughter even better today!!!