We've Got Our Girl!!!!

First of all, it is so weird to be sending my posts to an email address and not being able to access our blog to see what it actually looks like. I hope the pictures post ok. I know that's what you've all been waiting for anyway. :) But, shocker, get this.... I have hardly taken my camera out of the bag since we got here. (I know!!) And when I do take it out it, the lens gets so steamed up, I can't take any pictures for a while. Have I mentioned it is HOT here? :)

OK, enough chit chat, you all want to know about Kara, right? Yes, I said Kara. We had our guide ask her when we got back to our hotel room which name she wanted to be called and she said Kara. I find myself going back and forth between Kara and Da Xin, and I've found that using Kara doesn't get her attention 100% of the time because she's not used to it yet. But, she drew a picture yesterday and wrote KARA at the top of it.

Kara is such a tiny little girl. Many people have thought that Leila is the big sister and are shocked to find that Leila is 7 (nearly 8) and that Kara is 11. Kara is maybe an inch taller than Leila, but everything about her is petite. They can definitely share clothes and wear the same shoe size. They wore matching outfits today and they received LOTS of stares. Many people said they looked like twins. (Ummmmmmm.... not really.)

Kara picked our restaurant last night.... McDonald's. Leila was a happy camper with her choice. Kara is very energetic and has a very outgoing personality. I think she knew how tired we were last night, so she turned off all the lights and tv at 8:00 am (even though her bedtime is typically 10 pm), so that we could all go to sleep. I think she did that for our benefit, not hers. What a sweet girl. The funny thing, though, was that we all woke up at midnight and were wide awake. ;)

She and Leila quickly became best buds. They have their own little way of communicating. Mainly by bossing each other around by pointing their fingers at each other. LOL. Leila taught her how to play her new DS, they color together, they walk around holding hands, race each other to the elevator buttons, etc. It is very cute. And by the way, Rock, Paper, Scissors is a universal game. Who knew? I'll tell you, having Leila here has made this so much easier. The moments of silence because we can't communicate can get a bit awkward, but there is very little downtime with the two of them. We have two adjoining rooms in every hotel, so they share a room and that has been very nice for all of us. It also allows me to sit here typing this while they nap in the other room.

This morning, we finalized all of our adoption paperwork, so it is now official. Our guide told us on the way from the airport yesterday that because of her age, Kara will be asked if she wants to be adopted by us, and if she says no, then we will return home without her. This really freaked Leila out, as she was very worried that Kara would say no. I am pleased to say that Kara said "yes" both times this morning when asked, so she is officially our daughter!!! Leila kept asking, "Is she ours? Is she ours?" She IS ours!!!

Her very good friend from the same orphanage was adopted yesterday, too, and she was given an American name, Lela, so it's nice for her to know her friend has a new name, too. Lela and her family are staying in the same hotel and the girls are so happy to see each other all the time. We are going out to Pizza Hut tonight with them and then to the nearby People's Park. The other family is from Virginia and we have already talked to the girls about using Skype to communicate with one another. They are so excited!

My last words before I sign off.... I think I'm moving to Nanning. Everyone here takes a daily nap - adults and children. I must do as the locals do, so I'm off to nap!! :)