First post-placement visit

This morning we were trying to brush Gianna's teeth and I had been getting ready to blow dry my hair when our social worker arrived at the door. So much for being ready! She visited with us for less than an hour asking questions about how Gianna is adapting to life in the US. What are her eating and sleeping habits like, how is she developing, is she speaking any English, how does she like the dog? We discussed her upcoming transition into daycare and how we planned to maintain her cultural heritage. We have several bilingual books and games for her and I have ordered some Vietnamese kids DVD's and CD's. I handed over the required parent's report and family photos, and we said see you again in a few months.

Yesterday was my first trip to physical therapy for my shoulder. They did a full evaluation, took some measurements, and assessed the work to be done. Both shoulders are very weak, but the left shoulder is really out of sorts. The scapula is sitting higher than the right and leaning forward. Sparing any more gory details, they are not sure how fast or how much it will improve. So we are starting out very slow and will see what happens.

This week we had a few more visitors and kind souls that brought us food--THANK YOU!!! Our friend Caren brought over a meal and a bag of goodies for Gianna including a pack of kiddie plastic utencils that she played with the whole time Caren was here. She also gave some ABC 123 bath toys that stick to the wall; they are fast becoming the favorite. Georgie stopped by today with some food and was able to dance with Gianna--hooray! Today we also met a bunch of people from L'Oreal for coffee. Once the group had gone back to work, Gianna really opened up to my friend Barbara, laughing, tickling, and walking around. She is really starting to be more comfortable with people, at least on a one-on-one basis. Last but not least, ông Schmidt stopped by after work yesterday. He was the first Schmidt relative to meet Gianna. She let him play magna doodle with her, but eventually went to "sleep" until he left. Then she was wide awake waving and saying "bye-bye" as he pulled out of the driveway. What a stinker. We have a few more visitors lined up for this weekend, so I'm anxious to watch her social interaction grow.