I have introduced you to everyone but Joanna, so now it's her turn! I brought Joanna home from China last May, just a few months after she turned 3. I had seen Joanna's picture on an agency photolisting and when I read her bio I thought she would fit right into our family... not because she was described as shy but because she enjoyed being around her "brothers and sisters" in the group foster home. The bio also noted that she was afraid of men though seemed to be overcoming that a little bit. I thought our family would be good for her because she would be living with a female single parent but would have the opportunity to develop healthy relationships with adult males in my extended family. I applied to adopt her -- really kind of thinking my application wouldn't be accepted since I was single with 3 children already, but God had other plans and now Joanna is part of our family.
Joanna is sweet and very shy, though, she really has come out of her shell these past few months. She is a much different child this summer than last summer. She has a good sense of humor and even teases a little bit from time to time. She loves Dora the Explorer and princesses. She likes carrying around little toys or folded up pieces of paper. She seems to have adjusted well to our family and often says that Kyle is her best friend. Just this summer, she has begun to play more interactively with the kids and seems to enjoy playing (yes, it has taken that long!). She still has moments of retreating into her shell but that doesn't happen as often as it used to. We still have some issues that need to be addressed but I do think she is happy. She enjoys being around our extended family and friends and gets excited when I tell her we are going to visit her grandparents and/or her aunts and uncles, as well as some of our close friends. When we combine a visit with some sort of ice cream event, she is even happier! She loves ice cream, which definitely qualifies her to be a part of our extended family. She even scrapes the bowl to get the last bit of it and did that before she ever saw me doing it, so I know it's a sign of a natural ice cream lover! So, yes, she really is one of us and we'll keep her!
Joanna is sweet and very shy, though, she really has come out of her shell these past few months. She is a much different child this summer than last summer. She has a good sense of humor and even teases a little bit from time to time. She loves Dora the Explorer and princesses. She likes carrying around little toys or folded up pieces of paper. She seems to have adjusted well to our family and often says that Kyle is her best friend. Just this summer, she has begun to play more interactively with the kids and seems to enjoy playing (yes, it has taken that long!). She still has moments of retreating into her shell but that doesn't happen as often as it used to. We still have some issues that need to be addressed but I do think she is happy. She enjoys being around our extended family and friends and gets excited when I tell her we are going to visit her grandparents and/or her aunts and uncles, as well as some of our close friends. When we combine a visit with some sort of ice cream event, she is even happier! She loves ice cream, which definitely qualifies her to be a part of our extended family. She even scrapes the bowl to get the last bit of it and did that before she ever saw me doing it, so I know it's a sign of a natural ice cream lover! So, yes, she really is one of us and we'll keep her!
The picture of her was taken a few months before I picked her up last May. It really shows her personality.
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