Jennifer had a checkup today with Dr. Alexis Lieberman from Einstein Medical Center. It sounded like it was an extremely thorough examination, according to Abitimo's description. Jennifer had her hearing tested and took the simple vision test of reading off an eye chart. We will try to get Jennifer a fuller vision exam with an eye doctor.

It's unclear how many childhood disease immunizations Jennifer has gotten in her life. You may think the answer would be none for a youngster growing up in a remote part of an impoverished country. You would probably be wrong. The Ugandan government and nongovernmental organizations make a point of vaccinating children to protect them from the worst diseases. Still, since we are unsure of what shots Jennifer has gotten and when, she was given six immunizations today.

Feb. 17

Bloomingdale's at Willow Grove Park Mall has given Jennifer a wonderful gift: At the store's expense, she can pick out any outfit free of charge. Today was selection day. Jennifer rode up the escalator with Ana to the second floor dressed in jeans, a T-shirt and a multicolored jacket. Sarah Begandy, public relations manager of the store, greeted her warmly. We then began looking around the teen department for clothes.

The plan was to get Jennifer some washable, summer-light clothing she could take back to Uganda. Jennifer was most interested in getting a skirt. Cross-cultural note: Fifteen-year-olds everywhere seem to have the same taste in clothing - tight, short, revealing. Ugandan culture would shudder at skirt lengths above the knee or other immodest clothing. After trying on skirts and shirts and pants, Jennifer settled on two, mid-calf-length black skirts and a pair of Capri blue jeans.

After she had made her selections, Inquirer photographer Michael Wirtz asked Jennifer, with Aaron interpreting, to pose in her new clothes alongside some mannequins. Jennifer has been watching too much American television: She moved around like a super model as Michael clicked away.

Feb. 12

It had been snowing since yesterday in this winter's first blizzard. It also was Jennifer's first time ever seeing piles of snow, so my husband and I went over to the Odongkaras' to visit. When we got there, Jennifer was out with Aaron and Ana brushing off their car. Ana and I threw snowballs at Jennifer, who laughed and flung some snow toward us. She laughed even harder when I walked to the center of their front yard, to untouched snow, and fell backward to show Jennifer how to make a snow angel. You know, I don't remember falling into the snow - and getting up out of it - being so hard to do when I was a kid.

After a while, we went inside. The adults talked as Jennifer sat on the sofa watching television. Eventually she stretched out, and Ana brought over a blanket and placed it on the young girl. Jennifer pulled it over her head and fell asleep.

Feb. 9

Jennifer had a dental exam today. Her teeth, said Dr. Bruce Singer, a Jenkintown dentist, are close to perfect. He, like so many others, is donating his services for Jennifer. It just goes to show all the damage done to American kids' teeth by the heaps of sugar in their diet.

Feb. 8

Jennifer, Abitimo and I picked up our rental car and headed to Chevy Chase, Md., for another appointment with Dr. Dufresne. We are about midway through eight weekly appointments during which Dufresne injects saline solution into the tissue expanders he implanted under her scalp and her chest skin.

Jennifer was not comfortable with the procedure. It works like this: Dr. Dufresne finds the small, metal circle, called a port, which is under her skin. Attached to the port is a thin tube that leads to the expander. There are two ways to find the port, either by feeling it, or by using a magnet to detect the metal circle. The magnet method is not working very well, but Dufresne is flawless in finding the port the other way.

As he injected the needle, Abitimo gently stroked Jennifer's left arm. I was on the other side of her chair. I gave her my hand, which she held and crushed when the needle pierced her skin. After a few minutes, Dufresne decided he had injected enough saline solution, and the procedure was over for this week.

After we left the doctor's office, we made what has become a regular stop at a restaurant called la Madeleine. Jennifer got a chicken pie she's grown fond of, and Abitimo picked up an entrée for dinner. We headed back to the highway for the two-and-a-half hour drive to Philadelphia.

Jan. 26

Jennifer's days at home with the Odongkaras are filled with ordinary activities for an American teen on a trip away from home: sleeping late, eating, visiting friends.

Jan. 22

Jennifer was with us again for the day. This time, we took her to one of those places where you paint pottery. When Tim picked Jennifer up from the Odongkara home, he asked Abitimo to explain to her how this activity worked. At the store, she picked out a goblet to paint and chose only three colors - green, black and brown - out of the many available. She carefully painted precise bands of different colors on the goblet. As she worked, she kept her Eagles cap low over her forehead. I think it was to hide the large stitches in her scalp from the initial surgery when tissue expanders were implanted under her skin.