Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was grinning today as she pinned a retirement medal on her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly. Reporting from the ceremony, The Arizona Daily Star reports that on her second visit to the capital since the January shooting, Giffords "air-kissed some of the guests and gave them lots of smiles, waved excitedly when her mother, Gloria Giffords, and Kelly's mother were introduced." Her health also seems to be improving. "She is still limping and wearing a bandage on her right hand brain injuries such as hers affect motor skills but she stood up without assistance for the Pledge of Allegiance." With Diane Sawyer's exclusive "sit down"--which may or may not include an on camera interview with Giffords--only five weeks away, the public seems eager to learn about Giffords' road to recovery. Ceremony attendees were eagerly tweeting out pictures of Giffords in her red blazer and short hair. Nancy Pelosi had uploaded her photo to Flickr, below, only a few minutes after the ceremony ended. 

Rep. Paul Erikson captioned his photo, "It was great to talk with Gabby!"  

Giffords own team posted on Facebook the best shots of the congresswoman taken by White House photographer David Lienemann.

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Adam Clark Estes