Friday, January 08, 2010

Snow Day


I guess one perk of living in Northeast Ohio is snow days. The school fast call system woke us up shortly before 6:00 AM advising that school was closed today. Sydney was of course thrilled. Andrew on the otherhand cried, he was so disspointed that he couldnt go.

Friday, January 01, 2010

Happy New Year



We are always looking for ways to incorporate more Korean culture in our family. So, we were honored to accept the invitation of a new friend Mia to join her family for a traditional Korean New Years. I met Mia at the Korean American Independence Day Festival in Cleveland last summer.

Andrew & Sydney were very excited at the opportunity to wear their hanboks even if though they had outgrown them. A Hanbok is the traditional Korean outfit worn for formal & semi formal occasions. Andrew received one from his foster mother when he celebrated his first birthday in Korea. She was kind enough to send it home with him along with a few photos of him wearing it during his Tol Ceremony. I purchased one for Sydney back in preschool for international night. Unfortunately she got the flu that day and never got to wear it. So, this was my first chance to see both kids wearing them.

The woman of the family taught me how to make mandu sook a Korean dumpling soup. After rolling 50+ dumplings I was getting the hang of it but didnt have near the speed or quality of the older woman.

After the meal the older girls taught the kids how to properly bow so they could participate in the New Years ceremony. As a form of respect children bow to the elders and receive a gift. The older girls who were dressed beautifully in their hanboks taught Andrew & Sydney the bow for girls & boys. The boys and girls were called up by age group to present themselves in front of the family elders. In this case Dr and Mrs Lubin, Mia's aunt and uncle. They each did their bows and received cash in the amount of their age.


A big thank you to Mia & entire Lubin Family for welcoming us.