Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #16

Korea has many spring flowers, but one of the most captivating is the cherry blossom. During the month of April, South Korea has many festivals to celebrate Spring and her flowers.

Cherry Blossoms
The cherry blossom is a beautiful spring flower in shades of pink and white that is indigenous to many Asian countries including Japan, China, India and of course, Korea. These flowers create quite an impact since there are thousands of blooms on one tree and when many trees are lined together it's quite stunning, as the photo below illustrates.

The trees tend to shape a dreamy tunnel that I'm sure is heavenly to walk under. There are many places to enjoy these flowers in Seoul. For those of you lucky enough to be traveling there in the next few weeks, check out this link for places and festivals in SK. If you're not traveling to Korea, there are places in the United States to see cherry blossoms: Washington DC, Macon, GA, Newark, NJ, and Philadelphia are the most well-known.

Welcome to 10 Months of Waiting

I don't have anything witty or profound to say about another month down. I hope I don't have an '11 months of waiting' post in May. But if OUR child isn't ready to be known yet...I can wait longer.

I'm Glad You're Here

I wanted to say 'thanks' to all of you that read my blog. Some of you make yourselves known by posting in the comments. Some of you email me or tell me in person that you read it. Some of you just quietly check it out. Whether you're a regular reader or an occasional lurker...you're always welcome here. You all offer me more support and encouragement than you probably know and I'm so glad to be sharing this life-changing journey with you. LBOS has a few purposes: inform you of our process, a journal for our child, and something to keep me busy! I really appreciate that you care enough about what I have to say and our life to take your time to read it. When you tell me that you actually enjoy reading it and offer feedback, that really means a lot to me. I hope you continue to stick with me and that it all pays off real soon!

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #15

Many cultures and languages have words that describe a feeling or sense that is reflective of the culture. In Danish, there is the word hyggeligt, which describes the cozy, warm feeling that you have on a dark night with low candle light. That word describes Danish culture perfectly. Today's lesson is on a word that that is important in Korean culture.

Nunchi
Nunchi literally translates as 'eye-measure' but it means so much more than that. It's the intuitive sense of the feelings of the people around you. Those feelings or moods are known as kibun. It is important to keep people's kibun in mind when in a social setting, even sometimes at the expense of your own feelings. For instance, you realize that the people you are with are hungry even though they didn't say that. So you ask if the group should eat, even though everyone may know that you're not hungry. That 'reading between the lines' is nunchi.
If you make others wait, people will say you have no nunchi (no common sense, perception, manners). People will think you have no nunchi because you are too self-absorbed to think about others or you may innocently just not realize the kibun of others. Either way, having no nunchi is not good.

Nunchi is a valued trait in Korean culture. You should be polite and considerate to the mood and feelings of the people in your group. There are many unspoken subtleties that can be picked up on if you have nunchi.

***thanks to the relatives and friends that helped with this post***

Today is my mom's birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom! I love you!!!

(My mom and I doing what we do best...laughing!)

World Baseball Classic Final Tonight

Korea slaughtered Venezuela on Saturday night with a score of 10-2 and Japan beat the United States last night to put both teams in the final game, tonight. South Korea and Japan are big rivals, ala White Sox/Cubs, Red Sox/Yankees...should be a good game.

GO KOREA!!

ESPN, 7pm CST

Sweet Pickles

Were you born in the 1970's? If so, you may have had these books called Sweet Pickles. I absolutely LOVED them when I was a kid. There are 26 books, one for every letter of the alphabet. There was a story for each letter/animal about a 'pickle' or dilemma they would have. One of my favorites was "Quail Can't Decide." Quail has $1.00 to spend and can't decide if she can get something she wants (a shiny yellow bracelet) or something she needs (a sugar bowl). I don't want to ruin the ending for you though, so I'll leave it at that :) In the back of every book was a map of the town of Sweet Pickles that had where everyone lived and the places that were mentioned in the stories..that was my favorite part.

When I got a bit older, we gave them to my cousins, Helen and Gregory. A big "Thank You" goes to my uncle Peter and aunt Susan for keeping these books all these years in good shape and recently finding them for me. I wonder what books or toys our little guy will love...

March Madness

Today starts the first round of the NCAA basketball tournament. I love this time of year. Spring is right around the corner and those buzzer beaters have everyone excited! Of course I enter too many pools but maybe this year I'll hit it big. Many of my co-workers bring in TV's for their desk and the bosses put the games on the big screens. It's so fun to hear the whole place react together to that last minute shot.
Here's a you tube video to get you in the mood from the incredible comeback by the Illini to beat Arizona in 2005:


I was at that game, and what an emotional roller coaster it was!

Have fun watching the games, and good luck in your office pool.

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #14

Happy St. Patrick's Day! To celebrate all that is green, today's lesson will be on the jade-green Korean pottery known as celadon.

Celadon
Celadon is used to describe Korean pottery. It literally means green, and though not all Korean pottery is green, it is the most popular kind.

The Koryo Dynasty, which lasted from 918 to 1392 AD, had a strong Buddhist influence which shaped many of its cultural achievements. Buddhist temples flourished during the Koryo period, and with them grew a need for fine vessels to be used during the many ritual ceremonies. Many Korean artists learned pottery techniques from the Chinese. The Korean artists put their own stamp on the pottery by creating celadon using inlay and copper glazing in a unique way. The exceptional quality and beauty of the works they created surpassed that of other countries and came to be revered by even the Chinese for its elegant, yet simple beauty. The Koryo Royal Court also used some of the best examples of celadon pottery in their palaces for daily use and as fine art.

Artists today still create celadon pottery and many people bring back celadon vases, bowls, platters, etc. from South Korea.

Young at Heart

(The birthday boy and my lovely mother-in-law)

This Sunday, March 15, Dave's grandfather celebrates his 100th birthday! Papa Harry immigrated here when he was a child and through hard work and honesty, he's achieved the American Dream. He's had many jobs over 100 years, mostly in the restaurant industry. Since 1955 he's been holding court at Harry's Hot Dogs located at the corner of Randolph and Franklin in the Chicago Loop. Yes, that's right he still works, though he will be retiring in April. But, only because Chicago is buying the building that houses Harry's and will be knocking it down for a park. Patrons of Harry's have not only gotten great food, but wisdom and insightful commentary about life from a man who has been around. Papa Harry enchants everyone he meets with his warmth, generosity and sharp mind.
He'll never turn somebody away who can't pay or needs a little help. Because of that generous spirit and faith in mankind, he has been rewarded with a incredibly rich life. Though he's had sadness recently when he lost his wife Perle of 60 years, 2 years ago. She was an amazing woman that was the perfect compliment to him and he simply adored her. The love between them was palpable. Harry and Perle created a strong family that not only looks out for each other but enjoys each other. I'm sure Papa would say that is his and Gram's greatest achievement.
I feel very blessed to not only know Papa and be a part of the Heftman clan, but that I can bring a child into this warm supportive, accepting, loving family with Papa at the head. Happy 100th Birthday, Papa! We love you!

This milestone birthday has gotten some press:

• Video from Channel 7 News in Chicago visiting Harry's
• Video from CLTV (Friday's festivities)
• Video from Wall Street Journal
• Video from 6pm Channel 2 News
• Skokie Review
• The Stew Blog from the Trib
• R&I, restaurant website (Q&A and some old photos)
• Channel 5 article
• Neil Steinberg's article in this Sunday Sun-Times
• Willard Scott will mention Harry on Wednesday's Today Show

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #13

Opening day is coming up in a few weeks for American baseball and the World Baseball Classic is going on now. So, let's play ball!

Baseball
Baseball is very popular in South Korea. The league known as the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) was founded with 6 teams in 1982 and now has 8. Teams are named after the businesses that own them. The current teams are: Doosan Bears, Hanhwa Eagles, Kia Tigers, Lotte Giants, LG Twins, Samsung Lions, SK Wyverns, Seoul Heroes. Each team plays 126 games and the season ends with the championship known as the Korean Series. The season is roughly the same as here, about April-October. We hope to be in Korea during those months to catch a game!

Korea also enters a national team into the World Baseball Classic , which is going on now. It's been an exciting series so far for Korea. They beat China, Chinese Taipei and Taiwan. They played their rivals Japan twice. The first time, Japan crushed them but in the final game Korea won in a 1-0 victory. The games resume for Korea this weekend, March 15. Check out the World Baseball Classic website for the schedule. The picture below is from a game won against Japan in 2006.

Huge Congrats!

Remember a few posts ago when I told you about my on-line friend Jen, who was selling cook books? Well...she got her referral yesterday for a beautiful, baby girl in a 'smart' plaid dress. Check out her blog for some cuteness.

Hitting the Links

I have quite a few links on in the sidebar. Here's an explanation of what you can find on those sites and if they might interest you.

Adoption Websites
A 4-Ever Family- Deals with attachment in adoption. Gives a good understanding on how to encourage attachment and how to recognize when it works and when it's not.
Adopt Korea-Explains the whole process of adopting from Korea. Great for parents just starting out in their adoption path, or for anyone curious on how adoption from Korea works.
Creating a Family-A very thorough site about mostly international adoption, but also infertility and domestic adoption. I really gravitate towards the author's approach, she's realistic without being judgemental.
Eastern- The agency in South Korea. Explains their mission statement and gives you a better idea of how the process works in SK. Has lots of cute pics.
Lifelink Adoption-The agency here in Bensenville, IL. We've been happy with them so far, and recommend them to anybody looking to adopt internationally.
Talking About Adoption -Great articles about general adoption issues.

Korea Websites
Click Korean-Hangul (language) website. There are several exercises that help with reading, writing, and pronunciation.
Korea Herald-Newspaper from South Korea.
Korea Sparkling-Tourism website. Gives good info on current festivals in Korea, culture, weather, and tourist sites. Great photos too.
Korea.net-Official site of Korea. Similar to Korea Sparkling, but not quite as good.
Life in Korea-Geared towards military families in South Korea. Has good info about Korea and tourism from a Western POV.
The Seoul Times-News site for people around the world interested in Korea.

Shopping Websites
Cafepress T's-Cute t-shirts for ANY topic you'd like. I have it defaulted to children's Korea t-shirts.
Little Seouls-Items from Korea, mostly for kids.

Have fun browsing!

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #12

South Korean music and tv shows have become popular all over Asia and beyond, this is known as the Korean Wave.

K-Drama Korean Dramas follow one of two genres. The first is similar to a soap opera with lots of romance and plot twists. The second is similar to a historical mini-series with elaborate costumes and an emphasis on martial arts. Each series runs from 20-100 episodes per drama. I have recently rented All About Eve from Netflix. It's typical to a soap with heavy drama and long stares, but it's great fun! I'm quickly getting hooked on the story...that Young-Mi is up to no good! It's also interesting to see everyday life in South Korea and pick up on some culture norms.

K-Pop K-Pop is a mix of dance, techno, rap and rock that emulates boy and girl bands from America. The huge popularity of Seo-Taiji and Boys in the early 1990's was a turning point for K-pop to start gaining international appeal.

The you-tube video below combines both elements of the Korean Wave. It is the K-Pop song "True Love" by FinKL, which is the opening to the K-Drama All About Eve.

I must admit I've got a weakness for cheesy, catchy, international pop songs...so this is right up my alley!

Hello March!

I gotta say...I'm happy to be kicking February to the curb! The wait has officially gotten very hard. In these cold months, I've cleaned everything I can, read every book on attachment, adoption, parenting, etc, I've thought about how to decorate the room, we've got a name picked out, I've imagined and dreamt of my baby 1/2 across the world many times, I've learned a lot about Korea, we've taken vacations, had alone time, gotten finances together, caught up on movies and books, slept in...you name it...we've done it! We're ready to have a family, like yesterday. I know God is with me and His timing is never wrong. But I sure would like our little guy to say "Hi there, here I am!" just about any day now.