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.

Helping Friends Along the Way

Since we've started the adoption process and I've started blogging, we've really met some amazing people. Two of these friends are trying to raise funds to help with the cost of adoption.

One of the first people I 'met' on-line was Rachel. This will be the first child for both of us and we share a lot of the same experiences. She is a woman with a very strong faith and a great attitude that's skilled at expressing all the beauty and challenges of adoption in a unique, positive way. Click HERE to see the fun prizes that she's raffling off at only $5 a ticket.

Another on-line friend is Jen. When we were deciding on agencies and learning about the process, Jen was a huge help and always answered my questions and emails even though she really didn't know me. She also started a yahoo group for Lifelink families that has been a huge place for support. She has patiently been waiting for a referral of her daughter. To buy her cook book with fun recipes click HERE.

Good luck Rachel and Jen!

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #11

This coming Sunday, Korea celebrates an important holiday.

March First Movement
The March First Movement, also known as the Samil Movement, refers to a day that Koreans first began to display their independence from Japanese colonial rule. At 2pm on March 1, 1919, 33 Korean nationalists gathered at Pagoda Park in Seoul to read the Declaration of Independence that they had drawn up. Crowds assembled in the park to hear it and then formed into a procession. The leaders of the movement signed the document and sent a copy to the Japanese Governor General. They then telephoned the central police station to inform them of their actions. The Japanese tried to break up the procession and the leaders of the movement were arrested. As these events were happening in Pagoda Park, special delegates associated with the movement also read copies of the proclamation throughout the country at 2pm on that same day. In the end 7,000 were killed and 45,000 were imprisoned.
The events on March 1, 1919 resulted in changes to many of the most objectionable parts of the Japanese rule. A month later in April 1919, the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea was established. Koreans have been celebrating March 1 as a national holiday since 1949.

Shoulder Taps

Throughout the past 9 months, I truly feel like God has been with us and has been making Himself known through little signs. He's been tapping me on the shoulder and saying "I'm with you, have faith." Here are some recent 'shoulder taps:'

I was having a particularly anxious day about the wait after the holidays and went walking on my lunch break. I went into a store that was nearly empty, except for a 1 year old Asian boy and his mother. As soon as I walked in he gave me a big grin and started babbling to me. Then when I got back to the office, there was an email from our social worker saying she had received some paperwork we needed and that the waiting list was moving quicker.
Hang in there, your child isn't quite ready for you yet.

I had one day where I had gotten myself worked up that our child will be allergic to our cat, which would be heartbreaking for me. I got home from work that same day and there was an article about how to deal with cat allergies.
Don't worry it will all be ok.

The day we got our fingerprints taken in late January, I was driving back to the office on a route I don't usually take. At one point I looked up and saw (quite literally) a sign for "Korea Town" at the next exit.
You're on the right path.

Recently, we went to lunch with some new friends we've met through this process. At the restaurant there was a Korean family celebrating a baby's 1st birthday party. The mother and baby were decked out in their Hanboks for the party, with a festive feeling in the air.
Soon enough, you too will be celebrating.

I try to be patient as I know His timing is never wrong. Though it does get hard at times, I have a strong faith that this is where we were always meant to be. His 'shoulder taps' are a great comfort, always at the right time, along the way. Einstein said:"Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous." Well God, I'm on to you :)

Roses are Red, Violets are Blue...

Add some white and there's an American flag for you!

The national flower of the United States is a ROSE.
(see Lesson #10 if you're wondering what I'm talking about)

Let's Learn about Korea on Tuesday-Lesson #10

As we anxiously await the arrival of spring, today's lesson is on the national flower of Korea.

Rose of Sharon
The Rose of Sharon, a type of Hibiscus, is a very tenacious plant that can withstand many hardships. Known as Mugunghwa in Korea, it has been admired since ancient times as a flower from Heaven. The ancient Chinese referred to Korea as "The land of gentlemen where Mugunghwa blooms." In the late 19th century the following line was added to the national anthem: "Rose of Sharon, thousand miles of beautiful mountain and river land!" Though it has been associated with Korea for centuries, not until Korea was liberated from Japan did it become the national flower. The Rose of Sharon reflects the strength and spirit of the Korean people and is a treasured symbol of the country.


Though many Koreans would know the national flower if asked...do you know the national flower of the United States?

Happy (day after) Valentine's Day!

This is the scene from our kitchen, where the flowers and cards always go. We had a lovely day/night. We watched some movies, had taco bar, exchanged cards...and Dave surprised me with a lovely gift (a messenger bag from MO851). Hope you had a nice day and you have similar 'scene' wherever your cards go.