My family knew that we were going to adopt from the beginning. There were no worries there. After all, my parents had adopted from Korea twice and everyone in our family, including the extended family, had gotten pretty used to it by the time we made our announcement. On our side, there weren’t very many questions, because anyone who mattered already knew the drill. The questions tended to be: “How long is the wait now?” “What airport will the plane fly into?”

The next step was telling my co-workers. I told my boss that we were applying to adopt from Korea. That was only fair so that we could make plans. At the time, I thought that we would be waiting much longer than we did... more

My husband was worried about how his family would react when we told them about the adoption. His family is big on family roots and he just wasn’t sure if they would embrace it or be wary of it. I was a little worried myself. There was one conversation I had with his parents before we were married. They were talking about my father-in-law’s brother and they kept stressing that he was an adoptive brother.

I thought that was a little odd. When I talk about my sister, I don’t call her my adoptive sister. When I talk about my parents, I leave off the adoptive part as well. They only time I use it is when I am explaining the relationship to curious bystanders. So, why was it important... more

Tomorrow, I’m off to Indiana to visit my friend C. She was transferred to Indiana earlier this year. We haven’t felt the separation yet because of e-mail. We are pretty much sharing little bits of our stories every day and she is has come back to visit several times. However, I have been waiting impatiently to see her new house and neighborhood.

It’s going to be a five hour trip and I’m not sure I’m excited about that. My son is finally getting the hang of potty training so we may be making quite a few stops. I’ll like the results.

Anyhow, here are some articles that caught my attention.

They are building a Korean Folk Village in Sedona, Arizona. I liked Sedona... more

Chuesok is the Korean Harvest Moon festival. This holiday is scheduled on the lunar calendar so it will fall on a different day each year. In particular Cheusok is the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar; however, the day on either side is also celebrated. It is supposed to be a lot like the U.S. Thanksgiving, but with gifts and special games.

Someone sent me some great sites if you are interested about learning more.

Link: How to Set Up a Ritual Table... more

I missed another one. I’m not sure where my mind has been lately, but obviously not on Korean holidays. October 3rd is Foundation Day in Korea. Legend has it the god-king, Tan-Gun, founded the Choson kingdom in 2333 BC. It just boggles my mind that most of the countries out there can trace their history back so far. It’s fascinating.

For information on Tan-gun, here is a link. Link: The Legend of Tan-Gun. I love things like this. It’s why I spent a good portion of my youth buried... more

Up until about the time I entered the 7th grade, I hadn’t really put much thought into the reality of adoption. To me adoption was easy and it was permanent. It never really occurred to me that there might be problems. I suppose that’s natural. After all, I only knew things from my point of view and my adoption was permanent and secure. My parents had fostered pregnant teenagers when I was little, but that wasn’t the same to me at all because there was never any expectation that those teenagers would stay.

All I knew was international adoption.... more

For those of you who don't have access to this channel (or don't have time to access this channel), click on the following link. You can watch some of the Korean shows right online.

Link: AZN TV

So, I saw in the news today that a possible successor to the United Nations Secretary-General position is a man named Ban Ki-Moon. Ban Ki-Moon is a South Korean Foreign Minister. It’s still early in the process, but it pretty exciting that he’s being considered.

According to the Christian Science Monitor:

Mr. Ban has the support of the US, which wants the process wrapped up this month, and China is expected to give Ban the nod. Indeed, Ban's most saleable quality is his ability to get along with all sides, building consensus in the process. Ban's evenhanded approach, analysts say, may be what's needed to bring a semblance of harmony and cohesion among UN members.... more

Did I get your attention with the title? I hope I did. Do I think that Korean adoptees are a second choice? I would say that 99% of the time we are not second choices. There is always that small percent that disappoints me.

One of the things that I’ve done all my life is step back and become an observer. Even when I am bound tightly to the group, I distance myself a little so that I can hear what other people are saying, see how other people are reacting… What I am hearing in the Korean adoptee world is that many feel like they are second choices. Their parents tried to have biological children first, many tried domestic adoption second and then turned to international adoption... more

When I sat down to write this post, I realized that this is the last day of September. Tomorrow is October! I can’t believe how fast time seems to be moving lately. I have to think about Halloween (I don’t have a costume for my son yet.), his birthday and (gasp) Christmas.

So considering that my mind was spinning from the realization that it almost October, I decided to share what other people are writing and give myself a chance to catch up.

1. Haircare:... more