wee, WEE, wee all the way home!: The Girls' Birthday Parties

Before the month gets completely away from me- I need to post about our girls' birthday parties. I think this is actually the third post covering Miller's birthday. From taking a cookie cake to school, celebrating the actual day and then having a party with her friends, the celebrating has definitely gotten spread out!
We'll start with Eliza Grace's party because it was first. Her first birthday was on the 10th. She had phone calls from a couple of her great grandparents (I was completely impressed that they remembered her special day- so sweet) to start the day off and then as a family we went out to eat and opened her birthday presents.

We went to one of our favorite Asian places- sadly there's not a purely Korean place around, but this is pretty close. Our server was so confused when he was taking our drink orders. He was trying to concentrate on us, but his eye kept wandering to the picture of Eliza Grace with a 1st birthday hat strapped to it! I explained that we were celebrating our daughter's birthday but that she wasn't home yet. I think he got it, but then all the staff thought she was Chinese- and were completely confused when I said she was from Seoul! She'll be here for her next birthday- we'll let her do all the talking!

In Korea the first birthday party is called the Dol and it is a BIG deal. Here's a fun website to browse- check out the check list for your dol. Let's just say, we missed a few things! One fun part of the Dol is the doljabi. This is a game where the baby is place in front of a group of toy objects that represent things in her future. The party guests watch as the baby crawls to and grabs something of interest. The first things the baby grabs are supposedly the most significant- or will be their career.

We did a version of this. Obviously Eliza Grace wasn't here to choose so I printed a few cards with some icons on them folded them up, put them in a bag, and Wilson and Miller got to choose- blindly. Miller chose an abacus and Wilson chose a crown. So we'll have a royal accountant! (the other options were a computer, drafting table, microphone, black board, and paint- mostly things from our family members' occupations)

Her birthday presents- before and after. The books and bunny were from us. I bought the Little Miss Spider book last spring. The Lord had just begun to work in our hearts about this adoption journey when I pulled this off the shelf at a local store. In it Little Miss Spider gets separated from her mom after her egg hatches. An older bug helps her as she searches and keeps her safe from danger. In the end she decides that a mother is not someone that looks just like you, but the one that loves you best. I bought the book right then and there- just in case these whispers in my heart ever came to be. Her brother drew her the picture and Granna got her the baby doll. Her Aunt Ashley got her the car- it was a set of two. We sent one in her care package and kept one to have when we get her.

At the end of the week it was FINALLY time for Miller to celebrate with her friends. This was quite the wait for a three year old. She new she was having a party at the church with the jumpy and her friends and asked everyday between her real birthday and the party day if TODAY was the day for the jumpy (eight days- in case you were wondering!) She had a great party. All she really requested were cupcakes- so the church and jumpy were just icing on the, well, cupcakes! The highlight was that the tube from the jumpy to the blower kept coming detached. Most kids were traumatized, but Miller who knows no fear thinks it's hilarious and is still talking about "da jumpy fell down!" with a huge smile on her face!