Sunday, January 16, 2011

Sahn's First Birthday

In Korean culture, the 1st birthday and the 60th are really big deals. Sahn has a long way to go before his 60th, but his dol (also called doljanchi - see wikipedia) was held last night. As you'll see, when I said it was a really big deal, I meant it. First birthday parties are usually held in banquet halls, involve lots of eating, have numerous guests and a emcee, and last for several hours. The highlight of the party is when the baby is placed in front of a table of items (string, a bow-n-arrow, scrolls, a quill, money, etc) - and the first thing he chooses is supposed to predict his future. For example, if a baby chooses the bow, he will be a successful warrior; if he chooses the money, he will be wealthy. Check out the pictures I took below to view Sahn's dol from my point of view... and to see what he chose :-)

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Samson, Sahn, Gwen

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Gwen and Sahn

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Gwen and Sahn

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Gwen, Sahn, Samson, and the emcee

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The table of items from which Sahn got to choose (money was added to the table before the selection began)

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This is Sahn throwing the money off the table! Hahaha :-)

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Sahn chose the string - meaning he will have a long life.

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Gwen, Sahn, and Samson

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Me, Sahn, and Gwen

The complete set of photos can be seen by CLICKING HERE.

2 comments:

Diana said...

So much cute!

Brooke said...

Jane, in case I don't say it often enough, my God, your pictures just get better and better. I love the soft blurred background in the mother and child shot! So colorful, those Koreans. :)