At 9:10 a.m. we met the social worker at the children’s hospital and she took us to the foster family’s home. It was about an hour drive from where we were staying in Seoul. We met Jaden’s foster mother and foster brother, and of course, Jaden. It was a very emotionally exhausting day. We were warned by the agency that Wednesday – the day we pick Jaden up at the hopsital –  would be the day for emotions, so I’m not sure we were fully prepared for the level of emotions today.

There are new pictures posted to the “First visit” tab. Jaden is more adorable than ever! He is definitely well taken care of – he is a little roly-poly. He has such big hands and a big smile to go with them. He loves to put his feet in his mouth. He is on a very regular sleeping and eating schedule, and unfortunately we were visiting right in the middle of nap time, but he handled it like a champ. 

His foster mom gave us a hanbok, which is traditional dress for special occasions. The first birthday of a Korean child is a very special occasion, so we will dress him in his handbok for his birthday and hopefully we will have the foster family’s address to send them pictures. 

His foster brother and foster mom were very sad. It is the first time they had a foster child and they have grown very attached to Jaden. The foster mom said that she is very sad that he will be leaving but she is also happy that he will be our son. It made me so sad for them, but it really was wonderful to see how much they love him, and how well he was cared for while living with them.

The social worker spent some time asking the foster mom a ton of questions about Jaden so that she could put a report together to give us on Wednesday when we pick him up – what he is eating, how much he sleeps and when, what he likes to do, etc. We didn’t get a new weight or height yet, but we will get that on Wednesday. I have a feeling he’ll be well into 12 month clothes by now! The agency told us that “Korean babies are fed well” and we see the proof of that in Jaden’s adorable cheeks and his heart-warming smile.

After we left the foster family’s home and made our way back to the Guesthouse, we were able to go to see the children’s reception home, which is in the same building as the Guesthouse. The social worker took us in to see where the babies are cared for until they are around 4-5 months old and a foster family is identified. It is where Jaden spent the first 5 months of his life. There were so many babies – all so tiny – and all crying for their bottles and to be held. I was surprised at how many babies were in the reception home. 

After that, we went to our room and just about crashed. We later met up with my colleague who is originally from Korea, and is now spending 6 months in Korea, teaching here at a university on a grant. His hospitality was indicative of his Korean heritage. He took us to a palace in the northern section of Seoul, where the last king lived. It is close to the president’s “Blue House.” The intricate paint work on the palace was incredible. We have many pictures to share, and once we get a chance to load them in we’ll include them here.

We went to another traditional Korean restaurant for dinner – this time a popular one for the locals. We learned that kimchi is actually a generic name for fermented food and it doesn’t have to be spicy. Sometimes it is not spicy at all (which made Dad very happy)!

We are ready to crash, and they are starting a game of bananagrams which I can’t miss due to my bananagram addiction (I think I need BAA- LOL), so I’m signing off for now. I guess it is Monday morning there…..have a great week!!!