New Year Shots, pt 1

Now--I know it's been a good two and a half weeks since the lunar new year, but please forgive me for being slow. Now, I'm playing catch-up and will promise to be more consistent with posts. New year was so nice and snowy this year. The family gathering on new year's day felt extra cozy. The day before seollal, we met some friends for lunch in Insa-dong. The snow had just started to fall that day when we made it to the restaurant.

It's a restaurant that specializes in Korean-style bento boxes--kind of a fusion between Japanese and Korean cuisine. It was great, and the atmosphere was so nice; in a little hanok, we had a book-filled room of our own.

We don't have new hanbok for the boys, so the boys wore their first-birthday hanbok for school and the seollal bowing. Oliver even dressed in his for school--poor guy. I think he liked it, though. Note to self: get new hanbok for the boys so we don't have a repeat performance on their birthdays and chuseok.

Seollal morning was snowy so the boys went outside to play. Ronan spent much of his time trying to knock down icycles off the tree next to our window.

Mission accomplished!! Ronan stands victorious with his massively long icycle. A bit scary. I was like, "Don't fall, or point it at your brother, or move with it in your hand...." Seollal was also Valentine's Day. My graduate student assistant made me some chocolates and I shared them with the kids.

At halmoni's house, komo helps the kids get dressed. They are preparing to bow, and will get money in return--yay!

Komo demonstrates how to bow.

The centerpiece of the seollal feast: ddok guk.

The kids played yut nori (a traditional New Year's game) with their komo and cousin.

Komo also got the kids some treats, like this bubble maker--Ronan blew some massive bubbles!

Seollal was also cousin Haenee's birthday.

Cousin Jae visited from Australia--it was the first time we've seen him in 12 years and the kids had never met him before this day.

The kids get money from komo after doing their bows.

New Year's money from halmoni.