Last full day in Seoul!!

First, thank you all for your kind words of love and support and for all the prayers!  My Facebook was lit up with them and I really appreciate it!  They are working!  Emersyn had a pretty uneventful rest of the evening and slept through the night...

We went to breakfast this morning on our own while sam-chon cleaned up...

girlfriend loves her some elevators!  She's going to wonder why our house doesn't have one!

She did some exploring on her way. :)

And a little game of ga-ku with mommy!

She's a bit like a bird when it comes to eating...never a large amount at one time, more like snack all day long!  But she took this hard boiled egg to town this morning!

People probably thought I was crazy taking pics of my kid while we ate free breakfast in our hotel! 

 But seriously, isn't she a beauty?!?!

She even took her own dishes to the attendant to wash and bowed and said kamsamnida on her way out!

Then we took a little trip to the local emart!

It was grrrrrrrrreat!

Had some Korean Pringles (they were different than the US ones and smaller!)

Spotted some Capri Sun...

And rode the cart escalator up to the second floor!

Super cool invention. :)

I was really nervous about taking Emersyn to Holt today to meet with Zoey's foster mother.  In fact, if I'm being completely honest, had mini panic attacks about it all night. Lol.  So I got in touch with DJ this morning to let her know as I just didn't think it was good to take her back a third time this week and be even more confused.  DJ agreed and let Zoey's foster mom know we would all go out to lunch instead.  But by the grace of God, Em fell asleep in the cab on the way there and slept thru the entire few minutes we were at Holt waiting for her to arrive. :)

She never even knew we were there!  

And I just had to show off her super cute kicks! 

Lunch with Zoey's foster mom was wonderful!  When she drove up, I saw her right away and she ran to me and helped me take sleeping Hui-a to her car!  She was so pleased to see me as I was her!  I really love that woman!  We went to Bulgogi Brothers and on our way I learned that her mother has been sick and she has been caring for her in her hometown, four hours away.  She made the drive all the way in just to meet with me!  I was honored.  Besides the fact that the food was delicious and Em was very well behaved, I answered tons of questions from Zoey's foster mother and she remembered Seon-mi's personality so well!  It was truly a joy to spend time with her again and the look on her face as she flipped thru the pictures I brought of her were priceless.  She kept saying eppuda over and over again!  She was happy to hear that she still goes by Seon-mi and eats lots of Korean food. :)  I did get the chance to take a picture with her, but for her privacy, have decided not to post it.  She looks just as I remembered and I was so very happy to see her again.  I only wish Zoey had been with me to greet her.  She said Zoey was her last foster since taking her home with me three years ago, and she thinks about her and misses her very much still. What a blessing it is to have this special woman as a part of our lives!

After lunch, we headed to Eastern to drop of a friend's care package, whose daughter just so happens to have a birthday just a few days away from Emersyn, is being adopted by a Korean American family as well, and to top it off, is also named Emerson. :) (just spelled differently!)  It was an honor and privilege to do so and the staff chatted with me for a few minutes, knew of the family and child I was referring to, and told us to apologize to them for the wait to get her home being so long.  It was a very sweet visit!  She asked about me being adopted from Eastern and I introduced her to Hui-a and she asked if we were through Holt.  These dedicated social workers really care about each family and child and I can assure you they are all doing their best to get each and every one home as soon as possible!

We then attempted to go catch some cherry blossoms, but with no real luck and we're about a week too early. :(

But that didn't stop Em from enjoying a little play time!

There were still some beautiful flowers to see!

Finally headed back to the hotel to start packing and Em decided to have a little snack of yogurt that her foster mom had sent with her.  She got excited when I pulled it out of the fridge!

But INSISTED that all I was to do was take the lid off and hand her the spoon!  She even cleared the entire coffee table in preparation!

She's a good little self eater!!  I love how she dips in the spoon and just licks the bottom of it, too cute!

We then headed down to the playroom again where, yes, the same kids were playing, but this time their moms were there so it wasn't nearly as strange! LOL!  Em of course got right in the middle of everything and kept trying to steal snacks from them. :)

We ended up just going to the hotel restaurant where Em wasn't interested in eating but rather dipping her cheesesticks and potatoes in the sauce and just licking it off.  This girl makes a mess when she eats and cannot sit still to save her life!  High chairs are foreign to her, but I think it's going to be necessary!

She was thrilled though to pick out some ice cream on our way home...

And what would a blog post be without bath time pics?!?!

No shortage of thrashing and splashing yet again!

She was pretty tired after only having that very short nap early in the day and started to cry pretty hard when I took her out of the bath.  But once again, I strapped her on my back and off we went for a walk in the courtyard.  Worked like a charm and she has been sleeping peacefully ever since.  No grieving tonight...

I love this country.

I love being here.

I love being Korean.

I love Holt.

I love adoption.

I love my new daughter very much.

I love her foster mothers for taking such excellent care of her.

And I love that I have had the opportunity to visit the country of my birth yet again and come full circle with the miracle of adoption.  

Thank you to God for giving me all that I have in my very full and blessed life.

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I, however, do not like 12 hour plane rides with crazy toddlers!  Wish me luck and please pray for us!!

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Goodbye from Seoul, see you back in the US where we will be united as a family of five!

Third full day of Emersyn!

But first up, my big kids!  How I miss them so!!  Cannot wait to give them a squeeze when I get home!  So thankful for technology that allows me to see and speak to them every day while I'm gone!

Another full night of sleeping and Miss Em waking up happy with a sippy cup full of uyu!

Then it was off to Holt to meet up with Zoey's foster mother, but there was some confusion and she wasn't able to make it today, so we are going back tomorrow instead!  But we had a good chat with DJ while we were there and she checked up on Em...

Emersyn's foster mother knew we would be there and had agreed to drop off a few things she had forgotten to bring on Tuesday. And as we stepped into Holt, she came running out of the waiting area to greet her!

I had no idea she was still there but I must say, it was a nice surprise.  Hui-a greeted her very excitedly and her foster mother began to cry, so happy to see her again!  I let her out of the carrier and she ran to give her a hug.  We visited a few minutes, then they said goodbye again...Emersyn seemed content and looked back to see if I was still there.  She pointed me out to her foster mother who nodded and acknowledged me as omma.  I was nervous about the interaction only because I didn't know how either would react, but it seemed as though there was some sort of understanding and before we knew it, she had said goodbye again and walked out...Emersyn seemed to do okay.

After we found out about the confusion, we took a taxi back to the hotel and my brother headed down to pick up some lunch and bring it back.  More roasted spam kimbap for Hui-a!

She loves shoes and loves being outside and going places, so she heads to the shoe room quite a bit to see what she put on her feet!

Watched a little Pororo...

Made a few phone calls...

before we headed out to explore.

Very tempted to go get a little taste of home...(in the form of Krispy Kreme)!

but went instead to walk and shop in Lotte Department Store!

LOVE seeing all the street food and dying to try some, but we've always just eaten when we spot a cart we may want to try!  I've had actual dreams about Korean street food and am determined to try at least one thing before we go!  But for now, I'll just lick my computer screen. :)  Join me, will you?!?!

We did eventually get hungry and after telling my brother about the bulgogi burger I ate last time, he was determined to track one down for himself!

Let's just say if they had these bad boys in the US, I'd be in trouble!  Come on, who wouldn't want some McDonalds fries delivered to your door?!?!

Honestly, it's not very good, but Dave wasn't leaving till he tried one!

Well, guess who else happens to like McDonalds?!?!?

We finally headed back to the hotel and I decided to take Em down to the playroom in the basement.  There were some little girls who told me they were from Saudi Arabia playing inside already and it made for a very weird dynamic at first!  They all spoke very good English, but were really rough and bossy to Em, who then started to yell at them and try to scratch them in the face??? I know, it's all sounds so awful, and I was doing nothing but having constant panic attacks!  But they finally decided to leave (we tried, but Em refused) and we had the place to ourselves to play peacefully for a bit...this girl plays hard!

We headed back up to our room and Em happened to spot one of the bottles I had brought and decided she needed to drink some more uyu from it while holding on to the stuffed Pororo I had bought her earlier in the day. 

Then she needed to take a stroller walk around the suite with Pororo and her cabbage patch aegi.

And then, it was that time...

BATH TIME!

What can I say?  Girlfriend LOVES her bubbles and water! 

 These pictures speak for themselves!

After bath and dinner, at about 7:30pm, she started pulling me toward the door and putting her shoes on...she was determined to make it outside again! So I gave in and bundled her up and strapped her to my back and we went walking around the courtyard of our hotel.  She fell asleep shortly thereafter and I kept walking just for good measure to make sure she was in a deep sleep. :)

I transferred her to our bed and she slept a good half hour or so before I came in to check on her again and she started mumbling 'Omma' in her sleep.  Before I knew it, she sat upright and remembered where she was and immediately started to cry hard.  She has not yet really cried since I picked her up on Tuesday and it was gut wrenching to hear her.  When I tried to pick her up or touch her, she pushed me away.

One of the items that her foster mother had brought to us today was a blanket she usually sleeps with...she now clung to it tightly and was the only thing that seemed to comfort her in any way.  I kept trying, and eventually she allowed me to pick her up but would not lay her head on my shoulder or relax, just cried loudly into her blanket and cried for omma.

Needless to say, I was heartbroken for her and so sad.  She was not the only one crying.

I finally laid her down in the bed and got in beside her but she again did not want to be touched.  When I would try to stroke her hair or pat her on the back, she would push my hand away.  I just kept whispering to her in Korean that it was okay, and after several more minutes, she reached out and placed one fingertip on my tshirt, just to make sure I was still there.  She didn't want much to do with me through her grieving, but seemed to still want me near.

It did not last long before she drifted back to sleep, but as I lay next to her typing this, she seems much more restless and moving around a lot in her sleep...she is also fighting some flu like symptoms that appear to be getting slightly worse, even with meds, so prayers for my sweet Em right now would be greatly appreciated, as tomorrow is our last full day in Seoul before we head home.

She has done so well since picking her up on Tuesday and has been very brave and strong minded.  I'm not sure if seeing her foster mother again today or having been reunited with her blanket triggered this grieving tonight, but I am so proud of this little girl who has experienced more in her nearly 21 months of life then most people would in a lifetime, and I love her dearly with all my heart.  As sad as it is to witness, I know this is a necessary part of the process in attaching to her new family and I pray that I will know the right things to do to make it as easy on her as possible after all she been through...

I am so thankful for the blessing of adoption...