Special days can be a little tough when you are away from family...at least for this extremely sentimental girl. Birthdays are no exception. I have come to the conclusion that birthdays are becoming less fun the older I get. It's not that I mind getting older. I believe that with each year you are gaining knowledge, friends, experiences, opportunities that are amazing and only come with age. Sometimes I just miss all the memories of fun birthday parties that my mom put so much thought and work into. As per our tradition, Robert and I celebrated out birthdays together since we are only a week apart. We decided on our favorite Samgapsil restaurant and made reservations. The man is such a sweetie and was delighted that we had chosen his restaurant for the occasion. He had the table set nicely when we arrived and served us with diligent attention (especially me, but that's just because he really likes me) :) A few of our friends were able to join us for the celebration and it was a lovely evening spent in good company.
Eric and Bogyeoung
Jordan and Bethany
Hannah
(she was upset because the owner only took
pictures of the couples and forgot about the singles:)
Kristen
The owner~ we will really miss him and his restaurant when we move to Gimcheon!
After dinner we returned to the apartment for dessert, music, and games. With this group, there is always music being made and I love it!
I would say a war is about to ensue...
Party poppers are poised and ready... and POW! afterwards you only have a small amount to clean up. Makes sense to me :)
Korean bakeries supply you with candles, matches, party poppers, and a knife. Seriously they think of everything :) I really like their candle system too. It makes a lot of sense. The taller candles represent 10 years and the small candles represent 1 year. Our candles added up to a total of 49 years :)
What do you do when your feet are cold? Put on the nearest set of slippers you can find! :)
It is not a party until the scrabble tiles are pulled out! This game went until about 1:30am!
After most of the crowd left (Hannah spent the night), we decided to open our gifts. My mom and dad had sent a gift back with us at Christmas which I had sitting on our desk untouched until the party.
So, Robert turned 25 and I turned 24...however, in Korean age he is 26 and I am 25. "Does that come as an advantage?"you might ask. Well, usually I tell my American age, but there are a few instances that I rely on my Korean age. For example, in Korea age is extremely important and you lose respect the younger you are. There is something called the "Confucian Order" which ranks you against others based on a series of questions.
1. How old are you?
2. Are you married?
3. What is your occupation
4. How much is your salary?
By asking these simple questions, a person can automatically place you in a particular category. I have only had this happen to me once and believe me when I say...I didn't make the cut. Because I am so young and I am married but have no children, I am often placed in an "acquaintance" category. Now, all that to say, at times its nice to be a year older without actually lying :)
To say the least, a great time was had and we are so blessed to have wonderful friends to share special events with. It took the sting out of being away from family on our birthdays for sure. So, thanks to all who made our days extra special. We love you!
Since we had the joint celebration, we kept the actual day pretty low key. On my birthday we ate Samgapsil again (seriously, its that good!) but at a different place. Jordan, Bethany, Kristen, Ted (from church), Robert, and I had a lovely dinner together.
Since the Master's degree waits for no man or birthdays for that matter, we headed on over to Cafe Bene to study. I couldn't go the night without at least a piece of Birthday cake (yes, I'm that narcissistic) :), so we got a delicious piece of brownie cheesecake.
So, in answer to your question,
yes... I feel infinitely wiser and mature following the events of my 24th birthday.
Thanks for asking.
For Robert's birthday we happened to be in Daegu (a post coming soon) spending the lunar new year with our great friends, Jo and Chad Newton. They were so sweet to make sure Robert had a great birthday. We at a wonderful Indian restaurant and then headed to a cozy cafe to sip coffees, eat birthday dessert, and play games. It was the perfect setting and we had a wonderful time together.
Speaking on his behalf, I think Robert would echo my sentiments that being with friends made this day special and not seem like just an ordinary day.
Later that week we went out for a special Birthday date~ just the two of us. We decided on T.G.I.Fridays and a movie~ "Puss in Boots 3D". The food was great, movie was so funny and, as always, enjoyed each other's company immensely!
Astonished, once again, at the size of American portions! :)
So, yeah, I guess you could say we had nice birthdays this year :) We're ready to see what all this year has in store for us! Thanks to all our friends and family who took the time to wish us happy birthday or send us cards or gifts. We love you and thank you so much for your thoughtfulness. It really does mean the world to us! You are the very best of friends. Love you!
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