100 Days

Today Nathan celebrates his 100 days. Who's counting?

From asiainfo.org

In Korea, on the 100th day after a child's birth, a small feast is prepared to celebrate the child's having survived this difficult period.  The family, relatives and friends then celebrate with rice cakes, wine, and other delicacies such as red and black bean cakes sweetened with sugar or honey.  To prevent potential harm to the child and to bring him or her good luck and happiness, red bean cakes are customarily placed at the four compass points within the house. If the steamed rice cakes are shared with 100 people, it is believed that the child will have a long life. Therefore, rice cakes are usually sent to as many people as possible to help celebrate the happiness of the occasion. Those who receive rice cakes return the vessels with skeins of thread, expressing the hope of longevity, and rice and money, symbolizing future wealth.

The more modern acknowledgment of this milestone, according to one of Kyle's managers that helped me organize his celebration, is that they pass out cute little rice cakes on his or her 100th day.  More traditional Koreans probably do the rice cakes at the four compass points in the home, etc. In fact, strict traditionalists say that you shouldn't bring your baby out of the house before their 100th day. Oops, Nathan already has stamps on his passport! (And just ask my mom about the speech she got from a Korean couple when we were out with Nathan at the N Seoul Tower at three weeks old!)

Anyway, with the help of San, we ordered the celebratory rice cakes and all that goes with it. I don't know if she was helping me because I am the wife of the boss or just felt bad that I am basically a functional illiterate and was nervous that I might make Kyle look bad by ordering the wrong rice cake package--but who cares. Help is help!

All she needed was a selection, credit card, a picture and the inscription and she would take care of the rest. I picked the rice cakes, sent a picture and told her that she knew better than I did what should be traditionally written on the tab.

They turned out very cute and were delivered to Kyle's office on time, thanks to San.  She texted me this morning saying, "The cakes are very nice and everyone is congratulating Kyle and saying Nathan looks just like him."  Awww.

The final product

It reads, "Thank you for celebrating Nathan's 100 days anniversary. We will raise him as a boy with generosity and wisdom. Shelby and Kyle Crockett."

They don't smell delicious and they didn't taste like anything special (Kyle and I just can't get behind the idea of rice cakes as a dessert as pretty as they are), but Pete liked them.


At the end of the day, Kyle's teams were appreciative that he acknowledged and participated in a traditional Korean celebration. And that was the whole idea. 

Happy 100th day to Nathan! :)sbc