Joe's Story - Part I

Joe was born Sung Ming Kim on August 25, 2010.  His mom, a woman who studied Japanese in college, named him well.  In Korean, Sung means "to achieve" and Min means "smart".  This little man has great potential.


When he was 4 days old, Joe (Sung Min) spent a few days in the hospital making sure his ability to feed was where it should be.  Since he as 24 pounds at 6 months of age, he definitely had no long term feeding issues.  At 6 weeks old, Joe was placed in foster care.


On February 18, 2011, Joe's life was forever changed, although he would not realize it for many months.  On this date, Joe was matched with our family.  I received a call around 9:40 a.m. from our social worker, who told us she had very good news.  She said we had been matched with a little boy and that she could meet with us later that day to go over the details.  This was, of course, the ONE day that Brian was impossible to reach.   We had spoken just before we received that call and, try as I might, I could NOT get hold of Brian.  And I didn't know what the phone number to his OR was, so I waited. And waited.


That night, our social worker was having a dinner party at home so her time was limited.  I told her I could meet her near her house and Brian could meet us when he god off work.  It all worked out and we had our first glimpse of Joe.  The boy who could be our son. I immediately noted to our SW that I saw a resemblance to Brian -- he was a beautiful, healthy boy and we were ready to call him our son.


A few days later, we accepted his referral and sent in the next batch of paperwork.  We were thrilled to be able to announce that we had a child. A son. A new addition to our family.


A few months later, in June, Joe was placed into a new foster home, one that was willing to take on the additioal challenges of raising a child nearing his first day.  What an incredible blessing this turned out to be.  The Choi family is amazing.  They have been fostering for years and each child is treated like family.


In June, an email appeared in our inbox that was written in a foreign language.  Although it was 4:30 am, I had a sneaking suspicion that this was written in Korean -- and seeing there were attachments, my curiosity was piqued.  What an incredible blessing to see pictures of our little man.  Precious is an understatement.  I may be biased, but this boy is beautiful. And don't get me started on how kissable those cheeks are... 


This was the first of many emails we have received over the past two months.  It has been wonderful to get to know Kyung Sook and her family - as well as others who have had the privilege of having Omma and Appa as their Korean family.   I am beyond excited that in just a few days, I will be able to celebrate Joe's Dol, or first birthday celebration.  Kyung Sook and her family would like me to be present for this occasion - and I wouldn't miss it for the world.


On Saturday, August 27, 2011, I will be meeting my son for the first time at his birthday party. I. Can't. Wait. I'm thrilled that my friend Amy will be with me on this amazing day (and throughout our time in Korea).  On August 29, we will be seeing the foster families and our children at KSS for a few hours.  This will be a wonderful opportunity to ask questions and see our children with those they know and love.  On August 31, 2011, Joe's life will be forever changed.  To be continued.