If you've been a regular reader of my blog by now you know I am a researcher. Of course, my latest research "jaunt" has been Lil' D's first birthday celebration. I've been researching first birthday customs from around the world. I lookup up "African American first birthday traditions", nothing. Next, I googled "Latin American first birthday traditions" and all I got was information on Quinceañera. So, I said f'it let me google, "first birthday traditions" Guess what I found. . . a very informative link about Korean first birthday celebrations.
Koreans celebrate a child's first birthday with much fanfare and ceremony. After reading about this Dol (doljanchi, or tol), I was fascinated and wanted to incorporate several of the customs into my little Afro-Latino baby's special day. During the dol ceremony, the child is blessed with a prosperous future. "The birthday babies wear a hanbok and a traditional hat: a jobawi or gulle for baby girls and a bokgeon or hogeon (호건) for baby boys".
The highlight of the dol is a ritual where the child is placed in front of a table of foods and objects such as string, books, brushes, ink and money. The child is then urged to pick up an object from the table. It is believed the one selected will foretell the child's future. For example, if the child picks up a brush or book, he is destined to be a scholar. If he picks up money or rice, he will be wealthy; cakes or other food, a government official; a sword or bow, a military commander. If the child picks up the thread, it is believed he will live a long life. The types of objects placed on the table for the baby to choose has evolved over time, as a reflection of society's evolving perception of successful occupations. Some parents place a computer mouse on the table, which signifies success in the high-tech field, or a toothbrush, hoping that the baby will be a dentist. However, many parents remain more traditional in their selection of objects to place on the table. This is followed by feasting, singing and playing with the toddler. Most often, guests will present gifts of money, clothes, or gold rings to the parents for the child at this time. Source
After reading this I was entralled and got to work on planning this ritual into Lil D's party. I arrived upon Korean 1st Birthday Blog and KoKo Living's Dol Planner. I looked at every page of these blogs over one weekend. From all this searching I discovered Dohl Poster's and More. I was interested in having them create a Doljabi Board, container labels, and raffle tickets around Lil' D's Splish Splash party theme. Dohl Poster's and More created an almost exactly replica of Lil D's invitation. I went to Kinko's to get the digital files printed. The 20" x 30" board I mounted on gator board.
The Raffle Tickets . . .
