My English name is Jack.
Our oldest son is a cultural chameleon. His language and his behaviour change depending on the cultural environment. The timber in his voice will switch. He’ll count starting from a […]
Let the Summer of (multilingual) Reading begin!
If there is one thing I miss from our previous life in America, it’s got to be the library system. I’ve written about American libraries before. I remember the kids’ […]
5 wonderful new cross-cultural books well worth your time
Following a stint of abandoned books, I’ve had the pleasure of reading a few phenomenal ones that have really broadened my horizons. What a relief! It made me think of […]
Meet Emily Steele Jackson, author of TCK novel “Home, James”
Last month, I devoured “Home, James“, a brand new novel (Feb. 2018) featuring Third Culture Kid, James, who makes an epic ‘return home’ to the US after growing up in […]
You belong here.
These days, I have been filling my fringe hours preparing for an upcoming Third Culture Kid speaking engagement. In my very early morning researching, there has been a most peculiar […]
The day they asked me to speak to them in different languages
Some of our family’s best conversations happen around the dinner table. I’ll reassure you, some of our worst happen there too. Dinner in a home of young ones is a […]
DIY for Cross-Cultural Families: 8 Lightweight Gifts
There are so many clever DIY gifts out there on the internet, but I’ve been on the lookout for DIY, lightweight (weigh less than 100 grams), and upcycled gifts you’d […]
The not so warm welcome home
The following is a sequel to my last post on our recent trip to America. In that article, I shared how we all went through some adjusting, after being gone […]
Welcome back to America, Third Culture Kids!
The kids were delirious by the time we reached the rental car place in Denver. They kept flipping from giggling to crying, while I tried to make sense of the […]
How families can bridge the academic gap when moving around
I am delighted to feature this guest post written by Christianna Pangalos, Founder and CEO of TwigaTutors. Christianna helps highly-mobile US families scattered across the globe, maintain a consistent US […]
World-schooling… without the camper van!
There’s a LOT of buzz in my circles around “world-schooling”. While definitions differ, most people use the term world-schooling to talk about using the world as your school. World-schooling families […]
All in a year’s time
The daily rhythms of life in France have forced us to slow down and take in the unmistakable scent of warm baguette. Although it may sound a bit cliché, we […]
When cross-cultural kids are rejected by their own family
From this side of the ocean, I don’t have a chip on my shoulder. Those little moments of laughter or mimicking or side comments are natural and usually not out […]
Third Culture Kids in marriage: 10 survey results & trends
This past month of focusing on Third Culture Kids in relationships has been a thrilling roller coaster to say the least. It all started when the 2017 EuroTCK consultation invited […]
Third Culture Kids in love: Jackie’s story
Welcome to the third and final part of the “TCKs in Love” interview series. Join me as I interview part Chinese-Malaysian, part Filipino-Chinese Third Culture Kid Jackie who is married […]
Third Culture Kids in love: MaDonna’s story
Welcome to part two of the TCKs in love series. Join me as I interview MaDonna, who was raised in small town America and has been married to her German-Taiwanese […]
Third Culture Kids in love: Suzanne’s story
Welcome to a three part series all about married Third Culture Kids and how their Third Culture affects their relationship. For our first interview, I really wanted to hear from […]
TCK love and marriage: survey and giveaway!
Calling all Third Culture Kids in love, married TCKs or all you brave monoculturals married to TCKs! 🙂 I am collecting some data for a workshop I am hosting for […]
2017 Top French language resources for kids
A lot of linguists believe that the best language-learning method is through immersion. As in, moving to a place you have to speak it. Sounds dreamy and idyllic, right? But, […]
10 signs you are (more) at home in your new country… (phew!!)
For quite some time, we will recall the immense strain of our family’s recent move across continents, from Colorado, USA to a village in the Rhône-Alpes in France. The process […]
A simple tool to help young kids remember their travels
Our tired stroller wheels wobbled from side to side along the uneven cobblestone of the Muttrah corniche. My cousin was leading us across the busy street towards the fish market […]
So you want to move for language? The cost of an international move.
“Would you have moved to France, knowing how hard it was going to be?“ my husband asked me in the warmth of a so-called ‘green café’ on a blistery cold […]
6 Ways to show some love to a TCK
By now, you know what a Third Culture Kid (TCK) is. It’s highly possible TCKs are all around you. They are the expat kids, military kids, missionary kids, navy kids […]
Why you are unfit to mother, why ADHD doesn’t exist in France (and other BS)
You’ve seen the viral articles on the web. “European vs. American parenting: You may be embarrassed!” “Why African Toddlers Don’t Have Tantrums!” Well intended observations being morphed into gross, shame-on-you […]
Where do I belong? The early years.
Could my young children already be wrestling with their cultural identity? In preschool?? As with many profound reflections, this one came about at the table, where precious friends asked us […]
The year of the table
There is something about “The Table” that keeps drawing us in. Even before we moved to France, we owned a well-loved dining table that came with a leaf to extend […]
Geneva & Neighboring France: 5 awesome indoor activities
“My rose bush is still in bloom!” “I was sweating in my jeans!” “My red Christmas Starbucks cup looked so silly!” It was 27c / 80F yesterday in Colorado and […]
The Granny I want to be.
After dropping the kids off at our little village school, I took the right turn that takes me back home. I checked over my shoulder for oncoming cars, and it […]
Holidays are for world-schooling
Well, we’re back from our adventure to Italy. Wow. The film director and family were staying at our place between the London film premiere and a London award ceremonies (yeay!). […]
The Q&A edition!
In this post, I ask my husband (aka Tall Mountain) to share from his perspective how the transition has affected him.. Alright. Why don’t you start by painting a bit […]
The five year plan
I’ve been checking out a few of the other #Write31Days participants’ blogs and they are just so varied and fun and engaging. I happened to notice that some writers even […]
Playdate anguish
It happened so fast. I was caught a bit off guard. Our boy was asked if he wanted to come over for a playdate and he excitedly said he’d love […]
C’est les vacances!
Like clockwork, for every six weeks of French school, there’s a two week holiday. Planning for these long breaks takes some clever organization that we don’t yet have down. Ideally, […]
A good place to get sick
I heard a smack, followed by a sound that I never want to hear again for as long as I live. It wasn’t my daughter’s normal cry. It was a […]
Christmas in October
Another thing I hadn’t mentioned in my last post about house guests is that they double up as postmen and women. Growing up, not one visitor flew to America or […]
Visitors: the good and the bad
We don’t know when it happens along the cross-cultural adjustment timeline, but at some point the outsider becomes an insider. You’re developing a sense of belonging in your new home. […]
Educational field trip
The kids started their school day with the “earthquake drill”, which seems funny because we aren’t living near any fault lines. Less funny, because “earthquake drill” is actually a preschool […]
Busted by the Swiss police
Back in the States, little Red, our trusty VW Passat, pretty much drove itself to the airport. It’s transported too many people to and from Denver International Airport to count. […]
French-Mex ridiculous
Precious friends of ours live on the other side of the lake from us, over in neighboring Switzerland. We had them over on one of those delightful summer evenings where […]
I’m the third-born
Hey, um, excuse me? I’ve been crying here for quite some time. Can you even hear me above the ruckus? Can someone just get me already? I know, I know, […]
The apple juice party
Our day got off to a beautifully slow start. Big kids were up before 6:00 but somehow, they played peacefully together giving us an hour to lie in. We moseyed […]
Not all French people are foodies
France has got to be one of the most romanticized countries on the planet. Foreigners picture men wearing berets kissing kids in knee-high socks as they cycle together to the […]
How language affects transition
The whole family speaks French, which is a relief. Such a relief. Honestly, I can’t imagine how foreigners do life in France without speaking French. That said, we all speak […]
‘Yes’ people in a ‘No’ culture
France is a country that will always be part and parcel of our family. I grew up here, Tall Mountain and I dated and got married here. Despite living in […]
Making friends in a new land
It takes time to develop friendships, you know, the non Facebook type. Local folks have often made their own group of trusted friends over the years. Expatriates are usually the […]
Our family in global transition: French preschool
Have you heard about the #Write31Days challenge? The idea is to go deeper into one topic each day for a whole month. It took me until today, October 3, to join […]
Beautiful multicultural books for all ages – French edition!
Surprisingly, one of the most popular articles ever to appear on this blog was a very simple post called: Beautiful multicultural books for children. I had selected six books my […]
Adjusting to the village school
I’ve got this goofy grin on my face. It’s like I’m in on a brilliant motherhood hack or something. Following those endless hours that turned into years of rocking and […]
Calming the Rage
Papa was on a trip again and the endless day had finally come to a close. I watched the clock closely for the first possible chance to begin our bedtime […]
Surprised by Culture Shock!
We’ve lived in France for 90 days and it has probably taken several years off my life. We figured our move with little ones trailing behind was going to stretch […]