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Third Culture Mama

Raising bridge-builders

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Cultural Reflections

Cultural Reflections

Busted by the Swiss police

October 11, 2016November 1, 2016 Third Culture Mama

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. […]

Cultural Reflections

Not all French people are foodies

October 7, 2016November 1, 2016 Third Culture Mama

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 […]

Cultural Reflections

This gift of diversity

September 19, 2014January 16, 2015 Third Culture Mama

How desperately, do I want to teach our kids to be lovers of this world. Interesting then, when it actually came to inviting the so-called ‘world’ into our home (without us […]

Cultural Reflections

God Bless America.

July 5, 2014March 5, 2015 Third Culture Mama

The first Fourth of July I experienced as an Adult Third Culture Kid was in 2008. We went to some highly political parade in the middle of the country. We […]

Cultural Reflections

Introducing Mandarin

April 15, 2014November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Ayo’s first introduction to Mandarin was uneventful. I didn’t take him to some toddler class. Oh no, it wasn’t that glamorous. I have come to realize that the best language […]

Cultural Reflections

Constant acts of kindness

April 3, 2014November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

I find that the mundane often meets the extraordinary these days. Date: Friday, March 7, 2014 Time: 11:30am [Read: soon to be collective meltdown time for kiddos.] Place: Our little neighborhood […]

Cultural Reflections

The iconic American cookie

March 20, 2014November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

I was driving the hubs to the airport the other day when I noticed this hotel shuttle with a gargantuan chocolate chip cookie on the side… The branding person inside […]

Cultural Reflections

This just happened…

October 17, 2013November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Hi there, We just returned home by airplane and our tube of SunnyBaby SPF 30 squeezed out into our suitcase. I am wondering how best to wash the lotion out […]

Cultural Reflections

When less is more…

October 2, 2013November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Last week, I returned our ill-functioning blender we had bought over two years ago. Tall Mountain put it on my “to do list” and I shuddered thinking of the battle […]

Pico Iyer: Where is home? (TED Talk)

August 1, 2013November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

I posted this beautiful TED talk by Third Culture Kid author Pico Iyer to my Facebook wall the other day, but I am not sure the fast pace of social […]

Cultural Reflections

French vs. American Butchery

May 28, 2013February 19, 2015 Third Culture Mama

After visiting the farm and pouring over the details (quality of beef, cost, transportation etc), we finally decided to purchase a whole cow with three other families. One of the […]

Cultural Reflections

After Boston…

April 16, 2013November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

I shudder when hearing news about someone intentionally trying to inflict harm, breed fear and to snuff out life. Who wouldn’t? How sick in the mind do you have to […]

Cultural Reflections

Rwandan colored spectacles

March 19, 2013November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Have you ever thought about how strange your life looks behind a different cultural shade of our world’s glasses? Today, my Rwandan mama friend came over for a spontaneous playdate, […]

Cultural Reflections

新年快乐

February 10, 2013November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Happy Chinese New Year! We had such a blast celebrating Ayo’s first Chinese New Year at church. It was a bilingual Mandarin/English service with music, dance, short preaching, kids performance, […]

Birth

A woman’s world?

February 2, 2013November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Our African friends just gave birth to a precious baby girl. This was their first birth in the United States, so it felt natural to ask about how this experience […]

Copywriting fun.

January 23, 2013January 23, 2013 Third Culture Mama

Great advertising combined with playful copywriting gets my creative juices flowing. Does it yours? It brings me back to the fun side of my advertising days. When copy is done […]

Cultural Reflections

Living in the tension

November 30, 2012November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

Well, on Monday, we flew over to Europe again. I had to remind myself what was in our suitcases as I pictured them still having the contents of our last […]

Cultural Reflections

American dental skepticism

October 23, 2012November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

It all started as an innocent visit to the dentist for a cleaning and check-up late August. We brought Ayo to the dentist in his car seat and meticulously coordinated […]

你会想到什么?

September 24, 2012September 25, 2012 Third Culture Mama

So, I finally got around to reading Ayo the Chinese children’s book entitled 你会想到什么?with the awkward English translation: “What would you imagine?”. We borrowed it from the library the other […]

Cultural Reflections

TCK goes to hoity toity hair salon

September 18, 2012November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

I got my hair cut on Saturday. I don’t cut it that often so it was a rare treat. It’s even more of a treat now that getting a haircut […]

Breastfeeding

Breast is Best!

July 10, 2012November 24, 2014 Third Culture Mama

If there is anywhere that you’d imagine would be breast-feeding friendly, it would be Europe, right? Well, after meeting the husband of the chick who brought La Leche League to […]

Une journée en France*

July 6, 2012August 3, 2012 Third Culture Mama

Following yesterday’s long travel day, we bathed Ayo in his borrowed blow-up duck bath and then we all went to sleep fairly early. We cocked open the windows to enjoy […]

pregnant belly
Cultural Reflections

TCK and Pregnant

June 20, 2012November 23, 2014 Third Culture Mama

When I returned to my passport culture a few years back, I was forced to face my webbed closet of pent up prejudices and questions surrounding both my identity and […]

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