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’ […]
Multilingualism
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 […]
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, […]
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 […]
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 […]
Ignore the kids!
There is plenty of advice out there about getting kids to speak a second or third (weaker) language. One of my absolute favorite ways to get the kids speaking a […]
For weary parents of bilinguals
A very pregnant Nae chased me around the park. She had overheard me speaking to the kids in French and was looking for tips. Encouragement, really. Nae had stopped speaking […]
New language goals!
You might remember how down I was on New Year’s resolutions in 2015. I didn’t set any goals at the beginning of last year other than the resolve to just […]
Language-learning: an alive, natural, changing process
When I first thought about this month’s Multilingual Carnival topic on “lost languages“, I didn’t think we had all that much to share. Our kids are all under four years […]
Little language vignettes
After picking up a collection of short stories on clearance at a bookstore earlier this year, I rediscovered a wealth of beauty in the novella. That seemingly random purchase taught […]
Bilingual Avenue Podcast
I am really honored to feature on this week’s episode of Bilingual Avenue, a weekly podcast with insightful tips and advice from language experts and normal parents like us, raising […]
Sibling dynamics in multilingualism
Choosing and implementing a language strategy with your first child is often more straightforward than when the next child comes along. We generally speak more to our first-borns, we spend […]
Expecting a multilingual baby!
What a life-altering experience it is to welcome a first baby into your home. Like many first time mamas who find themselves in this age of information overload, I felt […]
Advent around the world
Living in Germany first gave me an insight into the craft of the homemade advent calendar. Ten years ago, a German friend of mine showed me a perfectly engineered cardboard […]
Bilingualism: 3 Myths
It is amazing how much unsolicited and unfounded advice you receive when you expose your children to multiple languages. These misconceptions often come from individuals who never had a bilingual […]
The case against bilingual books
Our local library branch recently purchased a handful of English/French bilingual books to add to their collection. Knowing our excitement for new books to read in French, the library staff […]
Introducing Mandarin
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 […]
Mama thoughts at TWO!
We have a two year old! We once marveled at our infant boy’s mini features, wondering who he would become. Today, we already have glimpses of who this little boy […]
Guitar in the park
It was about 3:30pm when we arrived at the park. We had so much fun there yesterday that we had to come back for more. The intense mountain sun again […]
Language & travel: seizing the opportunities
I just finished reading Maria Babin’s thoughtful post on multilingualism and travel. When thinking about traveling with children for the sake of language acquisition, or to see family, or just […]
Hindsight is always 20/20
I recall sitting in a cozy café, sipping a frothy cappuccino while reading all the books I could find on the subject of multilingual parenting atop a basketball-shaped belly. I […]
Language tiers
Back when I was reading up about bilingual parenting, I found one book that wrote about the importance of understanding which tier your languages fall into. It went on to […]
Babies and language
For all of you interested in infant language assimilation, here are some fascinating TED talks I just have to share! Patricia Kuhl: The linguistic genius of babies (On critical periods […]
新年快乐
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, […]
A bilingual playdate
Given the size of our city, I feel really fortunate that there are enough francophone and francophile families to plan French Meetup playdates. I have probably been stalking this one […]
你会想到什么？
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 […]
Schedule and language update
Re-reading a few of my latest posts sure make me think that much of parenting child number one is very much experimental. Not at all accidental, but so very experimental. […]
Élise meets Liza meets Liese
Unfortunately, Tall Mountain introduced me to the hick (TM’s qualifier), depressing Liza and Henry’s bucket hole the other day. Liza officially shattered my image of sweet Élise gallivanting in fields […]
Language experiment
On Sunday, Tall Mountain himself proposed ramping up Ayo’s French exposure by asking me to speak French to him (to papa) when Ayo was around. Up until now, if you […]
On Sophie & Serge
I have wanted to write a blog post about multilingual parenting for a few weeks now. Thanks to an article I read yesterday, written by an exhausted multilingual mother, it […]