Purposeful family living - with a French twist
Bonjour! I'm Michele Cherie: francophile, teacher, writer, runner, wife, and mama to five children. I'm a non-native French speaker from the West Coast, USA. My husband and I recently relocated our family to Alsace, France. IntentionalMama shares our bilingual journey and resources for a culturally-rich family life.
Intentional Mama is a blog that focuses on parenting, French language learning, and raising bilingual children; it exists to inspire, encourage, and inform. At times I include references to God in my writing here, but I recognize that you may be coming from different points of view. Nonetheless, in honor of Easter this weekend, here are three explanations as to why I'm raising my children to believe in God:
Read MoreThis week between Palm Sunday and Easter, Holy Week, brings back my memories of Easter (Pâques) in France. During my first exchange in France ten years ago, I lived on the campus of a Protestant theology school in Aix-en-Provence. (That's unusual for a homestay situation, but my host parents were employed there.) On Easter morning, a French friend drove me to an outdoor Easter sunrise service in a nearby village; the sunrise was glorious and I appreciated the opportunity to celebrate the resurrection of Christ with a small group of wonderful French families.
Afterwards, my host maman, host soeur and I had lunch at a friend's home where we enjoyed a meal featuring a succulent roast lamb--the first time I'd ever tasted lamb. (I'd been vegetarian for a few months before I lived in France, but chose to expand my eating preferences to educate my taste buds and to make meal preparation easier on my host family. I've eaten meat ever since.) It was far better than the mutton (aged sheep) I'd eaten in England!
Read MoreIn January I posted my family language goals for this year, explaining how I hoped to get my children to speak more often in French, their minority language. Here are some ways that I've had success in getting them to tell more stories in that minority language:
Read MoreIt's rare to find a book that enhances your knowledge of world cultures while embracing you as a cherished family friend and confidante, yet Melissa Dalton-Bradford does exactly this in her memoir, Global Mom: Eight Countries, Sixteen Addresses, Five Languages, One Family. More than a collection of tales of family globetrotting, Global Mom recounts with humor and honesty her family's journey through life-altering circumstances, and the result is a book that brims with touching truths and memorable moments.
Ever gracious, Melissa agreed to answer some questions I had for her after reading her book. (She responded from Geneva while preparing for their upcoming move to Frankfurt.) It's an honor to share her responses with you here.
Read MoreAs a fan of quality animated films, my husband was quick to purchase Disney's Frozen on DVD for the benefit of our five-year-old daughter. She adores the story, though I wish that the Blu-ray version we purchased had a French audio option. As a next-best alternative, I'm featuring some official film clips here from La Reine des Neiges, the French version, so that you and my daughter can enjoy portions of this sweet story and its music in French.
Read MoreSome of the most memorable moments of childhood revolve around stories--stories told around a table, a campfire, a photo album, or at bedtime. Take advantage of the family years by telling stories often and well! Here are some tips I'm learning to become a better family storyteller:
Read MoreI'm so grateful it's Friday! We've had painters working at our home all week, painting the trim, the doors, the hall, and the entry. (We used to do our own painting, but it's quite the challenge once you have preschoolers about.) We slept elsewhere for a night, and had to sleep with fumes and restless cats the other nights (the interior doors were removed for painting), so we're intensely grateful that our home is once again a place of peace--now with a few fresh coats of paint.
How was your week? Did you encounter any April Fools' gags? (I enjoyed reading about April Fools' Day Traditions Around the World on a recent post from Maria at Trilingual Mama). In France, April 1st is called Poisson d'Avril, and vintage postcards from this day are quite entertaining:
Read MoreI've been reading books on homeschooling since my firstborn was nine months old. I attended private schools myself, and I've always taught in public schools, but homeschooling holds such diverse educational possibilities that it was always my first choice for my children. Nonetheless, I recently re-examined that choice when I realized how much fluency my daughter could gain by spending time in an environment where French is required (rather than continuing to reply to me in English). Living outside Portland, Oregon, we're amazingly blessed to have several Francophone school options:
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