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11 African-American Children’s Books for Christmas and Kwanzaa
Some great children's books featuring African-American characters that celebrate Christmas and Kwanzaa as well as a short explanation of Kwanzaa.
Is Hanukkah the Jewish Christmas?
In recent years, Hanukkah has become increasingly commercialized. Perhaps in an effort to keep up with the shopping frenzy ethos of the Thanksgiving—Christmas “holiday” season, my children (and many others) have come to view Hanukkah as an eight-day present-receiving extravaganza.
Good Versus Evil Barbies for Christmas
This year P has been adamant that she is asking Santa for Barbies. This makes sense, as nearly all her friends have them and there’s nothing like peers to create a need where one didn’t previously exist. I vowed I wouldn’t cave in to things I really disapprove of but I do have a number of good memories playing with my Barbies.
How We Honor Christmas When We’re Not Christian
For the many families who practice faiths other than Christianity, Christmas can be the source of as much angst as joy. Each year we must grapple with questions such as: How do we explain to our little ones why Santa doesn't come to our house? Is it wrong to string up some lights or put up a tree even if Christmas isn't really our holiday? More fundamentally, how do we teach our children to respect this special time without confusing them about their own religious identity?
All I Want for Christmas is Perfectly Bilingual Children
When it comes to raising a bilingual child, I have several beliefs about how you can waste your time.
How Becoming Muslim Helped Me Like Christmas
Around 10 years ago, I stopped celebrating Christmas with my family. Then I became Muslim; I actually had a legitimate excuse to not celebrate Christmas. But when I started to go to mosque for Friday prayers, over and over again I was told about the importance of family relations
Christmas for the Very First Time
This year, I celebrated Christmas in my own place with my wife and three daughters. It was the first time that I did this and I'm 41 years old. Wow. What sounds a little bit weird is actually more due to the way we expats live.
Armenian Christmas Recipe: Anooshabour (Armenian Christmas Pudding)
This is a traditional Armenian Christmas recipe. In the early days, at every Armenian feast, Anooshabour was a traditional must!
Armenian Christmas: January 6
Armenian Christmas, also known as Theophany, is celebrated one day before the Orthodox Christmas. Although Armenia follows the Gregorian calendar, when the Romans changed the date of Christmas to December 25 in the fourth century, Armenians held to the original January 6th date.
Muslim Children and Christmas
Christmas is a favourite time of year for most people, parties, gifts, special foods and family traditions--what is not to like? But for most Muslim's this time of year always brings with it a host of issues to consider: should we participate? Should we join in the office parties and games of Secret Santa? Or should we avoid the celebration totally, writing it off as not part of our faith.
Is Christmas any less Christian if you put up a Bodhi Day tree?
I nearly scared my children to death with the pronouncement, "Now that weire Buddhist, maybe we shouldn't celebrate Christmas anymore."
How to Choose the Right Preschool in Multicultural Families
Choosing the right school for your kid is a decision that many parents don’t take lightly and it starts from preschool. The level of...
What Cultural Norms Around Bare Feet Taught This Mother in Guatemala
Her barefoot baby ended up giving her a lesson on poverty and privilege.
Does Religion Matter? Juggling Two Faiths in One Family
I have been looking for daily family rituals as a way to reinforce values that we care about: family, community, compassion and love. What's the best way to transmit these values to our kids?
The History of Juneteenth
Juneteenth is an American holiday that is celebrated in honor of the legal abolition of slavery.
How African Societies Protect the Innocence and Magic of Childhood
Imagine if an understanding of the innocence of childhood is so deeply embedded into society, it is not even a topic of conversation.
Is Motherhood More Bitter Than Sweet?
Motherhood is more difficult than I thought it would be, a lot more difficult. The witching hour is no joke, and is why, I am certain, cocktail hour was invented.
A Year of Multicultural Picture Books for the Global Child
If you have not been including diverse books in your reading diet, this is a great beginner’s guide that will last you for the year.
12 Days of Multicultural Musical Activities (Part Two)
Here's part two of our 12 days of multicultural musical activities as a fun way to wrap up 2013, welcome 2104 and prepare for Chinese New Year coming in late January.
12 Days of Multicultural Musical Activities (Part One)
Here are 12 different ways you can make the holidays bright by exploring diversity and making music.
Mexican Wedding Cookie Recipe
Awesome recipe for yummy Mexican wedding cookies.
9 Children’s Books for Hispanic Heritage Month
Let's explore Latino culture and heritage with these children's books. Here are our recommendations for ages infant through eight+.
15 Ideas to Donate Your Child’s Birthday
Why do presents when you can donate your child’s birthday to so many great causes
Creative Ramadan Calendar with Arabic Numbers
A creative approach to to helping my kids count the days of Ramadan until Eid, with an added bonus of helping with their Arabic numbers.
Ramadan Star and Moon Craft
I used some of my kids' art and other recycled materials to make this fun, dangling star and moon craft for Ramadan.
Homemade Art Books for Ramadan
The best present my kids have received year after year.
How I Reclaimed the House from My Mother-in-Law
Ever since my daughter was born 14 months ago, there’s been a war between cultures in my household. As the Canadian underdog surrounded by Chinese culture, I’m the one who has had to be more flexible, particularly related to the Chinese tradition in which extended family comes to care for both the infant and the new parents. In my culture, the new grandparents might come and stay for a week or two after a baby has been born, but then they leave.
Italian Easter Cookies
I come from a family of Italian-Americans, at least on one side. This recipe comes to me via an amazingly talented chef, my Aunt Valerie, who learned it from her Italian Aunt Angie.
What is Home for My Adopted Son?
I’ll never forget the day I pulled into our driveway and my then two-year-old son, who really only knew a dozen words at the time, looked out from his car seat at our small white house in Los Angles and said, “Home.” He had only been with us for about a year and a half at the point. “This is good,” I thought. “Yes, Melese. You are home.”
Is TV in Mandarin helpful or overkill for my trilingual Cantonese-speaking child?
We are an OPOL family, speaking Italian (father), Cantonese Chinese (mother) and English (between the parents) at home. For Christmas I bought myself a device to stream TV from China but find that it is mostly in Mandarin, not Cantonese. Should I let my daughter watch?
My Chinese New Year: Welcoming the Year of the Snake
As a first generation American, you always watched other families sitting around a Christmas tree or carving a turkey, consoled by watching reruns of “It’s a Wonderful Life.” But Chinese New Year—that was different. That was my holiday, the one that made waking up early exciting, slowly lulled awake by the smells of burning incense, and the 10 special dishes my mom prepared, dishes with names that alluded to prosperity and luck.
The Rollercoaster of International Relocation as a Family of Five
The last time I lived as an expat, I was single, nineteen, with no dependents. I had dropped out of college and moved to Europe to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. When I accepted an international assignment last year, my return to the expat life included a husband, three kids and two pets. This probably doesn’t need to be said but moving a family of five (or seven if you count four-legged and winged members) is no simple feat.
29 Tips for Raising Bilingual Kids
Raising a child with good bilingual ability can be a significant challenge. How do you support the minority language so that it keeps pace with the relentless development of the majority language?
St. Nicholas Day: December 6
St. Nicholas Day is a popular celebration for many children across Europe. St. Nicholas is the predecessor to Santa Claus and has a reputation for his generosity.
Glühwein Recipe (hot wine punch)
Glühwein is popular in all the German-speaking countries, the Netherlands and the Alsace region of France as a traditional holiday drink. The secret of glühwein is the more you heat it up, the less alcohol remains in. In other words, if you want to make it a spiritual drink for adults you should make sure that the glühwein is not boiling.
Cooking 101: First Family Recipes
I’ll never forget, standing on my tippy-toes, chin resting on the white tile counter, while my mother measured out the ingredients into the deep bottom green Pyrex salad bowl, explaining to me the critical ratio of red wine vinegar to vegetable oil. Yes, our use of vegetable oil dates me to being raised during the PO or pre-olive oil era. The vinaigrette, which in our family consists of dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, salt, oil and shallots, is the first ‘dish’ I ever prepared.
Creating Our Own Thanksgiving Asian-American Style
Every year, it was the same routine. Early November, my mother would start thinking aloud, “What do Americans eat for Thanksgiving?” then take my brother and me on a special trip to the grocery store to buy the turkey. That is what they eat on Thanksgiving. However, since there were only four of us and since my mother did know how to roast a turkey, she would forego the whole bird for a frozen loaf of turkey meat in an aluminum tray. Then she would pick out a package of gravy mix and a box of instant mashed potatoes.
Raising Globally-Minded Children—What? How? And Why?
One day, while driving around in our car, my four-year-old son complained from behind, “Ma, I wish all of us were not Indians. It is boring. You or Appa could have been Mexican or Italian.” I smiled at his wish for our family to be biracial. I was also proud because the global mindset that we have tried to infuse in our children early on, was presenting itself in little ways—like how he thought a third language or a piñata could spice up our lives.
Indonesian Yellow Coconut Rice (Nasi Kuning)
Every year, my mom would make nasi tumpeng, a unique Indonesian rice combination. She would start by making rice flavored with coconut, turmeric and other herbs, which she would shape into a conical pyramid and place on a bed of folded banana leaves. Here is how you can make this Indonesian classic.
Real Intercultural Family in the Netherlands: Polish, German and Dutch
She's Polish, he's German and they are raising kids in Holland.
The Secrets of Raising an Enlightened Child – Part III
How to apply mindfulness around the difficult years of puberty. Around age eight or nine is when a child begins to transition from a magical way of perceiving the world to a more literal outlook.
A Marriage That Breaks all the Rules
We’re your typical nontraditional family
Growing Up Baha’i in Rural Maine: A Not-so-Secret Double Life
Blonde, blue-eyed, and with the exceedingly fair skin of her Swiss-German ancestors, my daughter blended well into the sea of faces in her first grade classroom. But the truth was then and is now that she feels more at home with the one Iranian Muslim family in town, which shares with us one of our major holidays—Naw Ruz—as well as the practices of fasting and daily obligatory prayer.
Celebrating a Holiday You Probably Haven’t Heard Of
I belong to a faith with virtually no rituals, and holidays almost no one around me has heard of. As a Baha’i, we avoid rituals but we do worship God, have sacred writings and prayers, a rich history, a worldwide community, laws (like getting the consent of living parents before marriage), and guidelines for daily living.
The Holidays in Multicultural Families
The burden of responsibility when you are the only one responsible for passing on holiday traditions
Progress Report: Mission Arabic-Speaking Babysitter
This past week, we have had our new Arabic-speaking babysitter everyday for a total of 12 hours all week. From day one, she had told me the girls understand her 100%, which we know already, it is just their speaking Arabic that has been problematic.
How My Kids Lost and Found Their Native Language
I feel defeated when I watch childhood home videos of my two daughters, Alina and Alexa. In the videos, they are speaking their beautiful native tongue, a bittersweet memory, as they lost their ability and desire to speak it as they got older.
Three Kings Day: January 6
Christmas is just one marker on the festive path through the holidays that culminates in Three Kings Day (El Dia de los Reyes Magos also known as Epiphany).
Real Intercultural Family in the U.K.: Arabic, French, German and English
She’s Algerian, he’s German and they make us all jealous raising perfectly quadrilingual kids.
Remembering Their Birth Mother’s Face
My first Christmas with my Ethiopian children came 10 months after they were officially adopted into our family. During the year that we settled in, we learned that one of our daughters was still heavily grieving the loss of her mother two years earlier. One of the most difficult struggles for Ella was that she was starting to forget her mother’s face.
St. Nicholas Craft: Your Own Krampus to Keep Kids in Line
Tired of Santa and other Christmas crafts? Here's the most non-Santa, original craft around--guaranteed. And it will even help your kids to behave.
Why Kids Need the Scary Stuff Too
During one of our adoption homestudy visits, I remember scrambling to move a large framed print of a green devil from view in our TV room. Yet, the framed Korean mask dance figures which appeared far scarier to me at the time, remained on display. This was my choice, of course, but I felt it was dictated by expectations of our family and household. "Multiculturalism" is good, "devil" is bad.
Real Intercultural Family in the U.S.: Korean and English
This American family incorporates two distinct cultures that are not their own and they all are learning Korean.
The Dangers of Consumerism and the Muslim Child
I suspect those who celebrate Christmas will be familiar with the way I felt a day or so after last Eid. Having received numerous toys, the kids took a cursory look at each and then left them to one side, forgotten.
Real Intercultural Family in Guatemala: Hebrew, Spanish, Portuguese and English
Despite a pediatrician who told this Israeli/Guatemalan/American family that speaking more than one language would be detrimental to their children’s mathematical abilities, they have successfully raised two quadrilingual kids.
Real Intercultural Family in France: German, French and English
This interracial French-American family are raising trilingual (German-French-English) kids in the South of France and may introduce Amharic as well. So how do Amharic and German fit into all that?
Supernatural Conception: HIV Adoption
We are about to embark on another adoption journey. This time we call it an accidental adoption but it really is more like supernatural conception and childbirth. We thought we were done.
Benefits of Raising Bilingual Children: Correcting My Grammar
I've long been resigned (though secretly thrilled) that my six-year-old daughter corrects my French, but I didn't expect my three-year-old son to start just yet.
Sorting through the varied hues of Easter – cultural or religious holiday?
Because I went to Catholic Schools, I had no idea that there was more to Easter than Easter Mass.
Identity Confusion: An Israeli Mom in NYC
In Israel almost everyone is Jewish, except of course for the Arabs with whom Jews rarely interact. As a Jew, if you decide to marry outside your religion or even do something as minor as celebrate a non-Jewish holiday in your own home, you experience a sense of betrayal.
Real Intercultural Family in the U.S.: Arabic, Spanish and English
This Lebanese-Mexican couple met in college and are now raising a trilingual daughter in suburban USA.
The Burning Question Part 2: Education Issues for Multicultural Families
One of my greatest fears as a new parent, right after Matthew's birth, was about putting him in school in France. While I hadn't done much research on the system, its results surrounded me: a culture where it's a bad idea to accept responsibility for one's mistakes, where apologizing is seen as a sign of weakness...
Holi Crafts: Messy Paint and Hand-Traced Flowers
Let your kids get messy and colorful in the spirit of Holi.
Real Intercultural Family in Norway: English, Farsi and Norwegian
This Norwegian-Iranian couple met in Iran, and lived in Tajikistan and Egypt before settling in Norway. They are raising their daughter in English, Norwegian and some Farsi.
A Camel in the Closet: How One Baha’i Family Celebrates Ayyam-i-Ha
"What's a camel doing in the closet—in the winter, in Maine?" The camel, I told the children in my daughter's class, had come all the way from the Middle East, where our religion began. She was too big to fit into a chimney, so she came right in through the front door, and the coat closet right beside that door seemed the most obvious place for her to leave the presents.
Maybe Amy Chua is Not so Bad
Having thought further about what intentional parenting entails, I sought counsel from my mother, Nina, about her parenting practices. She summed them up, patly, as "values based parenting."
Matea: Gift from God
A prophetic dream became reality.
Closer to God: The First 40 Days After Birth
Amrita was born at home, in water, and for the first 6 weeks of her life, our house was her whole world. In the Sikh tradition, the mother and child do not leave home for 40 days, and are cared for by a sevadar.
Stupider Than a Potato: Life With My Chinese Mother
Most of what I remember of my childhood consists of the image of my mother standing over me with a rattan cane in her hand, her eyebrows bunched together and her lips in a tight line. There was a lot of yelling, a lot of "Why are you so stupid?", and a lot of hitting. Even the teachers knew not to ask what I had done wrong when I showed up in school the next day, limping, with swollen purple gashes on my calves.
Autism and Multilingualism: A Parent’s Perspective
It happened again last week. I was enjoying a cup of coffee with a colleague when she asked me point blank what language we spoke at home. I often get that question as my husband and I come from different countries and on top of that we're expats in Turkey.
Family Evolution: The Meaning of Multicultural
I grew up in a multicultural house. My mother was born in the Netherlands. My father, although also of Dutch heritage, was born in Indonesia and spent much of his early years split between those islands and Australia. He brought with him foods, languages, a love of large birds and a unique accent.
In the Bleak MidWinter: Teaching Our Children Spiritual Survival Skills
The bleak midwinter months test our patience, but for our children, as for ourselves, the season offers opportunities for growth. Nature may be sleeping, but the human soul is not. The dynamic process of spiritual growth is unstoppable.
Ringing in the New Year the Japanese-Buddhist Way
New Year's is a huge festivity in Japan, larger than any other holiday observed there. After my first experience in 2008, I couldn't help thinking that it was Christmas and Thanksgiving in the U.S. all rolled into one three-day festivity.
Hanukkah Recipe: Noodle Kugel
The Yiddish translation of kugel is any baked pudding in Eastern European Jewish culture. My favorite is a noodle kugel, also known as noodle pudding. There are two types of noodle kugel: a sweet kugel and a savory one (which has no sour cream or cottage cheese).
The Eight Essential Hanukkah Books
I understand the challenge of bringing holidays into an understandable form for children. On top of that, there is definitely a smaller selection for Chanukah than what's offered for Christmas. We may be Chosen but we can't be choosy.
Hanukkah: December 1
Hanukkah, meaning "dedication" in Hebrew, celebrates the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem after the Jews defeated the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks).
A Buddhist Holiday Season
For most Americans or residents in the West, December is synonymous with certain holidays like Christmas or Hanukkah. I can fondly remember Christmas morning at my grandmother's house, opening presents, seeing beloved relatives and having a large feast before trundling home sleepy and well fed. Everything seemed more festive, brighter and larger as a child. But times are somewhat different for me now. My Japanese wife and I are raising our little girl Buddhist, which presents some challenges in a country where Buddhism is little understood and hardly visible.
Family History
In the ten years between my wedding day and the day I met my children, I spent a lot of time fantasizing about all of the traditions we would celebrate once I finally became a mother. I didn't spend a lot of time thinking about the rituals and expressions that come along with loss and grief.
Eid-ul-Adha Family Traditions
How one family celebrates the biggest Muslim holiday
The Expat’s Dilemma
When you live outside your culture, the "easy, joyful, fun" celebrations take on a whole new level of meaning. They become Important. They are no longer a fun way to pass an evening, but part of a culture, part of your culture, that you are determined to pass on and share with your children.
Real Intercultural Family in Montenegro: German and Serbian
They met in Montenegro and are raising bilingual kids in Serbian and German.
Process
We aim to cover several global holidays or traditions per month to showcase what people are celebrating around the world. So how do...
