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.
Today I'm starting a regular weekend post featuring links I think you'll find intéressant. And yes, le weekend is acceptable French, along with le hot dog and l'hamburger. (American culture has worked its way into nearly every language, I'm sure.)
Read MoreAs a non-native French speaker, I find that my lack of language knowledge is the most worrisome part of speaking French with my children. What if I ignorantly teach them to use the wrong words? What if my sentences are grammatically garbled (as they often are)? Will they one day be embarrassed by the language errors I have mistakenly passed on to them?
Read MoreAfter Monday's post about What It Means to Be an Intentional Mama, it's only fair that I share ideas for simplifying your home life and making purposeful choices on a daily basis. Let's look at some percentages for a minute:
In the early 1900s, an Italian man named Vilfredo Pareto noticed that 80% of the peas from his garden were produced by just 20% of his pea plants (not unlike my toddler, who makes up 25% of our family and produces roughly 80% of the daily mess on our dining room floor. But back to the story.) After reflecting on the 80/20 ratio, Pareto also noticed that 20% of Italy's population owned 80% of the land in Italy. Today, the Parento Principle (aka the 80/20 rule) is frequently used in a business context to explain that a small percentage of your time or effort can produce the majority of your results.
Read MoreTo be an intentional mama is to be balanced and purposeful--
Balanced between confidence and an open mind.
Present in the moment with your children, yet preparing for the days ahead.
Bringing joy and peace to your home in the midst of momentary messes and conflicts.
Finding delight in your husband, offering grace and support.
(Remembering that children crave family unity more than we realize.)
Read MoreYou might find it surprising that one of my favorite parenting books was written by someone who is the top result of online searches using the terms "America's Worst Mom." She also has a reality show on Discovery/TLC International titled "World's Worst Mom." But Lenore Skenazy has a lovely sense of humor that pairs well with her understanding of parental behavior, and she laughingly accepts the ironic labels. (They were coined by the media after she let her nine-year-old son ride the New York subway alone.) Her ensuing book, Free-Range Kids: Giving Our Children the Freedom We Had Without Going Nuts with Worry, is a straightforward, humorous, and surprisingly informative read.
Read MoreThough I majored in French and English in college, I somehow made it through my studies with only a pocket-size French English Dictionary from the early 1980s. I had no idea how impressive a dictionary could be until I began teaching and purchased a two-and-a-half-inch thick, five pound French Unabridged Dictionary from Collins Robert for classroom use. When a translation question arose that I couldn't answer, the student who volunteered to be the daily fée du dictionnaire (dictionary fairy, with optional wand, ID tag, and tiara) would find the answer in that massive dictionary. But ever since I downloaded the Collins-Robert Concise French Dictionary App as a stay-at-home mama, I've been amazed at how useful a dictionary app can be.
Read MoreBefore our marriage seven years ago, my husband and I had a few sessions of premarital counseling. (It was paid for by my parents, and at one point my mama wanted to know what was being discussed. The counselor, bless him, didn't share.) The counseling was pretty straightforward, as we were a confident couple who'd already dated for five years. (We have long-distance excuses, among others.) In any case, two agreements came out of that counseling:
Read MoreMy four-year-old daughter has wanted to play the violin for nearly two years now. I am a rusty pianist and my husband is an active drummer, so the violin is a different choice for our household. I think her interest in violin stems from listening to a Classical Kids Vivaldi CD many times as a toddler. She also had a wonderful experience trying out the violin last year at an Oregon Symphony Storytime with the guidance of a volunteer (video above).
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