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.
L'Halloween is nearly upon us! Do you have a Halloween-related event to attend this weekend? We might take our children to a local Boo Bash. Then again, a restful weekend at home sounds nice, and my daughter and I want to plant the tulip bulbs she picked out. In the meantime, here is this weekend's menu of links to enjoy.
Read MoreI am a bibliophile, and we treasure books in our home. I am also very goal-oriented. Yet when asked about our homeschool curriculum, I have only basic activities to list rather than workbooks or academic agendas. We read a lot of books together. We go to library storytimes weekly and play outside daily. We paint and listen to music. After all, our oldest child is only preschool-age. Here are the main reasons why I don't specifically try to teach my four-year-old daughter to read:
Read MoreIf I were a child, Alfie Kohn's Unconditional Parenting is the book I would want my parents to read. I was raised in a household where rewards and punishments were meted out with love and consistency, and I have tremendous respect for my parents. But this book showed me that there is another way to parent that can also produce loving, empathetic, and responsible adults--and it doesn't require punishment, threats, bribes, or rewards.
Read MoreThis last weekend I was able to attend a seminar at the Alliance Francaise de Portland entitled Bilingualism for Children: Benefits and Expectations. Jane Fabulet-Roberts, head of the Alliance's Children's Program, spoke from her experience both as a bilingual educator and as a parent. I found the seminar very encouraging. Here are five points from the seminar that I found the most informative:
Read MoreToday 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.)
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