IMPORTANT: The Future of SpanglishBaby

In February, it’ll be five years since we published our first post and shared SpanglishBaby with the world. So much has happened since then… We’ve become a strong community of like-minded parents sharing tips and info on what has worked for us as we raise bilingual children, we wrote our first book Bilingual is Better and we met many other wonderful people in the same journey both online and in real life.

Today, our own spanglishbabies are no longer bebés. The two little girls that got us started in this venture have grown up. Vanessa is a 7-year-old second-grader and Camila is a 6-year-old first-grader in a dual language immersion school. Meanwhile, Santiago is on his way to becoming a Kindie in the Fall. We like to think the three of them are already bilingual and, while we know there’s lots more work still to be done, a strong foundation has been established and we can’t deny we’re proud of what we’ve accomplished with our kids so far.

We’re also very proud of what we’ve accomplished with SpanglishBaby, but after giving it lots of thought, we’ve decided the time has come to reevaluate this project to figure out what we want to do with it next. That’s why we’re putting the blog and the community on SpanglishBabyPlayground.com on hold until further notice while we determine the future of SpanglishBaby. That means we won’t be publishing any new content on the blog, but we have NO plans of taking it down. As you can imagine, we’ve amassed a considerable amount of valuable info in the last five years and we want to make sure it continues to be available to those who may find it useful.

Plus, we want to make it very clear that our decision doesn’t mean we won’t continue supporting the bilingual parenting movement. To that end, we’ll continue to be very active in our social media channels — mainly our Facebook page, our Twitter account, and our Pinterest boards, but also Instagram, Google+ page and our YouTube channel — making sure to share any and all pertinent information that would be of interest and use to those of us raising bilingual children. Expect to see a lots of stuff from many of our amazing contributors who have lots to share on the topic in their own blogs.

Speaking of contributors, we’d like to take the time to thank each and every single one of them, as well as those who submitted a guest post, for their valuable contributions to SpanglishBaby throughout the years. It’s no secret that without them, this community would not be the same. ¡Mil gracias! for all the insightful, poignant and candid articles that helped us see there are lots of ways of raising bilingual children and that we’re all pretty much in the same boat.

There’s also a team of fabulous ladies that kept the day-to-day going behind the scenes and we’re eternally grateful for your handwork and vision.

And, to our loyal followers, thanks for helping us create such an amazing community, for your constant support and for sharing our vision with us.

A personal note from Roxana:

When Ana and I embarked in this adventure together back in the summer of 2008, I had no idea where the journey would take us. The original plan was to create an online community where other parents like us would find the information, support and resources they needed to successfully raise bilingual and bicultural children. But, in all honesty, I never imagined we’d accomplish that and much, much more.

Through the years, I’ve been in awe of the awesome community SpanglishBaby has grown into thanks to not only our talented and diverse group of regular contributors, but also thanks to the unrelenting support of all the parents who follow us. It’s been incredibly gratifying and beneficial to know that we’re definitely not alone in this difficult, but extremely rewarding journey by hearing the different stories of triumph and hardship from so many of you. But the most rewarding part of running this blog has been getting a message or comment from a mom or dad saying how grateful they are that SpanglishBaby exists and how much they’ve learned while visiting our site. That has been like music to my ears each and every single time because that’s the main reason SpanglishBaby was born. Así que, ¡gracias totales! for the last five years, for helping us create such an extraordinary community and for teaching me so much about raising bilingual children and parenting in general.

I’ve never liked goodbyes, so I’ll just end my personal note by wishing each and everyone of you much success in your bilingual parenting journey. Never forget that bilingual is definitely better and here’s to the next generation of bilingual Americanitos!

A personal note from Ana:

This really just feels like an ¡Hasta Luego! and not an Adios because SpanglishBaby is not over, just evolving, like we are. The last five years have taught me that it does take a village to raise a bilingual child — and that village was right here. You’ve all become my inspiration, my accountability and my drive to push forth with this mission that grew out of a personal passion once I became a mom.

Thanks to your comments, your tweets, your emails and even random encounters offline, I know that this labor of love has had a deep effect on you and many. Maybe SpanglishBaby, through our honest stories and those of our contributors, planted a seed or ignited the flame that convinced you that bilingual IS better and you felt you belonged somewhere. I know because many of you have told me just that with tears in your eyes. Just how many people can truly understand why this is so important to us and why it truly comes from the heart?

That passion and that conviction must go on because collectively we are changing the face of America, uno por uno.

The information landscape has changed so much since Roxana and I launched SpanglishBaby. Now there are many incredible resources and blogs available; much, much more libros en español; a growing number of schools offering dual immersion programs because educated parents like you are demanding them; more apps, games, music and such. And that makes me ecstatic for you, for us and the future.

So keep spreading the message. Keep following our social channels (you’ll always find me behind those SpanglishBaby avatars and updates) and sharing with us there. We will keep the flame alive and leverage it to elevate all those doing amazing things for bilingual kids.

Thank you for being part of the most gratifying and enriching part of my life journey.