Kimberly Stevens Lane was born to a Costa Rican mother and an American father and was raised in both countries. She is the mother of four-year-old twin boys, both of whom have special needs and are in full-time special education programs. She has a Master of Arts degree in Conference Interpretation and is a freelance translator and interpreter in the Washington, D.C. area.
When I was 22 and just out of college, I joined the Peace Corps and was shipped off to West Africa. After a few months of training, a Peace Corps driver dropped me and my few possessions off in a remote village of 900 people, which was to be my home for the next two years. Fortunately, I was able to talk to the handful of people of my village who spoke French, which was the official language. Everyone elseRead More ...
“Estoy terminado,” is what my son says every time he’s done eating. Not, “he terminado,” or “ya terminé.” When he wants to know what something’s for, the question is, “¿Qué es eso para?” And it drives me absolutely crazy. Because both examples are such direct translations from English. I am finished. Estoy terminado. What’s that for? ¿Qué es eso para? As I do whenever my boys say something that’s not quite right, I correct them gently without quite correcting themRead More ...
I have a relative who, every time we visit, says: “Oh, while you’re here, we have do such-and-such! It will be our new Thanksgiving/Christmas/yearly tradition!” And while it is always quite a nice idea, only one of the “traditions” has stuck. What’s more, my husband and I always just look at each other and smile when she says it, because we’re both of the belief that you just can’t say something and make it so—you can’t force a tradition. IRead More ...
I’ve always thought I was a laid-back kind of gal. I don’t think I’m much of a control freak. My motto might as well be, “Go with the flow.” At my wedding, my bridesmaids wore whatever they wanted to. The day before, my sister-in-law picked up a truckload of whatever flowers looked nice at a flower stand and my guests made our floral arrangements, and my bouquet. My husband and I met our realtor at a bar and figured, hey,Read More ...
Like many of you reading, I had it all planned out. I had read about One Parent, One Language and knew that was how I wanted to raise my children. It was what my parents had done at home with me. My husband was completely on board. Making sure my children learned Spanish was important to me for many, many reasons. And then they were born and it was just the strangest thing–I found that speaking to my babies inRead More ...
Ah, September. I love this time of year. I love books and school supplies, and knowing that soon the heat will finally subside and fall will be here. I love making plans for Halloween and Thanksgiving and knowing they’re not too far away. I love reading all the back-to-school posts on the blogs I follow. I love knowing my own kids will be back in school and surrounded by familiar faces, with some teachers and classmates they’ve known for twoRead More ...
Ana
Roxana
Just two mamás raising bilingual kids
