Traditions + Culture

If you are a family with multiple cultures represented, a family that has immigrated to a new country, a mixed race family, an interfaith family, una familia multilingüe, an adoptive family, an expat family, a host family, holidays are a balancing act of choosing “which,” “how,” and “when” to incorporate the different traditions and customs. In our family, my husband is from Mexico, I am from the U.S., and we have two biological daughters, and two sons who are adoptedRead More ...

Can I say again how much I love this time of year? I feel that the celebration of Día de Muertos just really brings out the most amazing creativity and artistic expressions from so many talented people. Of course, this occasion to remember our muertos, is a meant to be joyful, colorful and one to fill our senses and spirit with. The symbolisms surrounding the celebration are so beautiful and rich that it’s easy to want to join in. SuchRead More ...

Over the years, Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, has been making its way to the United States and being embraced by all cultures. All Latin American countries celebrate Nov. 1st and 2nd as Día de Muertos or Día de los Difuntos, but most observe it as a somber day of remembrance of those that passed before us. Mexico, on the other hand, has imbued the celebration with rich symbolism and a festive environment that conceives death asRead More ...

  Her obsession with all things death began when my grandmother passed away last year. My then 3-year-old daughter Kalila had grown fond of Mamá Leonor, and I never really considered not taking her with us to the funeral. Just the year before, she had sat on my lap at my grandfather’s funeral, although I’m sure she didn’t remember. There were other small children there, too, and I had always grown up believing that children were just as much aRead More ...

For many people the idea of “celebrating” death might seem gory and even disrespectful, but for those in Mexico and other countries in Latin America remembering those that have passed before us is filled with joy and a festive atmosphere. Much of the symbolism associated with the traditional Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) holiday celebrated in Latin America on November 1st and 2nd, has crossed over to the United States and is starting to fuse with Halloween dueRead More ...

Out of all the Latino cultural traditions we embrace and celebrate in our Mexican/Salvadorean/North American home, the one my girl now looks forward to the most is the making of cascarones for Easter. Yes, it does have a lot to do with the fact that she gets to smash an egg shell filled with confetti on her mamis head and make a huge mess at it, but who can blame her? This year I’m looking to get a bit moreRead More ...

There are a ton of things I miss about my birth country, but the food and the Pacific Ocean are probably the two I miss the most. The only way for me to solve this is to travel back home, but since it’s been almost two years since our last trip there, I have to settle for the “encargos” my mom brings with her to Denver every time she goes back to Peru. Through the years, the list hasn’t reallyRead More ...

We’ve been in Texas since Friday spending time with some really good Mexican friends we consider family. We’re preparing everything for our New Year’s Eve celebration tonight and as I was checking to make sure we had enough grapes for everyone to eat 12 at the stroke of midnight, I started thinking of all the other traditions/superstitions Latinos have related to Año Nuevo. 12 uvas de la suerte This tradition is originally from Spain, but has been adopted by manyRead More ...