This post is sponsored by Huggies Latino.

As a first-time expectant mother the list of things to think about, prepare for, rejoice in and even panic over seems to be endless. It feels like every day not only brings you closer to holding your bebecito in your arms, but also takes you on that magical roller coaster of new emotions.

When my belly started growing with my little girl and I started talking more and more to her, I realized that I also had the additional burden of figuring out if my Mexican-born husband and I should speak to her in our native language of Spanish or in English. En la casa sólo hablamos español, so I knew that it would be very odd for my husband and I to switch to English with our daughter — it just wouldn’t be natural for us. At the same time, we knew English would be the language she’d absorb from her environment no matter what we did, but we still wondered if that would confuse her.

We weren’t alone in our fears that being exposed to multiple languages early on could confuse our baby. We did later find out that our fear was based on misconceptions and lack of knowledge. The scientific fact is that the earlier we start exposing babies to a second language, the more flexible their bilingual brains will be and the more they can identify and separate the sounds of the different languages they are exposed to.

The first window of opportunity to expose babies to multiple languages is during their first year of life (and even starting in the womb!). Babies should be exposed through rich interactions to the two languages at home so their brains can absorb all the sounds and retain them by the time they turn a year old and this window starts to close.

So, as you get ready for your baby’s much-expected arrival by checking out tools like Huggies Respuestas de Mamá and the very useful Guía Bienvenida a tu Bebé, you should also think about the many ways you could expose your child to as many languages as possible. His brain is wired for it, the rest is up to you. I like to say bilingualism is a gift we give our children that no one can take away from them. Plus, if you start immersing them in Spanish right now, they won’t be able to complain or rebel against it — it will just be a natural process.

While raising completely fluent bilingual kids is a commitment and takes a real conscious effort, there are relatively simple ways to kick start the baby’s language exposure even before she’s born.

1. Talk as much as you can. Talking to your baby in the womb and as a newborn is one of the best ways to bond with him. He’s getting used to your loving voice and it gives him comfort. If you or your partner speak Spanish, make sure that you speak it to him a lot. Talk about anything, sing, read, recite a poem — ¡lo que sea! What’s important is that he’s absorbing the sounds of the language and recognizing them from you.

2. It takes a village. Start scoping out your family, friends and community and see who can also provide the necessary language exposure to your child. Abuelas and abuelos that speak Spanish are such a blessing to have. Make sure you make them aware of your wishes and have them become your bilingual accomplices.

3. Stock up on Spanish-language books, toys, music and games. If you’re still being showered with gifts or just starting to plan your registry, make sure you also include some books, music and toys in Spanish to start building your immersive and fun arsenal.

Share: When did you start exposing your child to Spanish or your second language? How did you do it?

As I get ready to send my 5-year-old boy to kindergarten, I also get to start the journey over again….with a new baby! I’m currently 11 weeks pregnant (due right around Christmas!), and couldn’t be more excited to welcome a sweet SpanglishBaby into our home. This will be our fourth child in total, but our first child together.

I feel fully prepared for the pregnancy and birth itself, but as we all know, having a newborn in the house brings a different set of concerns altogether. Ironically, the part I’m most thrilled about is also strapping me with anxiety: making sure this child is also bilingual.

We have become so used to speaking mostly English in our home, since my son gets his Spanish at his father’s house and my stepdaughters reinforce theirs at church, with their abuelos, and at school. It will be an adjustment to speak more Spanish in general, and especially to the degree of exposure that a new baby will require. My husband and I have discussed the many ways we could approach it, and have decided to try the One Parent One Language method — he will speak Spanish and I’ll speak English to the baby. Although I’m confident that this will be effective, I’m apprehensive about the new rules we’ll have to remember to follow.

In addition to sticking to one language each, we know that we need to have more Spanish in our house in general to compensate for the English our child will be hearing from his/her siblings. So, my husband and I are also going to try speaking exclusively Spanish to each other. This will be a 180-degree switch for us, since we currently only use Spanish with each other when we’re around Spanish-speaking friends and family. I guess it’s always been more comfortable for us to have our private conversations and daily exchanges in English, so it’s going to take some effort to change that.

Of course, a new life is always worth the sacrifices and changes we parents make! I anticipate that we’ll have to get a head start and try switching to Spanish in the coming weeks, because our Navidad baby will be here before we know it.

Perhaps the hardest part of the language transition will be stepping back a bit from Spanish myself. I know that it is best for a little one to hear native speakers, and since I’m a native English speaker and my husband is a native Spanish speaker, we need to stick to those languages, respectively. However, it bums me out a little that I won’t be able to exercise my Spanish skills with my child until we have established a pattern and decide it’s okay to deviate from that occasionally. I spoke only Spanish to my son for nearly three years, so it may be a tough reality to use English with my new bebé. My only exception is reading: I can’t see myself giving up Spanish bedtime stories with either of my kids!

Hopefully the strange mix of ages, language use and schedules in our home will only serve to make our busy life more fun.

Do you have any suggestions for making the switch to OPOL or speaking to your spouse in your second language?

 {Image by tommo4074 }