You know those butterflies we tend to get when we’re about to do something big? Whether it’s giving a speech, stepping into an important meeting, jumping out of a plane or participating in a race, I am constantly looking for opportunities that provoke this simultaneous feeling of nervousness and excitement.

While I admit that I am far from a good singer, and still have much to improve on in terms of speaking in front of a crowd, the favorite butterflies that I get are, surprisingly enough, when I get to put a microphone in my hand, step on a stage, and belt out anything from reggaeton, banda music, rock en español, hasta salsa y música tropical… essentially, any genre of música latina, I’m game. With my light freckles, green eyes, and Irish/Norwegian background, let’s just say I’ve had my share of confused, then delighted looks from Latinos and non-Latinos alike. It’s all in a day’s work for me, being a “Gringa Latina.”

I once heard a quote from American golfer Paul Azinger, “If you don’t have butterflies, it’s because you know you have no chance.” With plenty of butterflies, even as I sat down to write this article, that is exactly what I’m seeking with this piece. A chance. A chance to explain more about my experiences and perspective as a Gringa Latina. A chance to thank people and companies that have given me the opportunity to follow my passion, both personally and professionally. And hopefully, a chance to hear from Latinos themselves, as I’m intrigued as to their thoughts on how thousands of us, who have no sangre latina, can feel so deeply about their language, culture and traditions.

While I could most likely be the subject of a study or even a book that explores the origins and social psychology behind this inherent connection to the Latin culture (Psychologist Brian Weiss might trace it back to a past life, while the Journal of Neuroscience may link it to a stronger connectivity in the white matter of the auditory cortex), the best way to explain it, in simplest terms, is that I’m most “in my element” when I’m speaking, listening or writing either in Spanish, or about the Hispanic community.

There is not an exact “moment” that it happened for me. Sure, I can remember watching soccer games on Univision when I was 6 years old in the suburbs of Chicago, I remember my first Spanish class at 14 with Sr. Snyder and getting A’s in Spanish the next eight years through high school and college; and of course I remember the life-changing experience of studying a semester abroad in Spain when I attended Indiana University, and you guessed it, majored in Spanish as well as Journalism.  At that point, I knew that I wanted Spanish in my life every day from then on — which of course meant marrying someone I could speak Spanish with, and someone to teach Spanish to, as we started our family.

Today, Guillermo and I have the unique pleasure of teaching our now 2-year old son, Elijah, the best of all his worlds on a daily basis. Fortunately, we live in a diverse community with no shortage of ethnic celebrations throughout the year. So with that comes pølse and folk music at the Norwegian Constitution Day Parade, boxty and rugby at the Irish American Heritage Parade, y claro, el grito y ballet folklórico at Fiestas Patrias celebrations, not to mention other Latino-inspired festivals throughout the year. So for me, it’s certainly not about neglecting my own roots, but rather, embracing an additional way of life. I look forward to living vicariously through Elijah and seeing his views and experiences, as he actually does have the ‘sangre latina’ that I never had, along with the European blood that I do have. I realize though, that he may be presented with his own challenges as it relates to identity, wondering where and with whom, he feels in his element.

From my perspective, I am forever grateful to the companies that gave me the opportunity to shine, once I followed my passion and pursued positions that allowed me to speak Spanish and represent the Hispanic community. Whether it was the team at Univision Radio San Diego, who not only taught me everything I know about karaoke en español, but truly immersed me in situations where I would learn — trying pozole for the first time outside of a concert venue, opening the doors to their cabinas and even letting me record commercials en español, and of course, engaging crowds at store-fronts throughout the city, as “La Crazy Tracy” formed an integral part of their Marketing and Promotions Department. Or take the team at the Mexico Tourism Board Chicago, where I was able to help coordinate press conferences for dignitaries like then-President of Mexico Vicente Fox, attend trade shows encouraging more incentive and convention-based travel to Mexico, and lead a group of journalists to Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo so they could experience the magic and lure of the country for themselves.

Now, we are celebrating one of my favorite times of year, as the consulting firm that Guillermo and I launched three years ago will be implementing a series of Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations with our clients. My team and I get to develop recipes with bilingual chefs and culinary students, integrating many authentic and even mainstream brands into each dish. We get to partner with Spanish-language radio stations to engage listeners and provide scholarships. We get to merchandise stores to reflect the booming demographics of the Latino communities they exist in… I could go on and on…

Above all, many thank you’s are in order. Gracias a mi suegra mexicana, who after each dish she makes, whether it’s chiles rellenos, picadillo con salsa, or enchiladas suizas, I seem to have a new favorite. Thank you to the family at a nearby park that welcomed my son and I, though we were complete strangers, to watch as each of the children at their party had their turn at the piñata — and in the meantime, teaching me a new verse to “Dale, dale, dale” that I had never heard before! Thank you to sites like SpanglishBaby and Latinaish who bring out the best in people like me, and provide useful resources for thousands of us “Gringo Latinos” who want to keep the conversation going both with friends and families alike.

And now, as I douse my Edy’s Outshine Mango Fruit Bar in Valentina Hot Sauce, I await with más mariposas, your experiences either as, or with, a “Gringo Latino.”

Raised in Chicago and of Irish heritage, Tracy Galindo is fluent in Spanish with a career spanning more than 10 years  working closely with the Hispanic community, including Univision Radio, the Mexico Tourism Board, and the Ethnic Marketing Desks for grocers Jewel-Osco and Albertsons. In a matter of 13 months, Tracy married into a Mexican family, started her own marketing firm, and became a mom. When she’s not helping companies skyrocket their sales, Tracy and her husband, Guillermo, channel their energy toward volunteering, traveling, and raising their toddler to be bilingual and bicultural. If you are among the growing number of “Gringo Latinos”, join us on Twitter @gringolatinos or LinkedIn. We talk movies, music, and much more!

{Images by sergio_space1}

Never, ever did I plan to have children, but even more far-fetched in my envisioned future was to confront pregnancy in a foreign country. Nonetheless, I fell in love and life surprised me with an extended stay along the Pacific Coast of Mexico, in my husband’s hometown. Included during this “stay” I experienced a blissful courtship, marriage, becoming a legal Mexican resident (phew, that’s finally out of the way!), and then… a positive pregnancy stick. Wait, what?

After the immediate shock wore off, I realized I was excited, inspired to be a mother. Nervous, clueless—yes, yes. Fearful… I feared not so much the pregnancy details (ignorance was bliss), but rather what was to become of my new familia. The U.S. residency process for my husband was certain to be a time-consuming challenge. What’s more, to race our baby’s birth date seemed highly unachievable. After much back-and-forth with the U.S. Consulate, we slowly began to accept that I had to do what I initially considered the impossible. And so it became that I was to have my baby in Mexico.

Throughout my pregnancy and early motherhood, I experienced many cultural differences…

Swapping Spit

I finally started showing at 8 months (bragging point).  My husband and I were out for tacos one night when we were asked to share our table with another (pregnant) couple.  “¡Claro!”  After some light conversation, the woman asked politely if we could exchange saliva.  If I’ve learned anything in my travels, it’s to be as adaptable as possible and to consider the unknown as a learning adventure.  I was happy to! I admitted I was unfamiliar with the tradition, asked if she could ‘go first’, and followed her lead by licking my thumb and touching the back of her earlobe.  She explained that this way our children would be born healthy and happy.

El ojo de venado

Neighbors, friends, family, anyone who knows you’re pregnant will give you advice. I was given a Deer’s Eye. Well, not a real one, and it wasn’t really for me; it was for our soon-to-be newborn. Our neighbor took this special seed, made it into a tiny bracelet with red beads, and told me that as long as my baby wore it, all negative vibes would be warded off.  (Phew, because I was worried!)

El hilo rojo

As with all tiny babies, hiccups are a common, adorable occurrence. The first time my sister-in-law held our hiccupping baby, she immediately ripped a piece of red string off her shirt, licked it (again with the spit) and stuck it to my infant’s forehead. “Para el hipo” she said shortly.

Qué hacer cuando le hacen ojo

After a day at the market, my husband’s family told me what I needed to do to remedy all the negative vibes that my baby absorbed that day (caused by so many people looking at him). This tradition includes a specific way to use an egg to absorb and get rid these negative vibes. In case you’d like to try it, here’s the recipe:

• 1 huevo/ 1 egg
• Albaca/ Basil
• Alcohol/ alcohol
• 1 glass cup

Instructions: Soak the egg in alcohol and basil. Massage your baby’s head and shoulders using the egg. You may dip the egg in the mix a few times, if necessary. Some say a prayer during this massage. Then, crack the egg into the cup, and the absorbed vibes will be gone. (You should see one or two “spots” within the egg—these are sure signs that it worked!)

Remedio para la mollera

Imagine your newborn being held upside down, grasped by the ankles while someone is slapping at his feet as if they were the bottom of a ketchup bottle, all the while dipping his head in water. (!?) I was with my mother-in-law, and she’d taken it upon herself to remedy our baby’s fontanel (the soft spot on his head). She was dipping his head in a jícara (a carved coconut used like a bowl). As you can imagine, my reaction as a new mamá was not calm. I was quite frightened! I addressed my concerns as kindly as possible and asked her just what she was doing to my poor baby. Evidently, this is the fix when an adult feels that a baby’s fontanel is too indented.

I’m so grateful for these encounters and I must say that in the end I’m left with so much; insight to my husband’s childhood, a better understanding of this aspect of our son’s culture, openness to alternative remedies, and humorous stories to share with my son and the world. Have you experienced a pleasant or not-so pleasant foreign cultural tradition?

Lori Jena Freise and her family live in both Mexico and the USA. You can read more blogs from her and her colleagues about translating, bilingualism, the growing language industry, and working at the Translationz office here.  You may also connect with her directly on LinkedIn.

{Photo courtesy of Lori Jena Freise}

Editor’s note: We continue with our 31 Days of Reading in Spanish. Check out the book review below and don’t forget to enter our weekly GIVEAWAY of $100 worth of books in Spanish!

BOOK DESCRIPTION/REVIEW:

This book touches on a topic that is very common in our Latino world: two last names.

I married a North American and in his world you usually don’t carry both last names. When we started having kids, we decided that they would have both our last names. Since we moved to South America, my boys have noticed that all their friends have very long names, so we shared with them that they also have two last names.

René does a great job of sharing why he decided to not be embarrassed of having two very long last names as a kid in a school in the U.S.  Not only that, but he also shares his family pride as he talks about his decision.

After reading this book, my boys wanted to make a family tree as René did in the story. It was a wonderful activity to end with and we learned so much about family and cultural pride but also the reasons behind our choices. I especially enjoyed that each page is written in Spanish and English.

It’s a must-read for teachers who teach Latino children and for parents who like to share culture through books with their kids.

   BOOK DETAILS:

   Title: René Tiene Dos Apellidos/René  Has Two Last Names

   Author: René Colato Lainez

   Ilustrator: Fabiola Graullera Ramírez

   Ages: 5 and up

   Publisher/Year: Arte Publico Pr; Bilingual edition/2009

   ISBN: 978-1558855304

   Price: $14.86 on Amazon.com

   Website: www.renecolatolainez.com

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 many Latin American countries including Mexico. Tradition dictates that when the clock strikes midnight, you have to eat 12 grapes and make a wish with each stroke of the clock.

The 12 grapes represent the 12 months of the year and the idea is that by eating a dozen grapes, you’re ensuring the 12 months ahead will be good and prosperous ones.

¡A viajar!

If you want to travel, this is one I remember my mother doing every single year. All you have to do is go for a walk around your neighborhood with your suitcase before the clock strikes midnight. Some recommend you go around the block, but the other option is to cross the street in front of your house with your suitcase. I like this last option better now that I live in Colorado and it’s usually freezing cold on New Year’s Eve.

Green is for dinero

Many Latinos believe strongly that the color underwear they wear on December 31 will dictate the kind of luck they’ll have in the New Year. If you’re looking to attract love you need to wear red underwear.

For good luck or to attract money you better be wearing yellow. Although in some countries green is more closely associated with financial well-being and yellow with positive energy. I figure it doesn’t hurt, so why not?

Sweeping away todo lo malo

Nothing worse than starting the new year surrounded by negative energy. Hence, many people believe in sweeping the entrance to their home to get rid of it. Others put dollar bills near their front door and sweep them inwards to assure prosperity and financial good luck.

Others don’t sweep, but they fill a bucket or glass of water, open their front door and throw it out. The idea is the same: get rid of any bad energy and start the year as clean as possible.

I’ve never done this one, but maybe I should — especially the one with the dollar bills!

What New Year’s Eve traditions do you have?

{Photo by GoodNCrazy}

Ana’s note: One of the things I love most about embracing different Latin American holidays is the abundance and creativity of the variety of foods associated with the celebrations. Bread seems to be a common theme in Mexican traditions and it’s never lacking symbolism.

On January 6th — the official last day of the holiday festivities — we celebrate el Día de los Reyes Magos (Three Kings Day) across Latin America and Spain. In Mexico the tradition includes family and friends gathering to eat a Rosca de Reyes and seeing who will get the piece with the Niño Jesus inside and get the honor to host them all to a feast of tamales on February 2nd for el Día de la Candelaria.

The rosca is always circular because to the Catholics it represents God’s infinite love. The candied fruit and other decorations on the rosca symbolize the earthly distractions that distract us from God and the muñequito buried in the bread is meant to represent the 3 Kings search for the baby Jesus.

To join in the celebration, we asked our The Culture of Food main contributor and food blogger extraordinaire, Ericka Sanchez, to share with us her family’s Rosca de Reyes recipe using ingredients she found at Walmart. 

Recipe for a Traditional Rosca de Reyes

(Serves 6)

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

1 package active dry yeast

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon

¼ cup milk, room temperature

3 ½ tablespoons (or ½ stick) butter

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ cup candied cherries, chopped

¼ candied pineapple, chopped

¼ cup dried figs, chopped

¼ pecans, chopped

¼ cup dark rum

For garnish

1 egg

2 tablespoons water

dried cherries

candied orange peel*

candied lime peel*

*If you have a hard time finding candied citrus peel, check out this recipe  on Ericka’s blog to make it yourself.

Instructions

In a small bowl place candied cherries, pineapple, figs and rum.  Soak for 20 minutes. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl place flour, yeast, salt, sugar and cinnamon and whisk until all dry ingredients have been combined.

Add egg, butter, vanilla extract, milk, chopped cherries, pineapple, figs and the rum they were soaking in.  Mix well with a wooden spoon then knead by hand and form a large dough ball.

Cover the bowl containing dough with plastic wrap, set it in a warm place and let the dough rise for approximately 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit

In a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a large tube shape and connect ends.  Forming a ring.

Insert plastic baby figurine anywhere in the underside of the dough ring.

In a small bowl mix 1 egg and 2 tablespoons of water to make egg wash. Cover a large cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Carefully place dough ring on tray and brush egg wash all over dough.

Decorate with candied cherries and citrus peels.

Bake for 45 minutes or until dough is golden.

If you’re looking for more Rosca de Reyes recipes, you can visit Walmart on Facebook and check out the one they shared.

Disclosure: We are thankful to Walmart for their sponsorship of SpanglishBaby.

The lechón smells delicious as it finishes roasting in the oven, the majority of the gifts are wrapped and underneath the Christmas tree and the playlist full of trullas navideñas and villancicos is ready for tonight’s Nochebuena celebration, which I’ll be hosting in my home this year. It’s going to be a long night… but one of my favorite ones of the year.

I doubt we’ll wait until midnight to have dinner — like we  used to when I was a child since we first went to Misa de Gallo — but we’ll be sitting down at the table fairly late. Past 10 p.m., I’m sure. If my dad was still alive, we’d be having turkey, like most Peruvians do for Christmas. But he’s gone and nobody makes turkey like he did, so we’ve switched our menu to reflect my husband’s Puerto Rican heritage. And, although I’m obviously partial, he makes a mean lechón.

Dinner will go on a forever and it’ll be loud, although not as much as other years, since not everyone in the family is in town. I know I’ll be stuffing myself with all the goodies on the table, but I can’t say the same for Vanessa, who half-way through dinner will start asking when we’ll be opening the gifts. The asking will go on incessantly, until we finally gather around the tree and start the gifting frenzy.

But first, at the stroke of midnight, I’ll hand Vanessa the little Baby Jesus figurine, and she’ll put it in our pesebre. After that, we’ll make a champagne toast and there’ll be a lot of hugging, kissing, laughing and all around happiness as we all wish each other ¡Feliz Navidad!

When I was little, my mom had my sister and I read the names on the gift tags out loud and then we all had to wait for the person to open their gift to see what they got. Now that Vanessa knows how to read, I’m passing on that responsibility to her. I think she’s going to be a great helper and she’ll love being in charge!

Before the night is over, we’ll have some Panetón and hot chocolate — a Peruvian tradition — which will be a perfect way to end the first Blanca Navidad Denver has seen in many, many years. (Yes! It’s snowing!)

On Christmas Day, the kids will wake up and open the gifts they got from Santa. I hope they sleep late, considering we’ll be going to bed super late tonight, but I know that’s wishful thinking. The rest of Christmas Day will be super lazy with the kids playing with their new toys and the rest of us eating leftovers — if there are any — in our PJs.

Here’s wishing you a very Merry Navidad!

{Photo by  lett -/\=}

Start your Thanksgiving celebration early with this cute Día De Acción De Gracias coloring sheet by Kimberly of Bebe Bilingual!

For a printable version of this coloring sheet click here.

Visit Bebe Bilingual’s Etsy store for the cutest placemats, flashcards and more in English, Spanish and French.

As parents raising bilingual and bicultural kids we face many milestones in which we have decisions to make. Some big and some simple, yet also important. Such is the case when our kids start to lose their baby teeth. Of course, we dont want them to be afraid of going to the dentist or  losing their teeth and we also want them to practice good dental hygiene . So, we tell them a comforting story to ease the process for them and reassure them that this is a milestone everyone goes trough. This is when we are faced with an option: we can teach them about the tooth fairy or  el Ratoncito Pérez.

Many of us grew up recognizing el Ratoncito Pérez as the little mouse who took the tooth we left under our pillow and left us a gift or money in exchange. We may have also learned about the Tooth Fairy. The goal of both stories is for our kids to lose the fear that can come with losing a tooth. The only thing that changes are the characters, and that traditionally the Tooth Fairy is told in English and El Ratoncito Pérez in Spanish.

So which story will you tell your kids, the Tooth Fairy or El Ratoncito Pérez ? Is there another tooth-related story you learned growing up? Share with us in the comments section!

Delta Dental has shared with us a few tools that can encourage our kids to practice good dental hygiene. Visit Delta Dental’s My Smile Kids page in Spanish for more information, games, and activities.  You can share this bilingual and educational coloring book below,”Ratoncito Perez Saves the Day” with your niños as you talk about the story, just click on the image below! To get the full copy of the coloring book mailed to you, just email lauren@bodenpr.com.

{photo by  M___a___r___k}

Being a bicultural Latina raising biracial kids while living 300 miles from our nearest Spanish-speaking family means that any opportunity to celebrate our Latino roots is one I cannot pass up. My 3 year old daughter is becoming increasingly aware of holidays and traditions, so I felt it was imperative to celebrate Día de los Muertos.

Before adorning her beautiful face with calaca face paint, Alina and I spent some time talking about the holiday and traditions associated with Day of the Dead. The opportunity to use the words Latino and Mexican and speak in Spanish within a very specific context was beneficial to our bilingual endeavors. Toddlers absorb so much more when they have an actual context in which to learn.

Alina was not a bit scared of the imagery of Día de los Muertos. She was intrigued and asked many questions, wondering why the calavera looked so silly. She adored the plethora of flowers we made specifically for her hair, hanging the papel picado and having her photo taken. So far, our celebrations have been well received by our magical toddler and I know the holiday will remain part of our traditions for years to come. Our Día de los Muertos celebration will continue into the weekend by attending themed events throughout our hometown of Las Vegas.

But, apart from the colorful décor, ofrendas and altars, I most appreciate the opportunity to honor the life of my grandfather, Papi. The promise I made to him to raise bilingual children is the reason why I embark on this journey of language immersion. He would have loved looking at these pictures of his little calavera. And I love that Alina speaks his name and recalls stories of her great grandfather as though she actually knew him. Celebrating Dia de los Muertos gave us the opportunity to pass down the legacy of a man so important to the lives we live today, and for that, I am grateful.

My first memories of Día de Los Muertos was the smell of fresh mole and bolillos (baguettes) that my grandmother made and we took to the cemetery where her parents and siblings were buried, this repeated every November first, it was the most magical event of the year for me. I didn’t really know about Halloween then.

Abuelita said that bringing your relatives’ favorite foods to their tomb will bring their souls back to their buried bodies and we will feel close to them again –“death is part of life and we shouldn’t be afraid of it,” she used to say. She died last year in her sleep; she was not afraid to welcome La Muerte (lady death).

To bring her close to our heart, my son and I made an altar with some of her favorite items: Virgin de Guadalupe, Saints, Claveles (flowers) and fruit (sorry Abue, I don’t make mole!)

The one thing I learned about the sugar skulls and why you write your name on them is to think of your own death as part of your own life – in a sweet way – to not be afraid of it, just like Abuelita said. To celebrate our dead we decorate tombs or at-home-altars with Flor de Cimpasúchil, papel picado, tissue paper flowers, sugar skulls, pan de muerto, atole, fruits and the beautiful Catrinas o Calaveras which were made famous by painter Diego Rivera in his Mural Sueño de una Tarde Dominical en Alameda Central

One of the places in Mexico that has celebrated the Day of the Dead for centuries is Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, 30 minutes from where I grew up. This place is as magical as my childhood memories. In this town every November 1st, you can feel the souls of your ancestors, you can smell  wonderful foods and enjoy the vivid colors of the decorations. We believe the dead take the food’s flavors, therefore you are not supposed to eat the food offered to the ancestors. It is a big and colorful celebration that lasts all night!

{Photo courtesy of Michoacán el Alma de México}

I would like to invite you to celebrate your loved ones that have passed by sharing your Dia de Muertos pictures and stories on SpanglishBabyPlayground.  You can try to cook their favorite foods and decorate an altar with their pictures. I think it’s a wonderful experience for the whole family and especially for our SpanglishBabies who will continue a very dear cultural tradition their ancestors have celebrated for centuries.