Vanessa trying raw oysters for the first time in one of my favorite places to have them: Boquerón, Puerto Rico.

Vanessa probando ostiones por primera vez en uno de mis lugares favoritos: Boquerón, Puerto Rico.

I grew up in Des Moines, Iowa, where the only place I heard Spanish was within the walls of my high school. And what’s more, I took French! Eventually, I learned Spanish in college and then as a student in Venezuela and Cuba.

While my first job out of college didn’t require Spanish at all, my second did. I worked at a nonprofit that partnered with public schools to provide literacy programs to elementary-aged kids. My students were almost all children of immigrants from Latin America. I saw firsthand how so many of our students were operating in bilingual, bicultural worlds. Kids translated for their parents, for one another, and their teachers. They did it with such ease, navigating between cultures and languages.

We were a literacy program, so naturally, I wanted to find books that resonated with my students’ experiences. I researched and came up with the usual suspects (“Too Many Tamales” anyone?) or nothing at all. Certainly not enough to fill afternoons every day. Over time, I started discovering new books here and there — but never had a great way to find them.

Fast forward to a little over a year ago. I was eight months pregnant and searching for a book to show my son what life would be like as a sibling. In this case, I wanted a book that showed a multiracial child, to reflect our own family. We couldn’t find the right book, until months later, when it was too late. It was out there, but incredibly hard to find.

When I searched on the typical sites, the substance was lacking, but there was no shortage of ads for hair care products. And while I do love Kinky Curly for my daughter’s hair, it wasn’t going to help explain big brotherhood to my son! So, my husband and I decided to solve our own problem and create Zoobean, a site that handpicks remarkable kids’ books and catalogs them in a way that makes sense to parents.

When we created our sets of tags, we did this with all kinds of kids in mind. Our own kids and their experience growing up in a multicultural family (and world). And also the other children we know and love, like the kids I worked closely with in my earlier career. How did that work? We made tags like “English and Spanish,” “multicultural,” “multi­ethnic backgrounds,” “Latino or Hispanic,” and many more. We are just getting started, and trying to make it possible for parents to find books about a wide variety of topics that also reflect their kids and families.

Geena Davis says about girls in media, “If you see it, you can be it.” I believe this completely, for all kids. That’s why it’s critical that we make it easy to find the books that reflect our own families and children. If they see it, they can be it. There is the problem of there not being enough representation of Latino kids in children’s books, which we hope to help improve longer term. Now, we have to make it easy to find the books that are out there and get them into the hands of families that want them most!

What are your favorite bilingual books? If we don’t have them in the catalog already, please recommend today!

Jordan Lloyd Bookey is Chief Mom at Zoobean, a site that curates and catalogs remarkable kids’ books, handpicked by parents. Before she decided to make the leap as an entrepreneur, Jordan served as Google’s Head of K-12 Education Outreach, where she was responsible for the company’s worldwide programs that expand access to technology and computer science kids. Jordan is originally from Des Moines, IA and now lives with her family in Washington, DC. You can usually find her at 1776 DC, working on Zoobean with her husband and Chief Dad, Felix, or exploring the city and trying to keep up with her children, Cassius and Florence.

Anchoring Buena Vista Street in Disney’s California Adventure Park, you can experience the Golden age of Hollywood at Carthay Circle Restaurant. Modeled after 1920’s original Spanish Revival architecture, the building is based on the iconic central tower of Carthay Circle Theater.

As one steps inside, you are transported to the magic of Disney’s movie-making throughout the decades.  The interior is elegant, ornate warm and rich.  Artifacts and photographs of Disney’s premier of their first feature-length animated film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” line the hallways.  You can’t miss those beautiful, giant, black and white photographs of Shirley Temple and Walt Disney as you make your way upstairs to the dining area.

Although, the ambience of the restaurant is movie-premier elegant, Disney dining has figured out a way to make families and tourists feel comfortable in a warm, social and informal hospitable setting.  The lounge and restaurant are perfect getaways from the excitement of the park.

The restaurant accommodates up to 200 guests with a terrace and its beautiful views of Buena Visa Street that seats 56 guests.  Perfect for people watching and an excellent view of Disneyland’s fireworks show.

Yes, this replica of the famous movie-house is beautiful and radiant but the food in this case, is the star of the show.  Chef Andrew Sutton, the acclaimed executive chef at Napa Rose restaurant at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, also is executive chef of Carthay Circle Restaurant and Lounge. By his side, Gloria Tae, Sutton’s protégé at Napa Rose, and chef de cuisine at Carthay Circle Restaurant.  We could not have asked for a better culinary duo.

The menu, best described as “Modern Southern California Fresh” is comprised of wild and farmed sustainable fish and hand picked seasonal vegetables from local markets.  It’s modern, breezy, light and fresh. The dishes boast in diverse flavors with ingredients from local ranchers, artisans and farmers. Menu includes sushi-grade yellowtail grilled with jerk spice, topped with a tropical salsa of pineapple, mango, black beans and lime, and Sierra Golden trout roasted with couscous, lemon and oil.  The lunch selection includes an udon noodle bowl with red Thai curry broth, and an Angus burger with Tillamook cheddar cheese.

There is something for everyone!  Kids can choose from fun creations such as sloppy joes with house-made slaw, pasta and mini crispy tacos, or a beef filet or fish for dinner.

The lounge area offers a relaxing atmosphere for small bites.  Appetizers are paired perfectly with classic cocktails, California craft beers and world-class wines. Appetizers include hot shrimp with a chilled spicy tomato shooter to duck confit sliders with apricot conserve, watercress, crisp onions and Taleggio cheese.

One of the wonderful things about The Carthay Circle Restaurant is that each guest who orders an appetizer and entrée or an entrée and dessert will receive complimentary, center-stage viewing for the “World of Color” nighttime, water spectacular on Paradise Pier Bay. Lunch guests and guests who have dinner before 7 p.m. will receive tickets to the first “World of Color” show; guess who dine after 7 p.m. will receive tickets to the second show.

Don’t miss this extraordinary culinary journey next time you visit Disney’s California Adventure.  Hours are from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. daily.

For reservations: 714-781-DINE or email dine@disneyland.com with date, time and contact information.

To give you a sneak peek to what to expect, Chef Sutton has shared with us his recipe for Halibut Ceviche. This is the perfect dish for the warm summer months.  Enjoy!

Halibut Ceviche with Avocado, Tomatillo-Cilantro Essence, and Crisp Plantain Chips

Carthay Circle Restaurant

Disney California Adventure^® Par

Serves 4 to 6

Halibut Ceviche

• 1/2 pound sushi-grade halibut, diced into 1/4-inch cubes
• 1/4 pound yellowtail, diced into 1/4-inch cubes
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• Generous pinch coarse salt

Tomatillo-Jalapeño Sauce

• 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 jalapeño, thinly sliced with seeds
• 3 tomatillos, sliced
• 1 cucumber, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• Coarse salt, to taste

Plantain Chips

• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 green plaintain, peeled
• Juice of 1 lime
• Coarse salt, to taste

For Serving

• Halibut ceviche, drained
• 1 Roma tomato, seeded and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cucumber, peeled and seeded
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, divided
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• Juice of 2 limes, divided
• Coarse salt, to taste
• 1 Haas avocado, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons yellow onion, finely chopped
• 4 julienned radishes, for garnish
• 1 thinly sliced red jalapeño, for garnish
• Micro-cilantro, for garnish

For halibut ceviche:

Mix together ingredients in a glass bowl, stirring to coat fish. Cover and refrigerate 4 to 6 hours.

For tomatillo-jalapeño sauce:

1. Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add jalapeños and tomatillos, cover with water and simmer until tomatillo is tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, cool and drain.
2. Puree mixture with cucumber and cilantro in a blender. Strain through a fine strainer and season with salt. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

For plantain chips:

1. Preheat 1 inch of oil in a deep-sided skillet over medium-high heat to 350˚F.
2. Slice plaintains into 1/8-inch-thick rounds.
3. Add to oil in batches and fry until golden, about 1 minute per side. Remove from oil and drain on paper towels. Spritz with lime juice and season with salt.

To serve:

1. Drain ceviche and stir together with tomato, cucumber, half of chopped cilantro, 1 tablespoon olive oil, juice of 1 lime, and salt in a mixing bowl.
2. In another bowl, mix avocado, onion, remaining chopped cilantro, remaining lime juice, remaining olive oil, and salt.
3. To serve, spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of tomatillo-jalapeño sauce onto each plate. Top each with equal amounts of avocado salad, then ceviche. Garnish with radishes, jalapeño slices, and micro cilantro. Serve with crispy plantains and lime wedges.

Summer is a great time to take advantage of the free time our niños have and share educational and fun activities in Spanish with them. That is why this summer we will be featuring five activities and crafts  for bilingual kids every week! Many of these activities and  crafts come from Latina bloggers, Spanish teachers and sites dedicated to raising bilingual and bicultural kids. Check out the five activities and crafts that we chose to kick off this summer of bilingual fun!

Spanish Words On The Go

This activity by Kinder Latino is a very cute and creative way to encourage kids to practice their high frequency words in Spanish. All kids have to do is assemble a purse or carrying case and inside they can store 128 of their most common high frequency words. Kids can take this small carrying case wherever they go and practice. Click here for more details and a printable version of this activity.

Using Story Boards to Boost Your Child’s Reading Comprehension 

This free printable by Latinas 4 Latino Literature helps your child practice reading comprehension. The great part about these story boards is that you can use them in any language. Click here for more ideas and the free printable.

Learning Letters With Play-dough and Legos

This activity by Actividades Infantil is a fun way for kids to practice letter tracing. All this activity calls for is play-dough and building blocks which kids use to create the shape of a letter. Click here for a full description of this activity and more ideas.

Where In The World Is Your Food From?

There are many things we love about this fun activity by Kid World Citizen. This hands-on activity calls for our niños to explore where all the veggies and fruits that we eat come from and then map it all out. During summer we have a great variety of fresh products in our supermarkets so the timing for this activity is perfect! As every SpanglishBaby parent can imagine, this is also a great activity to learn the names of these fruits and vegetables in Spanish. Click here for the full description of this fun kids activity.

DIY Recycled Box Playhouse Tent

This final craft by Inspired By Familia is simple, fun, and a great way to spend time with our kids. It only calls for a few items most of us have around the house. Check out the instructions here.

Do you have any great activities for bilingual and bicultural kids that you’d like to share? Link it up below!

The Cicada and the Ant/La cigarra y la hormiga is a multilingual interactive story app from Seven Academy. It follows the classic Aesop’s fable about a cicada who is unprepared for winter and her friend, the ant, who is perfectly warm and cozy. She needs his help to stay sheltered from the cold and promises to pay him back later. The cicada learns that prepping for the following winter would be a better use of her time than singing night and day.

This story teaches children the value of planning ahead and avoiding procrastination. It is short and sweet, but the lesson is apparent.

Change the app to one of four languages: Spanish, Portuguese, English, or French. Also choose from three reading modes: automatic playback, “I Read Myself” mode, or the interactive story mode. Because of these options, the app is versatile and can be enjoyed by children from preschool through early elementary. Not to mention, the characters are super cute!

Find The Cicada and the Ant in iTunes

Available for iPhone and iPad

Recommended for ages 3-7

Price: $0.99

Check out more about Seven Academy’s approach to games and visit them on Facebook.

This post is sponsored by Netflix. ¡Gracias!

You may remember how excited I was a couple of weeks ago when I finally figured out how to find the kids programming in Spanish on Netflix. It was great to see that so many of you had also been looking for that and you were relieved to find that Netflix did carry shows in Spanish, albeit not enough, we all agree.

Today I’m all giddy and excited again because Netflix just launched a brand new destination for families: Netflix Families. Whether you’re a member or not, you can visit the Families page to find fun and targeted recommendations of family and kids movies and shows to watch this summer. The page also features stories from families on how we use Netflix. And, yes, I did say WE, because my family and I are featured in one of the four Parents’ Tips videos! The best part? It’s in Spanglish!! Yay, We’re bringing on the Spanglish to Netflix, baby! And you know that by Spanglish we mean the almighty code-switching that only fluent bilinguals can do and we hope our kids achieve Check it out here y celebra con nosotros!

You’ll notice on Netflix Families that they have curated some rows of playlists with some of the most popular shows. I’ve already put in a recommendation for a “Favorite Kids Shows en Español,” but while we wait for that one to come (hint: tweet @Netflix and ask por favor!), we’re definitely bookmarking these for our Friday movie nights and lazy summer days.

We have movie nights every single Friday and now that it’s become a tradition there’s no escaping them. My girl looks forward to it all week. We pull out the sofa bed, get in our PJs, make pizza, and eat chocolate. The one rule we have is that the three of us need to agree on a movie to stream on Netflix, so basically princess movies are out! This has led to us discovering some pretty great flicks together and making Camila expand her horizons. Glad to have this playlist handy!

¿Quién se acuerda de Jems y He-Man? Wow, the 80′s flashbacks! Not sure I’m ready to have Camila watch Jems, but soon enough I’ll be able to get all retro and cool with her. Wishing for Candy, Candy and Heidi to come soon and we can sing the intro songs along together.

This summer we won’t be traveling overseas as a family, so we’ll travel virtually and stream the world to our casa. Camila loves watching animals on the screen, so we can have some nature time at home to compliment our local hikes and keep the learning going.

Somehow my brain and motivation starts melting as soon as summer hits. It’s like I give myself permission to take it easy and give myself a break. That means that instead of turning on the laptop after my girl is in bed, I turn on the Apple TV and sit with my husband to catch up on our favorite shows via el Netflix. We like to watch episodes back to back and right now are OBSESSED with House of Cards in an almost unhealthy way. I love it.

We’re also testing out the new Profiles feature that Netflix will roll out soon to all members, so now we can freely add our favorite shows to our individual Instant Queues without fear of our girl somehow figuring out how to get out of the Kids section or fearing a joke from my husband for the amount of chick flicks I’ve added. That, and also we’re each getting recommendations based on what we each watch via our profiles, and not a sea of princesses and Disney flicks because our girl pretty much rules our family account.

Would love to know what you think of Netflix Families and how your family is using it! Leave me a comment below and/or join me as I tweet with Heather Armstrong (@Dooce) and Rebecca Wolfe (@GirlsGoneChild) tomorrow, Wednesday, June 19th at 4pm EST/1pm PST. We’ll be using the hashtag #NetflixFamilies and chatting during the whole hour. I’ll be tweeting from @laflowers and @spanglishbaby in both English and Spanish. Can’t wait to chat there with you!

The latest Mickey Mouse Clubhouse adventure is here! When the legendary Crystal Mickey goes missing, Mickey and friends go on an adventure to save the Clubhouse from losing its magic.“Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: The Quest for the Crystal Mickey!” is out on Disney DVD. The DVD includes four extra episodes of Disney Junior’s Emmy®-nominated series “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” (over 2 hours of content!) and a free Adventure Activity Map plus Stickers.

We love that Disney DVD’s include the Spanish soundtrack for our niños to enjoy. So, of course, we want to share this DVD with you! Five lucky winners will not only take Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: The Quest for the Crystal Mickey! but they will also take one copy of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Minnie’s Wizard of Dizz. Check out the giveaway below.

The Giveaway!

We are giving away one copy of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: The Quest for the Crystal Mickey!  AND one copy of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Minnie’s Wizard of Dizz to FIVE lucky winners! All you have to do is leave us a comment telling us who your kids favorite Micky Mouse Clubhouse character is. Then enter the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

As parents committed to raising bilingual kids, we’re fully aware that a) it’s not easy, and b) we need all the help we can get in the form of tools, resources and community. But no matter how much we read, learn from others, bond through playgroups and such, the reality is that the most important element in raising a bilingual child is for the parents to be committed, consistent and proactive in how we expose the minority language to our kids and how fun and relevant it’s made.

The good news is that what children need to thrive in two or more languages, parents — assuming you speak the minority language — are already equipped to give.

1. Books and reading time

Just the mere action of spending some 20 minutes every day reading to or with your child in Spanish (or your target language) immerses him in the richness of the language, gives you opportunity to discuss the book in Spanish and to develop vocabulary. Check out our Books and Libros category for some ideas.

2. Games and play

Children learn better through play, that’s a fact. So why not incorporate games and play elements in Spanish to get them excited about speaking the language. Most of the time they won’t even be aware they are doing so! Anything from board games to card games, puppets and make-believe are fabulous.

3. Habla, habla!

We say this a lot and won’t get tired of repeating that the most important thing you must be doing is speaking to your child in the target language all the time. If you speak the language, you have no exceptions or excuses. Your child must hear the language during most of his waking hours, so there’s nothing better than to be exposed to it through human interaction. Talk to her about anything and start as early as possible, even while in the womb!

4. Cultural connections

Aside from traveling and attending local cultural events, you can bring in your most cherished cultural traditions into the home. The most effective way is to cook traditional dishes and to involve your kids in the preparation as much as possible. You can also have special nights that are dedicated to a specific country you have bonds with. For example, having a Noche de México once per week is a fun way to create a family tradition that brings in the foods, stories, games and language of your country.

5. Motivation and encouragement

Sounds simplistic, but the reality is that all kids need to be praised and motivated along their journey through childhood. Learning a second language is something we hope will be a part of their every day life, but it’s still important to continue to motivate them and instill in them the importance of them knowing several languages. I constantly remind my daughter how special it is that she can speak Spanish and English so well and that not all kids can do that. I encourage her to help the kids in her dual immersion classroom that are just learning Spanish and this boosts her self esteem and motivates her to use Spanish more.

Would love to hear from you. How do you give the gift of bilingualism to your child?

I recently read a fascinating study about how dinnertime conversation supports literacy development. Although the study was conducted in English, the fundamental findings seem to apply in all languages: family mealtimes were more often a predictor of academic and social success than even time spent studying, or participation in sports or church.

Regardless of family demographics, teenagers in the U.S. who eat with their families five times a week or more have higher rates of academic success, and lower rates of alcohol and drug use.

Obviously families who eat together are more likely to spend time keeping an eye on their kids and their activities and friends, but there seems to be more about family dinner conversations that help keep kids out of trouble. When we engage our kids in meaningful conversations at dinner, we get a glimpse into their world, their opinions, and their fears. Parents don’t only learn more intimate details about our kids and their friends, in family chats we have the opportunity to:

• teach them social etiquette
• show how to debate a topic
• practice expressing their opinions, telling stories, and understanding
• see other perspectives
• learn new words/concepts

One of the greatest benefits of mealtime conversations is the language development. As the parent of four kids ages 5-8 (who speak English all day at school!) I am always looking for more ways to get my kids speaking in Spanish. My husband and I sat down and came up with 56 questions to stimulate conversation in Spanish. The questions ask about wishes, likes/dislikes, opinions, friends — great for parents and kids to answer together and hopefully get everyone involved.

Here’s how you can participate: print out the list, cut apart the questions and fold them up. At dinner, have family members take turns picking out a question and answering it. For the little ones who can’t read yet, let them pick out a question and have an older sibling or mami or papi read it. Don’t worry about grammar or mispronunciations — enjoy the moment and focus on the content of what’s being said. Turn off the TV, relax, laugh and have fun!

For a printable version of the 56 conversation starters in Spanish click here.

How often does your family get to sit down and eat dinner together? How do you get your kids to speak more Spanish at dinnertime?

{Photo courtesy of Becky Morales}

References: Snow, C., & Beals, D. (2006). Mealtime talk that supports literacy development. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.), Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

As a “gringa” who didn’t start studying Spanish until the age of 13 and whose “road less traveled” led to becoming a high school Spanish teacher, I know what a challenge it can be for teenagers to acquire a language at a later stage in life.  What I have learned over the years is that children soak up languages and it’s so fun to watch!

Megan s an artist, blogger, mother of 2-year-old Isabel and a high school Spanish teacher living and working in Baltimore, MD.  After growing up together in MD, Megan and her husband Richard studied Spanish together in Alcala de Henares, Spain.  Megan later earned her MA in Spanish language and linguistics from St. Louis University’s Madrid campus.