Just a quick note to let you all know that we have a really cool giveaway going on at SpanglishBaby. Wouldn´t want you to miss your chance to win one of three LazyTown DVDs. Click here to find out how to win.

As promised, SpanglishBabyFinds will be merging with SpanglishBaby in March. You´ll find there all the great reviews and giveaways you´ve loved. If you haven´t so already, sign up to the SpanglishBaby RSS or email feed so you´re still in the know.

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

We know we´ve been gone for a while now, and we apologize for not giving you a head´s up.

SpanglishBabyFinds will be put on hold until March while we undergo a major site redesign that will merge SpanglishBaby and SpanglishBabyFinds into one amazing and über-useful site for parents raising bilingual children.  At least, we like to think so!

Till then, we invite you to continue visiting us at SpanglishBaby and to sign up for our free newsletter and rss or email feed to stay up-to-date with the latest info on raising bilingual and bicultural kids.

We´re still accepting submissions for reviews and giveaways.  Feel free to contact us at any time.

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

Instead of bringing you another guide of cool gifts for your children (any Find featured on this site is sure to Wow!), we´ve decided to showcase our Finds of things infused with the multicultural holiday spirit.  We´ve created a short but sweet list that ranges from cards, to music, to books, to sites doing the right thing.

Just a quick search on Etsy.com with the keyword “Navidad”  delivers pages full of beautiful hand-made objects reflecting the spirit en español. One of my favorites was this simple, yet elegantly gorgeous boxed set of ten cards with the phrase “Feliz Navidad” laser printed on the front.  When you open it you read:  “that means Merry Christmas in Spanish.”  The artist behind this Sweet Perversion Designs shop will also personalize the cards if you request it.  There’s only one set in stock right now ($16.00).  I would hurry to get it!

The oral tradition of villancicos, or Christmas carols, is a huge part of all Christmas celebrations along Latin America and Spain.  This book, Merry Navidad: Christmas Carols in Spanish and English, does a beautiful job at preserving 19 of these verses and translating them to English.  There’s also nine brief descriptions of how the holiday is celebrated in many countries including Perú, Chile, México, Puerto Rico and Argentina. ($12.23)

Of course Dora the Explorer wouldn´t miss out on the holiday celebrations! Dora´s Christmas is a CD with 16 classic holiday songs with a Dora/Latino twist. If your young child is a Dora fan, this is a great CD to introduce them to the songs which make our Navidad celebrations special. Our favorite song is “La Nochebuena!” ($10.99)

Part of the Putumayo Kids Presents collection, the Christmas Around the World CD is a collection of Christmas songs performed by artists from around the globe. The 12 songs in this CD are sure to give an eclectic mix to your holiday playlist. I had never danced to “Joy to the World” before, but this version from Cuban musicians sure got me salsa-ing to it!

Photo by A30 Tsitsika

Many Latin American nations celebrate both Noche Buena and, two weeks later, Reyes Magos. One of the traditions on Reyes Magos is to eat together a sweet bread know as Rosca de Reyes. The fun part is that someone will get a little plastic baby Jesus in their portion, which means they get to have the whole family over to their house weeks later on el Día de la Candelaria for tamales and atole. I´ve stood in long lines in Mexican bakeries in Los Angeles waiting to get my hands on one of these roscas. Now, I found I can actually order one online. How convenient! I found them here and here.

Kids are all about “mine, mine,” so anything with their name on it is sure to be a hit. Frecklebox is in the business of creating cool designs on puzzles, placemats, stickers, coloring books, etc that you can personalize with your child’s name. They have several holiday-themed objects, including this hanukkah puzzle and snow stickers.

Why should we create another guide when our friends at Latin Baby have it covered with the Latino Family Gift Guide? They’ve put together a great collection of gifts for la familia, los niños, los amigos, and a separate category for gifts under $20. They´ve included today´s hottest bilingual and affordable toy line, Ingenio. Check out the guide here.

Tis the season to give. Donor´s Choose is a great option if you´re looking for a charity to support this season. This site connects you to classrooms around the nation that are in need of funds for different reasons. We know how much our classrooms have suffered during the last years and this is a great way to support the efforts of teachers leading the way to educate our children. Browse around the site and you´ll find several bilingual classrooms in need of books and such. The best part is that you really do connect with the classroom you help and can see for yourself how your donation was put to use.

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

We mostly review CDs of children’s music with Spanish or bilingual lyrics, but Putumayo Kids Presents deserves a rank of its own.  The children’s and educational division of the well-known Putumayo Music CDs dedicate themselves to the mission of introducing cultures to kids through the art of music. And they do it very well. As a parent raising a bilingual and bicultural child, I appreciate companies that create materials that reach out to to this generation of global citizens.

I recently received Putumayo’s latest yummy release from their Playground series, “Picnic Playground.” They’ve put together a collection of 12 songs from around the globe in a smorgasbord of languages, tastes and rhythms, all with the common theme of food.  And what could be more global and bridging than food and music?  Of course, I immediately put on the only track in Spanish-Jose Conde y Ola Fresca’s “Bolitas de Arroz con Pollo” and I suddenly got an urge to cook up a batch of this classic and heartwarming dish.

My girl has a blast shouting out “Ice Cream” to the tune of Asheba’s song.  I know, I know…she should be screaming out “Helado” or “Nieve,” but Ice Cream is one of those phrases that’s just much more fun in English.  And you’ve gotta scream it out.

I’m thankful for the English, Spanish and French song descriptions included with the CD because I was able to figure out that Pascal Parisot was singing in “Mes Parents Sont Bio” about a kid’s parents who only eat organic. The tune is incredibly catchy, and now I can pretend to know what I’m singing in my bad French.

“Picnic Playground” is a real treat for the whole familia to enjoy at any time.  ¡Buen Provecho!

Oh, and I need to let you know about a great contest Putumayo is hosting which ends this week:  The Putumayo Kids Dance-Off Video Contest.  Head over to their site to find out how you could win their full kids collection (retail value of $285)!

A great way to keep up with Putumayo Kids Presents latest releases and contests is to follow them on Facebook. Sign up here.

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to Random.org the winners are:  #6 Stephanie and #11 Ashley. Congratulations!

TWO lucky winners will each receive a Putumayo Kids “Picnic Playground” CD. For your chance to win all you have to do is leave a comment telling us which of the 12 tracks on this CD is your, or your child’s, favorite and why. To sample the songs go here.

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, December 13th Monday, December 14th at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

Our amiga Dora has gotten herself and her friends into yet another adventure.  This time she volunteers to take Swiper off Santa’s naughty list by showing him the real spirit of la Navidad is giving, not taking away, or “swiping”, in his case.  To accomplish this, they take him to revisit the Swiper of Christmas past, present and future.  A classic holiday tale, told Dora-style.

The first clip I saw of this Nickelodeon primetime special, “Dora’s Christmas Carol Adventure”, was the video of her singing “La Noche Buena.”  Head over to SpanglishBaby to watch it with your kids, if you haven’t already.  I automatically liked that it’s a catchy song to introduce young kids to the meaning of the word for Christmas Eve in Spanish:  Noche Buena.  Plus, it reflects the party atmosphere and even glamour (notice how they’re all dressed in party suits!) that Noche Buena traditionally is in Latin homes.

The CD, Dora´s Christmas, features two other exclusive music video along with the 16 classic holiday tunes performed by Dora-with a Latin twist.

I found it hilarious that Dora the Explorer’s version of Santa Claus not only speaks Spanish, actually Spanglish, but also has brown-tone skin.  I had no idea you could actually tan so much in the North Pole! It wasn’t necessary to portray a Latino-esque Santa, but it’s totally cute.  Hey, we could even call him Santa José!  OK, maybe not…

Unfortunately, there´s no Spanish-language track available on this Dora the Explorer movie, either.  But there´s enough Spanish and Latino traditions to make it part of your home-viewing repertoire.  There is, however, a companion hardcover book in Spanish called Dora y La Aventura de Navidad that would be perfect to have as well.

In any case, watch it for yourself and start a new family Christmas tradition leading up to la Noche Buena with “Dora´s Christmas Carol Adventure.”  This one-hour special premieres Sunday, Dec. 6th on Nickelodeon at 8pm (ET/PT). It will encore on Nickelodeon on Monday, Dec. 7, at 9 a.m. (ET/PT) and on Nick Jr. on Sunday, Dec. 13, at 7 p.m. (ET).  No worries if you don´t have cable, you can still watch it by downloading it from iTunes starting on Monday, Dec. 14th, or purchasing your very own copy here.  It also makes a wonderful gift!

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed. Thanks to Random.org, the winner is:  #14-Beth Shepherd.  Felicidades!

Of course we’ve hooked one up for you to win! One lucky winner will receive both “Dora’s Christmas Carol Adventure” DVD and Dora´s Christmas CD.  How giving is that?!

For your chance to win all you have to do is leave a comment telling us which of the 16 tracks on this CD is your, or your child’s, favorite and why. Click on the widget below to sample the songs:

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, December 6th at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

I´ve always considered myself a bit of a music snob because I am married to a Latin Musician/Song writer. With the birth of our Son, it was inevitable that music would be an important influence in his life. I, as a new mother, would prefer that he would have aspirations of becoming a lawyer, doctor or even an Indian Chief for that matter.  The reality is that there are instruments scattered from one end of our apartment to another and a live acoustical jam session can break out in any given minute. I tell myself it is what it is, and that always seems to get me through the day.

In the past, I had been invited by “Mommy Friends” to see different kid bands.  My response to their invites was: “Why? I have live music in my home,” regularly.  Honestly, having to spend an hour of my life listening to a bunch of goofy adults singing nursery rhymes could drive this sleep-deprived mother to drink. Well, that was my theory until last week.

A week ago, my son and I got to experience the musical renditions of HOT PEAS ‘N BUTTER and my former assumptions about musical performers of children’s songs totally changed. This male duo was truly a pleasure to listen to for both children and adults.  Their combination of Latin Salsero and Cumbia rhythms kept the 200-capacity venue at the Adriane Archt Center in Miami, Florida dancing, jumping and clapping. Parents and children alike were grooving to songs like “Mi Cuerpo” and “Baila /Dance.”  Hot Peas ‘n Butter is a multi-lingual band which was a welcomed surprise. They do not only have songs in Spanish and English but also French and Korean. What I found especially delightful, at least for me, was that there were no gimmicky costumes or an elaborate stage production. It was just two guys, a bongo, a clarinet, an acoustical guitar and a base guitar, and that was it. And that’s all you really need when you sound that good and have a crowd of adults and kids dancing to a song about “Bicycle Safety.”

Their live show is fantastic! I highly recommend it if they come to your town. But the CD Hot Peas ‘n Butter “Best of the Bowl” is a must-have. This particular CD is only in English and Spanish. Their clever use of languages has my 2 year old shouting “Baila… Baila…Dance… Dance!!!”  throughout our home.  One of my personal favorites from the 11-song CD is “Somos Familia.” It provides for the young listener what we call family members in English then in Spanish, but their musical rhythm reminds me of the Cuban music I listened too as a young girl with my Abuelos.

Hot Peas ‘n Butter has clearly changed my feelings about Kid’s Music. It has opened my ears to a whole new world that has my son and I dancing the time away. This Music snob has learned a valuable lesson: H P & B ROCKS!!!!

Hot Peas ‘N Butter CD’s can be found at Barnes & Noble, Borders, and on-line at iTunes, Amazon, Sony Connect, and many other music download sites. Their performance schedule can be found at www.hotpeasnbutter.com.

Today’s find was reviewed by director/producer/musician’s wife + mamá, Mara Farina.  Mara and her boys can be found chillin out bayside in Miami, FL.

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed.  Thanks to Random.org the winner is:  #9-Julie!

One lucky winner will receive a Hot Peas’ n Butter “Best of the Bowl” bilingual CD. For your chance to win all you have to do is leave a comment telling us which of the 11 tracks on this CD is your, or your child’s, favorite and why.  To sample the songs go here.

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, December 6th at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

As I mentioned over at SpanglishBaby today, now that my three-year-old daughter is able to kind of understand the meaning of Thanksgiving, we’ve been talking about it a lot.

Since she is a big book-lover, I was very thankful when we received Pat Mora’s latest book, “Gracias/Thanks” last week because it instantly became a great way to explain what this beautiful holiday is all about.

As you probably know by now, we’re are big fans of Mora and this bilingual book does not disappoint. It’s the story of a little boy who lists all the things for which he is thankful. The sentences are simple enough for preschoolers to understand and my daughter is able to identify with all the things the little boy is thankful for like the ladybugs, the waves and Abuelita.

Every night after we finish reading this book, we each take turns saying some things for which we are thankful and I love that my daughter, like the little boy in the book, is always thankful for her familia.

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed.

We actually got a great surprise from Lee & Low, the publisher of “Gracias/Thanks”: five books instead of one. So, FIVE of you were lucky enough to win a copy of this great book. CONGRATULATIONS TO: #10 JMarie, #9 Amy, #11 Christine, #13 Dariela and #4 Diana!!!!

We’re giving away a copy of Pat Mora’s latest book, “Gracia/Thanks” to one lucky winner. For your chance to win all you have to do is leave us a comment telling us about your family’s Thanksgiving tradition.

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, November 29th at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

Puppies, Santa Claus and Christmas, what more do I need to say?  Santa Buddies: The Legend of Santa Paws, Disney´s newest Blu-ray and DVD title that releases today, perfectly combines these magical elements to bring the holiday season to your home-paws and all.

The Buddies-Budderball, B-Dawg, RoseBud, Buddha and MudBud-are a group of adorable talking puppies that have become world-wide famous thanks to the three previous movies they have starred in.  Santa Buddies is the fourth Buddies film and the first one to spread Christmas cheer with their version of a classic Santa Claus tale.

This was my girl´s first encounter with the man she calls “Ho, ho, ho”, i.e. Santa Claus.  But, now, she will probably forever believe that Santa Paws, Santa’s canine companion in this movie, is actually part of the tale. And that sleighs are led by a group of puppies that talk, fly and climb down chimneys.  Not that I mind, not at all.  I am one of those moms that enjoys her girl’s fantasy worlds and how they are forever evolving.  These puppies, who in our house speak in Spanish,  have surely brought the Christmas joy to this house.

Now, if I can get my daughter to sit on Ho, ho, ho’s lap for one decent picture.  Maybe if Santa Paws was around, maybe…

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed.  Thanks to random.org the winners are:  #33-Letessha and #65-Christie.  Congratulations!

TWO lucky winners will receive a Combo Pack (Blu-ray + DVD) of Santa Buddies:  The Legend of Santa Paws.  For your chance to win all you have to do is leave us a comment telling us which of the Buddies pups is your or your child’s favorite and why.

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, November 29th at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

Recently, I wrote about ways to enrich your bilingual child’s vocabulary over at our sister site, SpanglishBaby, and one of the tips was to try to make everything into a topic of conversation. Coincidentally, the same day, I got the product pictured above which is a table game about exactly that: questions – from the thought-provoking to the trivial – to get a conversation going.

I’ve always been a fan of board games. I used to spend endless hours playing Monopoly with my older sister (just don’t ask her what I did if I lost – yes, I’m a sore loser!). So, I can’t wait until both my kids are old enough to play them with me. I’ve always been a fan of asking questions, too – hence my choice in careers: I’m a journalist – so as soon as I found out about Table Topics, I wanted to get my hands on it.

You see, Table Topics is a game of 135 cards – which come in a cool acrylic cube – with all kinds of questions to get a conversation started. There are several different themes including: Teen, Couples, Girls Night Out and Right or Wrong. And the best part is that they have two bilingual editions, Family and Original. Since the questions come in both English and Spanish they are great no matter which is your native tongue. The Family edition has questions suitable for any age. The Original is geared toward children over the age of 12.

Here are some sample questions from the Family version so you can get an idea as what to expect:

• Which three objects would you save first if your house caught fire?
• What’s the funniest story you’ve heard for why someone couldn’t turn in their homework?
• Why would you rather be a girl or a boy?
• If you could speak another language which would you choose?

Imagine all the new vocabulary your kids can be exposed to just by answering some of these questions. And, remember the best thing to do is to keep the conversation going by continuing to ask questions from whatever answers they give. Definitely a great time to learn while having fun and spending some quality time together!

I think these are perfect especially this time of year when so many of us gather with family and friends to celebrate the holidays.

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed. CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS #6 JULIE and #16 AMY!!!

You have a chance to win one Family and one Original cube from Table Topics. All you have to do is go to to Table Topics and tell us which theme of all their cubes is your favorite and why.

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, November 22nd at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "

I was one of those mother´s-to-be that swore I wouldn´t let my kid control my music selection. That my iPod and my playlist would be that one-sacred-thing I was not willing to give up. Either she liked MY music or ni modo.  Ay, one more parenting joke on me.

Luckily, my girl has great taste.  We do most of our music listening in the car and she has some very cool CDs (past Finds, of course!) to choose from.  But, as of late, the only one allowed is “la música del Panda.”  Yes, she recognizes the famous Little Pim panda on the CD cover from watching their Spanish: Eating and Drinking  DVD.  I can say her hand´s down favorite, and mine, is the first song on the CD:  “Clap, Clap, Clap,” an original Spanish version by the über-cool, kiddie-rock band Milkshake created for Little Pim.

You can totally tell the 15 songs on the album were very carefully and purposefully selected.  There’s some rocking Dan Zanes, a loving José Luis Orozco, and classics from Cantarima and Cantaré Music.

Little Pim created this CD for the whole family and as a complement to their award-winning language learning DVDs. Spanish Bop contains a 16-page lyrics book that highlights vocabulary from the DVD and includes an English translation of all the songs.  Makes it ideal music to sing-a-long to, if only my daughter would let me sing out loud.

A Giveaway!!

This giveaway is now closed.  Thanks to Random.org, the winner is #14-Christa Marteny. Congratulations!!

You have a chance to win both this  Spanish Bop CD and the Spanish: Eating and Drinking DVD from Little Pim.   All you have to do is go here to sample the tracks on the CD and come back here to leave a comment telling us which song you liked.

As an added bonus, if you´re picked as our winner and you´re also subscribed to the Little Pim newsletter, then they will  give you a Little Pim plush Panda as well.   (No need to leave an additional comment/entry here for that.)

That’s all you have to do to enter this giveaway. If you want to up your chances at winning, then click here to learn how to get additional entries.

This giveaway ends Sunday, November 22nd at midnight EST.

For the part that nobody likes, but we’ve gotta have, check out the Giveaway Rules.

{Make sure you’re subscribed to the SBFinds feed via email or RSS so that you can be notified of our weekly Finds, special discounts and more awesome giveaways.}

Secret Phrase: "One of the greatest feats of human development is the acquisition of language. "