January of James nearly 3 Years, Sydney 5 Years
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January 2, 2007
I have so much info on the Montegnard family but haven't been logging it because I haven't had the time. If anyone is interested, I can get to work on that.
Mariana is now living with a family around the corner. We email and she asked if she could visit. Looks like things are going well. Stella will be babysitting twice a week again. She's just so great with the kids.
Ordered many books from Language Lizard and the kids love them. They're really learning about different cultures. The other day in the store, Sydney heard a mother and son speaking Spanish. She said, "They are speaking Portuguese." I said, "no, it's Spanish," but she argued, "no, he said, 'esta'" (which is the same in Portuguese). I love how her little ears perk up when she hears other languages.
James is pretty speaking only Portuguese to me. Sometimes he doesn't and I can say, "Em portugues" and he'll switch over. This weekend was fun because I had an Italian friend here. She'd play "Go Fish" with us and laugh when I'd joke with the kids. Usually no one really laughs at my irony so that was neat.
"Go Fish" is a great game because it can be played in any language and is very visual and also tactile.
January 6, 2007
Mariana came to pick up a package her mom sent. She's also sent comic books to the kids and they were SO excited. It was good seeing her- famliar. She said she wanted to get a family outside this area so she could change schools. Said a smaller school would make it easier to make friends. I wanted to say, "So you changed nearly all your classes, changed host families and now you want to change schools...do you see a pattern here?" But it's really none of my business anymore and peple have to live and learn on their own sometimes.
Talked to the family that she's living with now (interium until she moves to her permanent family). When I asked the couple separatly, both said, "Good" with that tone of "Enough, ok". The temporary host mom seemed a bit disapointed that Mariana was spending the night with a Brazilian friend.
Sydney did an interesting language switch the other day. Vorakarn was there to hear it and found it really interesting as did I. She had a friend over who asked for milk without being particularly polite: I want milk!" I asked him to say it in a more polite manner, and he didn't seem to get what I was saying so he said it in the same way or something similar like, "Now I want milk." I asked Sydney to tell him how to ask more politely.
After a brief pause, she started saying in Portuguese the way to politely ask (sort of directed towards me), "Eu posso ter..." but stopped mid sentence and switched to English (directing her efforts more to her friend), "May I have some milk, please." I looked at Vorakarn and he raised his eyebrows like, "Amazing." He's one of the few people I know who really seems to get how interesting it is, this whole process of being raised bilingual. Perhaps because he speaks 3 languages fluently.
January 10, 2007
Today Sydney pushed a boy on the playground. I said, "Diga 'Sinto muito'" ("Say, 'I'm sorry'") so she said to him in Portuguese, "Sinto muito" which, not surprizingly, he didn't understand (and she, of course, knew he wouldn't understand). She laughed sassily. I told her to tell him in English, and she said she forgot how to say it in English. Eventually she did though, reading my exasperated look. She was just messing with me.
The kid she pushed was the boy who always used to tell us to be quiet and "Quit speaking Spanish!" I asked him one day "Why not?" and he replied, "Because it's too loud!" I told him it was Portuguese. His mother emphasized it to him too.
So then today his mom asked him, "What language and Sydney and her mommy speaking?" and he said, "Portuguese." We were all so proud! Hopefully from here on out we can avoid pushing and demanding language changes. If only the leaders in the US and Iraq could settle their differences so jovially. How about a "SURGE" in trying to understand one another instead of a surge of more soldiers. I realize it's not that simple, but really, with our peaceful outcome I did wonder why we can't expand that to a broader context.
January 14, 2007
I find it interesting that though Sydney gets that I speak English, she still sometimes speaks to her father in Engilsh as if I don't understand. The last few days I've been in a bad mood (hormonal stuff) and have announced that at breakfast. Stephen told the kids to be especially nice to Mamae. So then today, we all 4 were in the car and Sydney asked Stephen, "So do we have to nice to Mamae again today?"
January 16, 2007
I've noticed Sydney and James really helping each other out with Portuguese. Sydyey, for example will give me a sentence with all Portuguese except "candy". I'll ask her again what she wants and James will respond in Portuguese for her, "bala!" It works the other way around too, with Sydney helping James.
We had a playdate with 3 kids around their age and I noticed how much more relaxed I was to interact my 2 in Portuguese than I usually am with friends around. Some of her playdates seem nervous or just plain put-out when I speak Portuguese to my kids eventhough Sydney or I translate for them after we've spoken. These three were just so accostomed to other languages...their mother was a French major and teaches language.
I think that if nothing else, children should be famliar enough with other languages that they do not feel threatened by them. We as Americans, tend to see speaking another language around those who don't speak it as rude. I feel that as long as it is done in a way that does not isolate the non-language speaker, it can be useful to even the non-language speaker, exposing them to the sounds of something different.
I've found another advantage to raising the kids bilingual is that it pushes me to spend time with them, talking to them not just doing household chores in silence and such. I get a reminder that I haven't been vocal with them and really talked to them when (when I do talk to them) they struggle to find the word in Portuguese. I'm really trying to interact with them because I love them and want them to see that I'm more than the maid and cook...that I want us to enjoy ourselves. Playing Uno and Go Fish has helped alot. Also they love comic books and we were given several recently. That's something we can do together. I think every mom struggest with this. They rarely get down on the floor to play because there are always bills to pay or phone calls to be returned or beds to make.
January 17, 2007
Today Sydney was speaking English to James and I overheard something she said-- it made me chuckle. She immediately switched to Portuguese with him, as if realizing I was in the room and wanting to expand her language to her audience.
Mariana sent me an email saying she's like to get together. I still haven't responded b/c things have been sorta nuts here and because I'm just not sure what to say to her when she comes. I'll email her back soon, though.
January 19, 2007
My neighbor's car broke down and her son, Robbie, spend the day with us while she used our car to make appointments and such. He's been at our house so much-- when he was quite young, I even spoke Portugusee to him so he's picked up a bit. When it was naptime, we all got into Sydney's bed to read a book...one of each child's choosing. James and Sydney know to pick a Portugusee one and Robbie ended up getting one from the same basket. So I read the 3 books with Robbie listening intently. He looked at the pictures and seemed to get what was happening as well as my kids. There was once when Sydney translated for him (it was a joke and Robbie didn't laugh so Sydney knew he didn't understand). I was so amazed at his continued interest.
His sister came over later and she's older, 7 I think. She loves to try to figure out what we're saying. She'll listen to me then say, "Did you just tell her she could have milk?" Sometimes she's right, having judged well from context I suspect. I'm so delighted that they don't see my speaking the language to the kids as an exclusion to them, it's just natural b/c we've always done it that way. They've always gotten an English explanation when needed. No need to fear. Many people (young and old) get so uncomfortable when others are speaking another language.
January 22, 2007
My mom came in today for a visit. Things were strained at first because we picked her up from the airport and were all excited. Except that Sydney, when she's still warming up to someone she hasn't seen in awhile, doesn't talk to them. So she kept talking to me in Portuguese and mom was in the dark. I was trying to translate as much as possible, but seriously sometimes Sydney's just babbling so it's just dumb to translate the gibbility gobble. Mom is very resigned to our plan, supportive, even though it is ackward from time to time and even though, according to the rules of ettiquite, it's just plain rude.
January 25, 2007
Throughout the week, mom's learned several new vocabulary words in Portuguese. They are just slightly off sometimes, so Sydney smiles and looks at a loss as to what to say and to what language to say it in. We were playing "Go Fish" and when Mom didn't have the match Sydney was asking for, she told Sydney, "Vamos pescar!" (which is "Let's fish!). Sydney said, "Granny's a little bit crazy." Luckily Momma cracked up.
Momma said at one point during the game (not in a mad sort of way, but in good-natured, "hey, I'm getting the shaft here" kind of tone), "I'm not getting all this game with the Portuguese, so... English only in this game." The kids and I just can't really do that, it would just be so confusing to them, stange, unnatural. So we kept speaking Portuguse, but showed her the cards we were asking for so she could remember who had what in their hands. It makes me realized how the language really is ingrained in who they are, in who we are together. It's all we know from day 1 so it's as natural as hugging them or making sure they eat their vegetables.
It's been SOO great having Stella back. She really works with the kids on reading and crafts and little songs. They just enjoy her so much. Very thoughtful too (brought me a birthday present I LOVE yesterday). Lif is getting back to normal.
January 30, 2007
I've noticed of late that Sydney most often mixes the languages when she's with Stephen and me and wants us both to understand. Of course, she could direct her speech to her father and I would understand, but she seems to use the strategy of including a bit of both our languages, to keep both our attention.
It's difficult to decide which language to speak when her playdates begin. Today, several children and parents I know were at the park and Sydney asked (in Portuguese) me if she and her friend on the playdate could go in to the restrooms just the 2 of them (without adult supervision basically). I asked the little girl, "Would your mother let you do that?" The other mothers laughed at her expression because she was so confused. 'Would my mother let me do what?' her eyes pleaded.
