My 4-year-old wanted to send a message to her cousins: “Right now we’re going to climb a mountain, and it has some holes in it. And in the biggest hole a bunch of people are having a party!”

We all smiled, amused. Hole-in-the-Rock is a small, red hill with—yes—a big hole in it. On the evening we arrived, the hole was full of people that had hiked up there. Imagine her delight when, about 5 minutes after we made it to the top, a group of college-age girls started singing happy birthday to a friend and the rest of us joined in. (“It’s my best friend, it’s her birthday,” chanted one, dancing around the birthday girl.) 

“Oooooh,” marveled my daughter, “So it’s HER party!”

I recently read about illusionist Andrew Evans, founder of the Magic Patio (a “magic speakeasy” hosted in a San Francisco residential backyard). Performing magic there—no stage, no hidden strings or trap doors—heightens wonder, he claims, because of how the magical is embedded in an ordinary circumstance. 

It turns out that Evans doesn’t perform for children under age six though, because the tricks often fall flat. “Young children are as enthralled by garage-door openers as they are by levitation,” he said. “Everything is magical to a kid.” 

As a mom to three small children, I try to be productive, efficient, and practical. My kids’ days may be imbued with magic, but mine can skew towards the mundane. It’s easy to view magic as a luxury reserved for them, much like daydreaming or play. 

And yet, when I give myself permission to be enchanted, to revel in a little magic, the world gains an irresistible luster. A crowd of hikers becomes a party; a cupcake with a candle on top makes the afternoon extraordinary. 

Maybe it’s magical, maybe just wonderful, but I’m on the lookout for more of that sparkling feeling in 2020.

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¡Hola y feliz 2019!

How do you feel about New Year’s Resolutions? I LOVE THEM. I know not everyone does, but I’m very into making a list of goals and projects and planning for the 12 months ahead.

This week I picked up a copy of the book “The Read-Aloud Family: Making Meaningful and Lasting Connections with Your Kids” from the library and it made one goal shoot to the top of my list: reading aloud to my kids. 

I feel strange telling you that because, hello, I own a children’s book company. But the truth is that between non-stop travel over the holidays and a new baby on the way, lately I haven’t been as consistent about reading to my girls as I normally am. 

Buuuut while I was reading my new book (basically a manifesto on why reading aloud to our kids is pretty much the most important thing we can do with our time and energy), I came across this:

“I read aloud to my kids because I know that my years with them are short. Because I long for a deep, soulful, real connection with each of them. When my head hits the pillow each night, I want to know that I have done the one most important thing: I have fostered warm, happy memories and created lifelong bonds with my kids— even when the rest of life feels hard. 

These are moments we will never regret. Even better, these are moments our kids will treasure for the rest of their lives.”

I MEAN. 

I hope this new year brings lots of opportunities for reading aloud with your little ones and lots of great books to your home. (And if you need a little help finding children’s books in Spanish, well, I’ve got your back ;)).

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We can’t tell you how much we’ve appreciated your business and support over the last year.

We have some exciting news and a change we hope you’ll love. We’ve heard your feedback, and for 2018, we will focus primarily on books and therefore we’ve been able to cut the price of our subscription.

While we’ve loved our current model of sending boxes themed around our beautiful Spanish or bilingual books, we are switching to a “book of the month” model.* Each month our subscribers will receive one very carefully curated hardcover Spanish or bilingual picture book kids will love, gift-wrapped like a present.

We will also be discontinuing our board book subscription box. This business decision was not an easy one to make, because we believe so strongly in creating readers from a very young age. However, we’ve noticed that most of our customers purchase board book boxes as one-time gifts for special moments in their little ones’ lives. What this tells us is that the board book box makes a great gift! So stay tuned, because while we won’t be offering board books on a monthly basis as a subscription product, we do have plans to offer one-time boxes in our shop that will be rotated every few months and available as long as supplies last!

Our guiding principal is that reading is an investment in your child’s future. Reading makes for confident, smart, and emotionally healthy kids. Reading in Spanish does all of this, plus exposes your niños to new vocabulary and creates a love for the language! As much as we’ve loved the toys and other objects we’ve sent, we want to make sure that these books get the importance (and attention) they deserve.

With a simplified model we’re able to lower our price considerably compared to our current model. We truly want to make the high-quality books that we source from all over Latin America and Spain available to as many families as possible and are always working to make our price point more accessible!

Once again thank you for being our customer! If you have any questions about the new model, please let us know.

Wishing you felices fiestas and a Merry Christmas!

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We were in the library when my daughter handed me a stack of board books that she had pulled from the shelves to read to her. As I absentmindedly picked up the stack, I noticed a book that didn’t look quite like the others: it bilingual, it had all kinds of flaps you could unfold to reveal hidden images, and most importantly it was based on the lyrics of “Los Pollitos Dicen!” Um, what?!

That was my first experience with Canticos, books that celebrate Latinx culture through nursery rhymes and songs. I’m super excited to start a fun new series here called “Cinco Minutos,” 5 questions answered by some incredibly inspiring authors, moms and/or business owners. I couldn’t think of anyone better to kick it off than Susie Jaramillo, cofounder and chief creative officer of Canticos. I especially loved her advice about raising bilingual/bicultural kids (that last point! So true and something I’m already experiencing con mi hija now that she’s in preschool). ¡Que disfruten!

Hi Susie! Tell us a little about yourself…

Hello there! I’m an eternal student of culture, a child at heart who loves to draw and paint and bring stories to life. I’m also the mother of two fun-loving kids and the wife of a musical mathematician.

What has surprised you most about the experience of building the Canticos brand and company?

I was mostly surprised by the broader reception of these books by non-Hispanic or Spanish speaking families, librarians and educators. They really appreciate what we are doing and have come out in full force to support. As a company I appreciate the talent and the partners we are attracting – partners like Sol Book Box, Burt’s Bees Baby, Target!! These are all great partners to have.

What is your favorite thing about your job? What is the most challenging?

I have 2 favorite aspects of my job:

1. When I illustrate the books and write the rhymes (singing them out loud to anyone who will listen until I am completely sure they sound great.)
2. When I get to see little kids enjoy my books, whether I am reading to them or someone else is. Its especially exciting when the children know the song and their eyes light up with recognition and excitement.

What is the biggest thing you hope your kids learn from you?

The thing I hope for most is that these kids take pride in their language and their culture. That they see these songs and this world as aspirational!! Something that represents them that they can be proud of.

Give us your best advice for parents raising bilingual and/or bicultural kids.

I regularly seek out ways to expose my children to my language and my culture. Why? Being bilingual is truly good for their brains. That said I also want my children to be proud of their roots, and gain confidence from their ability to navigate between cultures.

My best advice would be this:

• Speak Spanish at home – either both parents or at least one.
• If you hire a caregiver, hire a Spanish dominant one and ask them to only speak to your child in Spanish.
• Find Spanish dominant kids for them to play with if possible.
• Read and sing to them in Spanish regularly.
• When they watch TV, or play with apps, let them play/watch in Spanish. Most streaming services have this capability.
• Take them to Latin America when you can. Family immersion trips are key.
• Last but not least, don’t force it. Don’t let it become a thing the kids feel stressed about. Keep things light and fun. It’s not the end of the world if they answer you in English once they start going to school.

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“Are you Ecuatoriana or Mexicana?” It’s a question we ask our daughter every once in a while (her answer varies depending on whether she’s feeling more love for her Mexican mom or her Ecuadorian dad…) As a Latina parent in the U.S., I’m always looking for products or services that can help me connect my kids to their Latinx roots. I thought I’d round up a few kid-friendly Latinx businesses that do just that! After all, there’s no better time than Hispanic Heritage Month to help kids (whether Latinx or not) learn a little more about Latinx culture and heritage.

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Are you a podcast listener? I LOVE podcasts and am a total evangelist for my favorite ones (although I sadly haven’t been able to convince Josh, my partner, to get on the podcast bandwagon so maybe not such a great evangelist?). I like listening to them while I do things like sweep and tidy up the nursery because it’s nice to learn and be inspired as I put the toy school bus back in its place for the 15th time that day.

As a new mom a couple of years ago, podcasts were also my best friends as I navigated the sudden isolation that came with maternity leave and going from working in an office everyday to going hours and hours without seeing another adult.

However! When we decided that we would only speak Spanish at home with our babies, I quickly realized that pretty much all of my favorite podcasts were in English. Nothing wrong with that of course, but I always feel like it’s a nice little bonus Spanish for the girls when they hear it on the radio or on TV, so I’m constantly on the hunt for great podcasts in Spanish that I can listen to while they’re around.

Here are three great ones if you, too, need a little español in your podcast faves list:

IF YOU’RE An entrepreneur
LISTEN TO Libros para Emprendedores
WHY IT’S AWESOME There are so many great books written to inspire and educate entrepreneurs, and I want to read all of them! Really I do! But given that there are only so many hours in the day, it’s nice when you can get a summary of the biggest lessons that you can immediately apply to your business. That’s what this podcast is: a summary of some really great self-help/marketing/business books, delivered in a quick and entertaining way. Luis Ramos’ style is a bonus for me, because although he’s Spanish he lives in Mexico, and does his podcast in a way that reminds me so much of my favorite radio host in Chihuahua.

IF YOU’RE Interested in Latin American stories and storytellers
LISTEN TO Radio Ambulante
WHY IT’S AWESOME Radio Ambulante is distributed by NPR, so you know it’s quality journalism. This podcast tells Latin American stories in Spanish from all over the American continent (including the United States), and I love getting a little peek at the different accents and cultures of people from all these different countries. This one is just beautifully produced, too– the sound editing, the journalistic bent, all of it is phenomenal.

IF YOU’RE Looking for a podcast that discusses national Latino news and culture
LISTEN TO Latino USA
WHY IT’S AWESOME This podcast is on every “best podcasts for Latinx” list you’ll read, and for good reason! It’s NPR’s only radio program focusing on Latinx and it’s been around for 20 years (!). Their episodes cover everything from parenthood to Latinos in hip-hop to the origins of MS-13 (aka Mara Salvatrucha, the international criminal gang). This one TECHNICALLY isn’t in all Spanish, but guests and hosts often do speak Spanish (and Spanglish) and besides, I couldn’t leave it out of a list of my favorite podcasts because 1) I love it so much and 2) I want to be BFFs with Maria Hinojosa, the host.

I’d love to hear more suggestions because I’m always on the hunt! Any wonderful Spanish podcasts you’ve been listening to lately?

(Photo of Maria Hinojosa by Caroline Yang, via MPR News)

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It’s almost the start of the new school year for some, and maybe your kids will be taking Spanish class (or maybe they’re in a language immersion program, lucky you!). Or perhaps your kids aren’t taking any language classes, but you speak Spanish at home and are raising them bilingually. The benefits of being bilingual are phenomenal, as a quick google search will reveal. In case you need a refresher (or just want to have them all in one place to refer to when your kid [or you] needs a pep talk), this post is for you!

I e-met Sara a few months ago and loved her immediately. She’s a lawyer and fellow book-loving mami (and Sol Book Box subscriber!) who is raising her two kids trilingually (!) as English/Spanish/Slovak speakers. On her blog she shares some amazing resources for anyone raising kids multilingually, and kindly compiled a list to share here of all the ways being bilingual or multilingual will benefit your kids—read on (and maybe pat yourself on the back for giving this gift to your niños)!

Sara says:

Raising bilingual or trilingual children is incredibly easy — for the kids. Both my husband and I were lucky enough to be raised bilingually (in my case) and trilingually (in his). We thought memories of our childhoods — happy, carefree — reflected how easy it would be to raise children with multiple languages. And well, we were wrong (just as we were wrong about a lot of our other ideas surrounding parenthood, because “sleep like a baby” means they sleep a lot, right?).

Most sources I’ve found suggest that exposing your children to the target language at least 30% of their waking time is sufficient for them to learn. Though that seems like an easy threshold to meet, between school, play dates, and other activities where they are mainly exposed to English, I often get antsy that their Spanish and Slovak will suffer. For kids in the U.S., like ours, English is so easy — everyone at the park and at school speaks it, most of the books in the library or at the bookstore use it, and it’s the default for most movies, shows, songs, and videos they’re exposed to.

Though it can be difficult to maintain, the benefits of being multilingual are well-documented. And reviewing them always gives me a boost in morale. All the times I respond “que?” in feigned ignorance when my son speaks English to me will pay off (I tell myself as I Google for the hundredth time how to say raccoon or moose or snowplow in Spanish)! So for my benefit, and maybe for yours too, here’s a short list of all the ways being bilingual or multilingual will benefit your children:

• It literally rewires their brains. Multilinguals “have greater brain tissue density in the areas of the brain related to language, memory, and attention.”
• Bilingualism may ward off cognitive deterioration and dementia.
• It makes people more empathetic.
• Multilingual children have greater executive control than monolingual children, which is associated with the ability to plan, control impulses, memory recollection, and focus on tasks (and may make them smarter).
• They may be happier in school and exhibit fewer behavioral problems.
• Multilingualism is associated with high academic achievement and better mental health status.
• There is a growing demand for multilingual workers in the workforce.
• Infants raised in bilingual (and presumably multilingual) environments demonstrate cognitive benefits at a younger age than previously thought, which translates to higher executive function.
• Interestingly, though not necessarily a benefit, bilingual people experience time differently than monolingual people.
• And most importantly, our children have the added luxury of being able to communicate with their grandparents, other relatives and entire other countries in their native languages, allowing for deeper familial and cultural bonds. Our experience is further supported by several studies, which have shown that “children who speak their parents’ heritage language enjoy better relationships with their families and are less likely to be alienated from them.”

You get the point.

A lot of times it feels like we’re in this alone, but the more I speak with others who are also attempting to raise (or have already raised) multilingual children, the more it feels like it’s possible.

—

Thank you so much, Sara! My kids are still really little, but I love having all of this academically-supported motivation in my pocket for the days when it feels like everyone in the world (their little world, at least) is speaking English except us!

What do you think, dear readers of this blog? Have you experienced some of the benefits of this list and/or seen them in your kids?

A version of this post appeared on Sara’s blog http://www.onedostres.com in March 2017.

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There are a lot of things I didn’t realize before starting Sol Book Box. For example, I didn’t know that every year, the Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara (FIL for short) happens. It’s the second largest book fair in the world, and is a huge deal in the Spanish-speaking world o’ books.

When I was trying to figure out how to bring books to Sol Book Box subscribers, the most important thing to me was sending books that would really be worth it for my subscribers. To me, this meant books that were phenomenally written (or well translated), books that were either new releases or classics that every bilingual kid needed in his/her library, books that were beautiful.

The first thing you should know about the FIL is that it’s ENORMOUS. The Expo Guadalajara convention center where it’s held is massive, and for nine days every year it’s filled with booth after booth, exhibitors from all over the world displaying more books than I’ve ever seen in one place in my life.

It was heaven.

It was also kind of crazy. For days I was there for hours, talking to representatives from publishing houses and distributors, picking up stacks and stacks of books to read in a corner. And when I emerged, tired but victorious, I had catalogues and notes and business cards and yes, a whole suitcase full of books.

And while not all of the books I’ve sent have been FIL finds (I’ve been lucky to work with some fantastic authors and imprints based here in the U.S.!), the process is always the same: they’re chosen with love.

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