French Inlcuded

Frontenac Castle, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada;

my hometown, my wedding backdrop...and the reason I speak French as a first language

I sometimes feel quite ashamed I do not speak French to my kids exclusively. You see, French is my first language. One would think that it would be natural for me to speak French at home and as my parents do not speak English extremely well, it would make sense for me to speak it with my children...but I don't. It wasn't always this way. When Adrian was first born, I worried he would pick on my slight French accent when I spoke English and so I spoke French with him all the time. Although children are not supposed to confuse languages, it sure looked like he did. In between his daddy speaking English, me French and the entire country Danish, my son did not speak one word until he was 18 months old and moved to the U.S. Panicked, I consulted our pediatrician who hinted at an all-English environment for him. From that day on, I spoke very little French around him except for singing songs and reading a few books. I figured speaking one language would be better than none. Fast forward 3 years later and the guilt has kicked in. Especially when my parents visit. Even more when I go back home to Quebec and see my extended family and friends. I used to wonder why my husband did not speak Korean (his mom was born in Korea) and now I realized that my kids' future spouse may wonder the same...

It is my intention to immerse both Adrian and Zahavah in the French language every afternoon during the week (after Z is up from her nap). I am planning on speaking French exclusively until my husband arrives but I also plan on including the thematics so they can both learn words as well. I'll also include French songs and French books related to the theme we are currently working on. Above all, I'll try to make it fun and help them learn the language!