This time of the year many multicultural families struggle with finding a compromise: which tradition to maintain around Christmas, especially when you partner is used to other customs and you are living in a place where “things are done differently” from what you were used to when you were a child. I must […]
The Japanese art of Kintsugi can teach us a valuable lesson: it is the art to repair broken pottery with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver or platinum (a method similar to the maki-e technique) (cfr. more on Wikipedia). “The vicissitudes of existence over time, to […]
Every country, every culture has its own ways to celebrate traditional festivities. Some families who live abroad adopt some of the local traditions and adapt them with those they know from their own childhood or from the other places they’ve lived. Multicultural families need to agree not only […]
When children reach a certain age, parents want them to learn about what happens in the world. Many parents struggle with the way news are presented on TV. In fact, pictures and the way news are presented in the evening news can be quite traumatising. A great alternative […]
What growing up abroad as a German can feel/be like.
I’ve recently had an interesting conversation with some parents and despite our different cultural background and our different parenting styles, most of us agreed on the fact that children need to do some chores. Some parents realized that they would ask less involvement from their sons than their […]
When we’re asked what flag is our country’s one, my children (and I) have a similar reaction like when someone asks us “where do you come from?”. If you ask my three children which country or culture they feel more close, they would tell: Swiss, Dutch, German, Italian, […]
A recent article pointed out that “Dads who want their daughters to aim for prestigious professions should start by doing the dishes or loading the washing machine”. Besides that not all parents consider their children having “prestigious professions” is the first goal, I am intrigued by the simple […]
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Expat Since Birth – A Life spent "abroad" 