[Momto1human-2furry]

I am an Indian who did domestic adoption (In the U.S). My baby's B.MOM is Hispanic. We soon moved back to India. We never met her and she chose us because she saw we looked Hispanic and our baby would blend into the family. We wanted the same thing. Just to avoid the stares and the stupid ignorant questions that can come from strangers and what she may face in school growing up.

I would like my baby to be aware of her culture and know of the religon generally followed by the Mexicans.
I plan to send her for Spanish classes here in my city when she is old enough and probably take some too.
I plan to travel to Mexico( and U.S her birth country) when she is old enough to enjoy that visit .I love Mexican food and want her to started enjoying it as soon as she starts eating food per se. LOL !(she's a 23 month old fussy eater)

Please give me suggestions as to what else i can do that she will know of the culture she orignates from.

Ours is a closed adoption as the B.Mom chose it that way. Infact she provided very little information about herself except the reasons. I plan to share whatever information we have about our baby's B.Mom, which includes a letter at birth written to both of us. One to our baby and another to us. A beautifull, warm letter!

Thanks in advance

[gabyj]

Hi, Mom.

I have not adopted a Hispanic baby, but I'm Hispanic myself (with two adopted AA kids ironically so I understand your cultural dilemma ).
You didn't specify if your child's B-mom is of Mexican descent or not. I'm assuming so since you mentioned visiting Mexico and other Mexican cultural experiences.
While every Hispanic country has a different and unique culture, some universal things I would suggest are that you find bedtime, fairy tales and children stories that deal with Mexican culture or that are traditionally told to children by their mothers in Hispanic countries as well as teaching her and singing to her songs that are traditionally Hispanic (you can find a lot of that online or even in some major stores like Walmart).
Find videos in Spanish of beloved Hispanic characters (again, Best Buy, Walmart or Amazon.com are good places to check).
Some suggestions: songs of Cri-Cri, Topo Gigio, Enrique y Ana to begin. There is also Plaza Sesamo, the Mexican version of Sesame Street.
When you visit Mexico you can pick up more Mexican-specific cultural items.

Blessings and lots of good wishes to you.

Gaby

[Momto1human-2furry]

Thanks so much Gaby for your input.Our baby's B.mom is Hispanic in America and can't speak a word of English. I don't know if destiny plans to make our child and her B.Mom meet , but i think her B.Mom will aprreciate it.:-)

O.K are these songs and stories you suggested in Spanish ? I don't know how to read Spanish yet. I plan to learn later in a few years after i've send my girl to a Spanish class.
Is there a online site in English that has stories typical a Hispanic mom tells her child ? I think it would be easier for me to refer to a site in English for Hispanic people.

Its interesting to know your kids are of AA origin. I am assuming you mean African American. Have you started giving them information about the African American culture ?What have you done to teach them of AA culture? Also you must have primarily taught them of Hispanic culture? Is the B.Mom comfortable about this? Since thats my other worry in our case?

[gabyj]

If you know where he b-mom is from it would be good to research the culture of that particular country. If she is not from Mexico then some of the Mexican culture is universally Hispanic but much is not. For example, spicy food, tacos, enchiladas, etc are unique to Mexico and some Central American regions but people from South America have different diets. Each country has its own rich culture.
If you have a Walmart in your town and there is a significant Hispanic population this can be a great resource. I just bought my kids a CD made by Fisher Price called: "Cantemos en español" that has many of the songs I grew up with. You can learn them together as you listen!
I'm sure there are websites out there with Hispanic children stories in Spanish. I have several books that have the story in Spanish and in English as well. Check out your local bookstores, Barnes and Nobles, Books a Million, etc. I speak to my daughter in Spanish so I have not looked for stories in English but I know there are many second and third generation Hispanic parents who no longer speak Spanish but want to preserve the culture so the resources have to be out there.
Yes, my kids are African American. My biggest source of cultural information are my AA friends. Part of me learning about their culture has been learning to cornrow, braid and do hair so I can do it myself. It's a bonding experience in AA culture and I didn't want to miss out on that with my girl. We have bought books about cultural empowerment for AA children and I have read and read about raising AA children. For example, there is a company that has redesigned the classic stories like Cinderella with AA characters taht have cornrows, etc. My daughter has baby dolls of all colors and we purposefully looked for a daycare center that is very diverse. My husband takes our son to a black barber shop and we basically try to follow traditions that are important in the AA culture. We don't, however, celebrate Kwanzaa for example, because none of my AA friends do. I don't know if that makes sense.
Our kids will have a rich culture because they have their father's European/Caucasian/Southern culture, my Hispanic/Ecuadorian culture and the Black American culture we are also exposing them to. Talk about confusion!
I don't know how b-mom feels because ours was a close adoption by her request and I'm not really even sure if she knows who adopted her babies.
Anyway, long reply. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I would be happy to help you in any way I can.
-Gaby
PS: if I find a good website I'll let you know.

[Momto1human-2furry]

Thx for that long and usefull response Gabyi. I am going to look for these websites that can give me Spanish stories that are translated in English. Our baby's B.Mom is from Mexico, and nothing is known about the B.Father who is of the same race though.
My other problem is that i am not in the U.S anymore but have moved to India for good. So i won't be able to get these resources so easily. I think for me internet is the only option and also the Mexican embassy. Thx for that CD song recommendation , i'll try and look for it online.
I am so happy to hear you are able to give them so much cultural experience and have the resources available.
Yes plz let me know of any website you could recommend or any particular story you think are typical of what a Mexican mom will tell her child.

BTW, the only Spanish song i learnt was Feliz Nevidad and sung to my baby during X-Mas last year. :-D

[D&J'smom]

We have also adopted children of a Hispanic origin. We live in an area of the country that has a large Hispanic population. BEfore becoming a SAHM I worked with children and saw that children can be harass to Hispanic kids that don't know Spanish or the culture. My husband and my Spanish is beyond limited so I worry about this with my kids but I don't really know what to do about it beside language class but I don't know how effective that really is. It is kind of sad because my daughter's sitter for the first 3 years of life spoke only Spanish to her but daughter lost her Spanish within a months of staying home with me. I know this isn't help but it just nice to connect with others who have adopted Hispanic children.

[sheababy]

We believe our DD's bfather is Hispanic. We have close hispanic friends and our favorite tradition is that of the pinata for birthdays and holidays. We plan on teaching her Spanish but since we don't know exact heritage, it's hard to know what other traditions to incorporate.

[Momto1human-2furry]

Its good to hear from you both- Sheababy and D&J's mom.
I was wondering what holidays have you incorporated in your child's life that honor his culture ? Or Gabyi if you could tell me what are the most important holidays for a Mexican. And how i can celebrate them with my child.

I am not a catholic or a Christian but plan to celebrate X-Mas this year in a big way for our daughter.

[Gwen72]

Our 4 day old son is Cuban/AA. He was a "drop in your lap baby". His birthmom didn't make an adoption plan for him until delivery. He has AA features but his hair is straight. It looks like the hair my friend's Guatemalan children have. We are so excited. I guess I need to study up on Hispanic culture too and Cubans!

[aclee]

Originally Posted by Gwen72

Our 4 day old son is Cuban/AA. He was a "drop in your lap baby". His birthmom didn't make an adoption plan for him until delivery. He has AA features but his hair is straight. It looks like the hair my friend's Guatemalan children have. We are so excited. I guess I need to study up on Hispanic culture too and Cubans!

Ty's hair was straight when he was 4 days old too Gwen I wouldn't 100% count on it staying that way!

[shy_bear]

My son is Hispanic and ??? We went to a Cinco De Mayo festival this year and plan on going again. We have some Hispanic friends who always make tamales at the holidays; I have NO clue how to make them so I am going to cheat and buy some, but incorporate them into our Christmas dinners. At first I really thought he should know some Spanish, but my friends keep telling me that not all Hispanic people speak Spanish.

[devildogwife]

I don't really know what to do about it beside language class but I don't know how effective that really is. It is kind of sad because my daughter's sitter for the first 3 years of life spoke only Spanish to her but daughter lost her Spanish within a months of staying home with me.

I have a small suggestion. The souther part of my city has a huge hispanic population. In the school district they have dual-language programs (alternating total english and total spanish) at different school that are awesome! My sister is fluent in spanish and teaches ESL in the program. She's also taught math and science in spanish, whish really impresses me. You may want to see if there's a dual-language program in your area when your kiddo is school age.

[Amber76]

Originally Posted by Gwen72

Our 4 day old son is Cuban/AA. He was a "drop in your lap baby". His birthmom didn't make an adoption plan for him until delivery. He has AA features but his hair is straight. It looks like the hair my friend's Guatemalan children have. We are so excited. I guess I need to study up on Hispanic culture too and Cubans!

Gwen72: I'm so excited to hear about your baby! As you know, our son was already born when we found out about him too! I bet your baby is one cute little guy! Does your AA/Cuban baby want a little Guatemalan playmate some day??? Can't wait to see pics.

Everyone else: As far as culture stuff goes, we're planning to celebrate "Las posadas" with our son in a way similar to how it is celebrated in Guatemala. There is a Latino heritage group putting on a celebration in conjunction with a museum in our area (Indianapolis) this year. Maybe you could look into that if you celebrate Christmas.

[Gwen72]

Aclee- I was going to ask you about hair and skin questions. I was wondering if his baby hair will fall out and new hair will be hispanic or AA. Also, his skin color is different in different places. I hope that will even out. I would appreciate any advice you can give.

Amber- If we ever get out of Ohio William would love a new friend. I have been showing DH pics of Ben for months and telling him Ben was going to be our son's best friend or our daughter's first boyfriend. We just found out yesterday that ICPC could take 4 to 6 weeks! I'll keep you posted.

[aclee]

Originally Posted by Gwen72

Aclee- I was going to ask you about hair and skin questions. I was wondering if his baby hair will fall out and new hair will be hispanic or AA. Also, his skin color is different in different places. I hope that will even out. I would appreciate any advice you can give.

Amber- If we ever get out of Ohio William would love a new friend. I have been showing DH pics of Ben for months and telling him Ben was going to be our son's best friend or our daughter's first boyfriend. We just found out yesterday that ICPC could take 4 to 6 weeks! I'll keep you posted.

Ohio ICPC is supposed to be a nightmare. We were working with an agency in Ohio...our social worker here in MA swore that all the states were the same, but I've heard OH is bad. Then we ended up in a county in MO that will take 6 weeks for a TPR hearing because they are anti adoption, thankfully we were able to switch counties

But you cleared Ohio I thought? Maybe that was someone else that cleared and I'm getting confused.