{"id":94,"date":"2025-07-02T07:29:53","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T07:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/naturalovebebe.com\/?p=94"},"modified":"2025-08-18T04:58:57","modified_gmt":"2025-08-18T04:58:57","slug":"in-french-please","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/naturalovebebe.com\/?p=94","title":{"rendered":"In French, please"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I am sitting outside, across from my eldest who is struggling to write her name. I don\u2019t say anything, though I\u2019m very frustrated. We\u2019ve been practicing the spelling<\/a> of her name for days, but watching her struggle now, you\u2019d think she was seeing those letters for the first time\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The weather is beautiful. Summer is just beginning. The lawn is in good shape. My husband has been putting in a lot of effort lately: mowing the lawn, watering it, pulling weeds\u2026 He even asked our neighbor to pull out his dandelions to prevent their pollen from spreading to our grass. I hope the neighbor took it well. Very warm when we first moved into the neighborhood, he has since grown cold toward me. But honestly, I don\u2019t have time to socialize anyway, so I don\u2019t really care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My eldest is now old enough to start kindergarten<\/a>. Ever since she was born, I\u2019ve spoken to her only in French, hoping she would one day be perfectly bilingual. I was never worried about English \u2014 I knew it would come naturally. My husband, on the other hand, was very concerned that she only spoke French and didn\u2019t seem to be able to carry a conversation in English. I tried to reassure him, telling him that it\u2019s French she\u2019ll have more trouble with as she grows up. In a mostly English-speaking environment, it\u2019s French she\u2019s at risk of losing. And of course, today, my words feel like a prophecy. I speak to my daughter in French, she replies in English. I\u2019ve become a schoolteacher repeating endlessly, \u201cIn French, please.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I open Vocabulaire progressif du fran\u00e7ais, niveau interm\u00e9diaire<\/a><\/em>, which I placed on the table for inspiration. I am, myself, losing my French, hearing only English all day long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wish I could live in a completely French-speaking environment while my kids are still young, to ensure they acquire the language naturally. As a Francophone, I would feel sad if my children mangled this language that I love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through the window, I can see the little bookshelf I assembled a year ago, where I placed a few titles I particularly cherish:<\/p>\n\n\n\n