Ambiguously Brown

This is the list I wish I had stumbled upon a couple of years ago. It is so important to include within your child's world, through their own personal library, images that represent their reality. For our little "ambiguously brown" son, my husband (African American) and I (Jewish/Caucasian) have searched high and low, bookstores and libraries, for just such books. Sad news: there aren't that many. Yes, images of multicultural children frolicking together are common enough, but not multicultural/biracial families. So for all of you families out there who are searching for a good list, here is mine.

Multicultural Family Picture Books:

AfA = African American
AA = Asian American
C = Caucasian
L = Latino/a


Vera B. Williams: More More More, Said the Baby
This simple yet delightful book is one that grew on me. It actually requires getting into a rhythm when reading it out loud, but than the repetitive lines resonate with the adults and tickles the kids. This is broken into three vignettes; the first depicts a C man with his son, the second depicts a C grandmother with her AfA grand-baby, and the third depicts an AA woman with her daughter.


John Updike: A Child's Calendar
I love pulling this one out. Poems for each of the months with pictures depicting a multicultural family, specifically AfA and Jewish/C. I was so excited to find a picture book that actually represented both sides of our son's heritage.

Todd Parr: It's Okay to be Different; and The Family Book
The illustrations appeal to every child I know. While the pictures don't "represent" any specific race/ethnicity because the kids all have blue or orange or magenta skin tons with crazy hairdo's, both of these books address the idea that different people or families are positive.



Marguerite W. Davol: Black, White, Just Right
This one I haven't purchased or borrowed from the library yet, but it is on the "to get" list. It appears upbeat and positive, remarking on the differences of appearances between the C dad and the AfA mom in an age appropriate way.

Norton Juster: The Hello, Goodbye Window
A sweet tale of a girl's relationship with her biracial grandparents (C/AfA). I bought this book when my son was very young (along with another story with the same characters: Sweetie Pie and Sour Puss) because I was desperate for picture books that at all represented our family. The story is much more appealing to us now that my son is in preschool.

Liz Garton Scanlon: All the World
Wonderful illustrations depicting multiple examples of multicultural families and communities. I just ordered this for my son's preschool.

Keiko Kasza: A Mother for Choco
A great story that we got at the library and keep intending to purchase. Choco is a baby bird looking for her mother, and finally finds a home with a mother bear and her assortment of children. Targeted towards transracial adoptive families but applicable to all divers families.

Leo Lionni: Little Blue and Little Yellow
And I thought this book was about color theory. It's a fun and age appropriate way to talk about how our son's skin turned out to be a color different than mommy's and daddy's. Also, this was a favorite from my childhood, so it gets extra cudoos for being sentimental.


Mercer Mayer: Just a Little Different
What topic has Mayer not tackled? Perfect for all multicultural families. A new kid moves to town, but he's a bit different: half turtle and half rabbit. Right now my son just likes the story, but will become a great gateway conversation when he gets a bit older.




Ina R. Friedman: How My Parents Learned to Eat
I don't know much about this book, but it seems to get good reviews. I felt compelled to include it as it is one of the few books I have found out there on the market that depict a C/AA family that is not an adopted child. I find it very strange that most "adopted" books depict a C family adopting an AA child, and on the flip side that so few multicultural/biracial families depict any mix including people of Asian descent. I would love some recommendations!

Andrea Cheng: href="http://www.amazon.com/Grandfather-Counts-Reading-Rainbow-Books/dp/1584300108">Grandfather Counts
I, of course, have to disprove my above rule. The child is of Chinese and Caucasian descent. Grandfather comes to visit and only speaks Chinese, while granddaughter only speaks English. Will they prevail? Read to find out. Bicultural and bilingual.



Angela Johnson: The Aunt in Our House
Stumbled upon this but haven't checked it out yet. It seems intriguing, with themes perhaps better for someone in kindergarden? Family is AfA/C.


Alma Flor Ada: I Love Saturdays y Domingos
A child of L/C background spends Saturdays with her English/C grandparents and Sundays with her Spanish/L grandparents.

Toyomi Igus: Two Mrs. Gibsons
Same as above but AfA/AA.



Selina Alko: I'm Your Peanut Butter Big Brother
I'm keeping my eye on this one for when I am expecting our next child. A big brother contemplates the many shades within his family and wonders what his little sibling will look like.

Sarah Garland: Billy and Belle
Looks similar as the above.

Matthew Baek: Be Gentle with the Dog Dear
Most toddlers with pets need assistance with physical limits. Additionally, this book's protagonist is AA/C. Haven't read it yet, though, so recommended with caution.

Natasha Wing: Jalapeno Bagels
Yeah! A book that depicts a child from a Jewish and Mexican American family! I just stumbled upon this one, but the premise sounds great... A child needs to bring in something that represents his "culture" and he can't decide between empanadas or kugel. So, he decides to bring in a mix of his cultures: a jalapeno bagel. Meant for kids in kindergarden and up.


To Add To Your Multicultural Library: A Few Favorites

Rachel Isadora: The Twelve Dancing Princesses
So technically this book shouldn't be on this list. Within her numerous books, Rachel Isadora has taken classic "western" fairytales and placed them in Africa. This story does not technically depict a multicultural family; however, each sister princess looks so different from the other, both in hair and skin tone. I like that I can show variation within my son's African heritage.

Mem Fox: Whoever You Are
Okay, another plug for a book that doesn't actual highlight multicultural families, but Mem Fox is one of my favorite children's authors and she has made a delightful contribution the the broader multicultural picture book collection.

Sheila Hamanaka: All the Colors of Earth
Great Adventure, gorgeous illustrations.


Jeron Ashford Frame: Yesterday I Had the Blues
This is a great story about emotions and family as described through the use of color. One of our favorites.

Summer Vacation is Merely an Illusion

So this arrived in the mail on Saturday.



Yes, the study guide to my final exam that I need to take in the Fall in order to get those crucial C's at the end of my name (three of them actually, as in CCC). The long journey to becoming a Speech Language Pathologist is almost at its end! But, right now, this summer, I need to study. Oh, and begin writing my thesis.

Now a thesis is NOT required to earn my C's. But, for deeper reasons that I am not in the mood to explain in this rambling post, I am churning out a Master's thesis in order to leave the door open for my future PhD. Consider this a teaser. More to come on The Thesis in future posts.

Chicks From the Beginning

Here are a series of images of the chicks as they got older and bigger.


Original Flock: Buffy, Popcorn, Ding-Ding, and Ari (the brown chick).




Then came Cuna...



First time outside.



Becoming "teenagers"; their pinfeathers are coming in!



Starting to look like chickens.



And now Pullets:

Chicken Coop is Up!

The ladies have been clucking happily in their new home for the last week. While not 100% finished, it is up and solid.

My own design and mostly my own construction, with thanks to my dad for lumber contributions, Steve for consultations, Jacque for getting the high stuff, and Becca for caring for the chicks while they were still in the brooder.

Urban Farmer

It started with tomato plants. Herbs came next. Then a strawberry patch. I can't keep up with the meyer lemons, apples, and pears that fruit on my trees. I've planted carrots, radishes, squash, pumpkins, lettuces, tomatoes, jalapenos... and it's a battle between me and the snails and slugs. Yes, you will see me out in the rain hunting for the buggies.

And now chickens.

First Camping of the Season

Just got back from camping at Henry W. Coe State Park. Late spring rains kept the wild flowers in bloom.

Blogging versus Social Networks

Call me old school. I miss the old element of blogging on Myspace. I know, Facebook is the new must. BUT, I just can't communicate in 144 characters or less. Not on any level deeper than "Yeah, it's the weekend" or "What a great sunset". I know it's all narcissism, blogging, facebooking, tweeting, etc, but at least this way I can go into a level of depth that actually lets me share what I and my friends and family are up to. In more than 144 characters.

So. This is the first post of my personal blog. I won't commit to any time schedule. I won't commit to any particular topic. I won't commit to correcting all typos. But it will always be interesting.