Parents Who've Raised Families In Multiple Countries, Tell Me How It's Affected Your Kids

Julia Corrigan
·1-min read

If you are a parent, and you've raised your child(ren) for any amount of time in a foreign country, I want to know: what's your most interesting takeaway from parenting abroad?

Busy street scene in a historic district with people walking, shops lining the sides, and a McDonald's sign visible above
Busy street scene in a historic district with people walking, shops lining the sides, and a McDonald's sign visible above
Malcolm in the Middle givinga confused face to the camera at a dining table looking surprised
Malcolm in the Middle givinga confused face to the camera at a dining table looking surprised

Stockinasia / Getty Images, Fox

Maybe you're a long-term resident in your current country. You may think you've seen it all, you know the ropes, you're assimilated... but once you had a kid, you realized that lots of norms are actually way different there than where you grew up. Tell me about it!

A woman with short hair looks closely at a young boy in a sweater with a diamond pattern
Warner Bros.

Perhaps you started your family in your home country, but for whatever reason — work, family, or unforeseen circumstances — you ended up having to uproot your life and move to a new place. Maybe there was a fair amount of culture shock, or maybe you've felt privileged to watch your children develop in such a cool place.

Victorian-style residential buildings with ornate facades and balconies in an urban setting
Victorian-style residential buildings with ornate facades and balconies in an urban setting
Gothic cathedral with intricate spires and detailed stonework against a blue sky
Gothic cathedral with intricate spires and detailed stonework against a blue sky

Peterspiro / Getty Images, Esperanza33 / Getty Images

Maybe you've found that your kids are actually way more natural at assimilating than you ever expected — maybe even better than you are! Has that been cool to watch? Challenging? Just plain interesting? I want to hear about it!

A teacher in a classroom shows a small cymbal to a group of young children sitting attentively around him
South_agency / Getty Images

Or perhaps it's the other parents — and parent culture — who are different. Are they total oddities? Or do they actually have a great approach to parenting? Tell me everything!

A woman with shoulder-length hair and a necklace is making a playful face at another person whose back is to the camera
Paramount Pictures

Whatever it is, positive or negative, random observation or obvious drawback, I want to hear about it! You can tell me all about it in the comments down below. Or, if you prefer, you can check out this anonymous Google Form! Who knows — your story may end up in an upcoming BuzzFeed article.

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