No, siriously! You’re doing brilliant and I’m super glad you and Emma are spending more and more time chatting in Welsh. The further you go the more it will all become a habit and not a challenge anymore so why limiting the “challenge” to 1 month? Why not just go with the flow but keeping being aware that you have to do as much as possible in Welsh until all it becomes a habit and not a challenge anymore?
Go for it!
If the time gives you the space, mix some Welsh singing into the whole thing. Your voice is too brilliant, strong and clear to waste it not singing. And, you know me … I’m really sirious about this. You, @Iestyn, @anon86454181 and @elkiedeadman are the purest voices on SSi I’ve ever heard. @CatrinLliarJones’s is pure but kind of gentle though what brings some other very good qualities with.
You’re wonderful Tatjana!!! You’re always so supportive!! The amount of Welsh Emma and I speak together now is definitely what I’ve most enjoyed about this month. Closely followed by Beca a’i Phobol!
Yesterday was a classic mix when you’re in a bilingual group. The default language was definitely English but I managed to have a lot of Welsh conversations within that. Needed a bit of perseverance and there was a lot of my Welsh being answered in English.
This process has definitely gotten me thinking about what I want for my child. Ive always known I want them to be brought up bilingually but I’d like the default language to be Welsh because I know English will be ever present. I also know though, that I am much more expressive in English and so could give my child more in English. Which means I have 25 weeks to keep improving my Welsh before the arrival. Listening to Gill Brown was definitely reassuring because she didn’t start learning until after Beca was born. So there’s definitely hope.
You won’t be having in-depth conversations with your child for quite a while yet. Songs and games are the things to swot up on and simple short expressions - you’re expected to speak nonsense, broken Welsh to kids - that’s what parents do in any language.
When they get to about four though, then you will have to be on your toes - that’s when I started struggling, with the rapid fire welsh that came in my direction being very hard to understand and answer. When they get to the pam phase, the answer to pam? Is pam lai or sai’n gwybod or something completely daft - deflection is the best part of valour.
With my very bright daughter, when she got to the, “Why? Why? Why?” stage we got so exhausted answering her perpetual questions that we made a rule that we would answer any question if it was asked in a complete sentence, but just, “Why?” was not enough. This was in English, of course, but it would also work in Welsh.
Thank you. But what is true is true. I many times very much enjoy your singing (the only 3 recordings) you’ve posted on Soudcloud. Calling for more!!!
I don’t know, but hearing you speaking about various topics when on Bootcamp it always seemed to me you’re very expressive. I many times thought, listening to you, that there’s no theme you wouldn’t be able to chat about in very wide range of vocabulary and expressively. I don’t know why, but you never quite seemed learner to me but rather quite fluent Welsh speaker already. Sometimes I believe you’re not quite aware of your qualities what concerns the language skills and in 25 weeks time you can improve enormously especially with the tempo you’re going right now.
Haha! Yes this!
Hmmm … thinking back when my son was little, I can’t really remember he’d ask just “Why?” There was always (to my knowledge) the whole sentence even when he couldn’t quite speak yet (blurba were very common … ) and the questions were rather very hard to answer … Who knows if he didn’t even then know he’d study mathematics … .
I’m sure I’m still more expressive in English - and I know that the upbringing my kids would have had through the medium of English would have been different - but nothing can diminish the joy I feel at seeing them grow up as first language speakers, knowing they will never need to struggle to reclaim their own language…
I’m sure that you will do fine. One of my friends moved to a rural part of Switzerland, where the Swiss French language/dialect is spoken. Older people only speak this language, not German or English.
He is not a linguist, but mastered the language by immersion. When the kids came along, he stayed one step ahead of them and was also the perfect person to help them with their English.
I’m sure it will be similar for you with Welsh.
Also, regarding your bilingual conversations. I have a friend who usually only talks Welsh to me, but recently, in a larger group chat, we were talking English with some non-Welsh speakers. The conversation continued when they had to go, but it seemed natural to carry on in English. So I’d say embrace both languages
I was 13 or so when the language at home changed, and I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t pretty horrified at the time, but then at 13 pretty much everything your parents do horrifies you! The main thing mum said about the change is that your relationship with those around you changes a bit - initially of course because everyone is a bit nervous and embarrassed, and then because all the little lovey words you’ve developed over the years for your spouse or child, you have to find new ones! But than can also be a fun and positive thing too of course. I can’t remember the awkwardness lasting very long, and it’s now just as awkward speaking English to my parents as it was turning to Welsh. So it’s amazing how adaptable we are…
This is very reassuring!! Emma and I have been struggling to change our language over because her Mum (Welsh speaker) reverted to English because Emma’s Dad (Andy) couldn’t speak Welsh. Fortunately for me, but very unfortunately for Emma’s Dad, they’ve found it less of a challenge to help me learn than they did Andy.
The more I think about it, the more I want the language of our home to be Welsh. I’ve seen how much others have struggled to maintain their Welsh if they don’t speak it at home. As @aran says, if we speak Welsh to our children they’ll never have to “learn” Welsh. I also know they’ll never have to “learn” English.
So next question; how much English have you all used with your children?
Day 29 was a bit of a scratch out 10 minutes where I could find them but we found them in a few places!!
Day 30
Started the morning off watching Cyw with an English speaking little one we have staying with us. We have managed to teach him his numbers, colours and a few Welsh phrases. So watching Cyw with him was good fun. I also learnt that an Octopus has 3 hearts!!
We’ve not long finished the Pen y Fan horseshoe. Spent most of the 4 hours with either Emma or her mum so spoke a lot of Welsh.
Every once in a while, when they use enough English in their Welsh to hurt my ears (or when they play makeup stuff in English for long enough to make me cringe) I’ll say ‘Okay, fine, let’s just talk English from now on’ and they go ‘Arrrgghgghgh no no stop stop stop!’
Quick chat with Emma in the morning before going to work. I had to go to Bristol first thing so listened to Beca a Leisa on the way there and Beca ac Eleri Lovgreen on the way back. Started listening to Beca on the Rhys Mwyn show in the car but it’s 2 hours long so it was only little bits. phoned Emma from the car about who was going to go to which shops on our way home. Then at home had a good couple of hours in Welsh (We only got home at 7ish).
I was at a promo event at a local gym in Newport this afternoon and there was lots of twiddling thumbs which got me looking up jobs on Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru to see if there were any Welsh speaking roles…there are…Mustn’t change jobs 4 months after starting a new one…
This feels a little bit like a “status quo” day which is fantastic because it’s got loads of Welsh in it.
This weekend will be interesting because I’m going to Leeds with a couple of non-Welsh speaking friends. At least the phone calls home will be in Welsh.
So I was away for the weekend with a couple of friends for a competition. So to sum up the three days, every phone call back to Emma was in Welsh, all our texts to each other were in Welsh. Not a lot of other exposure but I made sure there was something everyday through Welsh. Back home in Cardiff in the evening yesterday and we stayed in Welsh, then watched Christopher Robin (very easy watch film!) and had an early night because I was shattered! But took the chances I had this weekend
Sounds like you’re doing fantastically well! There’ll be lots of Stori Dwy Steddfod bits going up over the next two weeks in the run up to the Eisteddfod, so those will give you some short bursts!
Well, there’s an element of Spoilerage on the competitions, but she’s the lead role in the Eisteddfod musical show which is performed on the Tuesday night, so the S2S will include a lot about that.
But she’ll be competing on the Monday, Tuesday and Thursday I think. Te yn y Grug, the show, will be on S4C at some point, but I’m not sure when.
365! 
