Lévêque Pauline - Say bonjour to the lady: parenting with style, humor & love

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My husband and my children
My parents and my sister, Virginie

FM

My husband and my children
My parents
Leo and Louis

PL

Rica Allannic
Stephanie Huntwork
Debbie Glasserman
Cathy Hennessy
Linnea Knollmueller
Susanna Lea
Julia Wagner

FM & PL

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

FLORENCE MARS is the vice president of Bonpoint in the United States. Prior to joining the company, she worked for Louis Vuitton and LOral and as a producer for Elephant and RadicalMedia. She is on the board of the Epic Foundation and also the Baan Dek Foundation, which helps migrant kids in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Mars lives in Brooklyn with her husband and their three children.

PAULINE LVQUE is a French journalist turned illustrator. She wrote about the film and entertainment industries for publications including Le Journal du Dimanche and Paris Match, where she was a contributor for ten years. When her son was born, she wrote and illustrated Beep Beep, a bilingual (French-English) childrens book series starring a funny little red car. Lvque has written four books and is currently working on Beep Beeps newest adventure. She lives in Manhattan with her husband, a well-known French author, and their two children.

From a young age, children are taught to say, Bonjour, Madame or Bonjour, Monsieur when they meet an adult, whether one of their parents friends, the supermarket cashier, or the bus driver. A simple hi is considered rude.

Informal greetings abound. Children feel comfortable calling adults by their first name, without having been invited to do so.

As soon as they begin talking, French children must know how to choose between tu (the informal you, for parents and friends) and the formal vous* (for all other adults).

*In certain very aristocratic families, children will even use vous with their parents for the rest of their lives.

Everyone is equal: kids, parents, grandparents, teachers, animals, the president of the United States.

Parisian children wear no more than three colors at a time and very few (always discreet) patterns. Bright or loud colors are to be avoided at all cost. Leather shoes and an accessory or two complete the look. Children do not choose their own outfits.

In New York, children express their personality and individuality when getting dressed. Clothes are comfortable and let them move around, so there are lots of leggings and sweatshirts. Theres no limit to the number of colors and patterns in a single outfit.

Sneakers are for sports only or, in a pinch, when riding a bike.*

*And, needless to say, white socks are worn only with sneakers.

Sneakers go with everything.*

*So do white socksor, even better, mismatched socks!

Culottes are worn under dresses. People think its very cute to see a flash of culotte when a little girl does a cartwheel.

Leggings or shorts are worn under a skirt for maximum coverage.