Starting family traditions

My husband comes from a bi-racial/cultural background. His father is Mexican and mother is Eastern European. Growing up, he didn't really spend too much time with his father's side of the family so he never really followed any Mexican traditions. I on the other hand love Mexican culture despite growing up in a Korean household. So I took it upon myself to learn how to make tamales for Christmas so that I can instill some Mexican culture in our daughter. I also plan on signing her up for Korean dance classes at a Buddhist temple so she will get some Korean culture in her life as well.

To be honest, when I was growing up, being Korean-American was hard. My family lived in areas where the demographics consisted predominately of caucasians. I was terrified of inviting new friends over because old friends would comment negatively about the smell of our house. I couldn't help that my parents were born and raised in South Korea and we obviously ate our native foods. Kimchee is an acquired taste and smell for most and I grew up resenting it because it made me different when I was trying to fit in.

Now, as an adult, my taste buds yearn for the foods I grew up on. Even though I used to stay away from Korean food, I now eat it proudly. Maybe because Korean BBQ is now more popular and some people actually love Kimchee or because I have grown to be more self-confident. Either way, I am proud of my ethnic background and excited to start new family traditions within my Korean-Mexican family (of course my daughter will know that her grandmother is Eastern European as well).