05/06/2008 05:13 PM

Mother’s Day in Mexico with a Spanish Song

Mother’s Day in Mexico is called Día de las Madres in Spanish. It’s held on May 10th every year. The evening of the 9th is also important. Grown children are expected to spend the evening before Mother’s Day with their Moms too. Many Mexican mothers wake up to their children singing Las Mañanitas [...]

03/13/2008 03:46 PM

Does Anyone Know an English or Spanish Song Called “Now The Duck Is In The Stew Pot”?

Cathy wrote to me looking for help with a song: Hello, I am looking for a song I learned as a child, years ago. It was called “Now The Duck Is In The Stew Pot”. I remember learning the English and Spanish version but cannot find it anywhere. It goes something like this: Now the duck is [...]

01/15/2008 12:14 PM

The Song “Make New Friends”, in Spanish and French

This month I’ve been asked a couple of times for French and Spanish translations of Make New Friends. In one case, it was for Girl Scouts for World Thinking Day. The troop wanted to sing Make New Friends in Spanish to represent Mexico. In another case, a Brownie troop wanted to sing [...]

01/08/2008 11:39 PM

Can Someone Help with a Mexican Rhyme about a Man Walking Up a Hill?

Jennifer wrote: Hi Lisa, I came across your website and hope you can help me. My grandfather was a little old Mexican man, who couldn’t talk very well. Anyway, he always would say this rhyme to us in Spanish. He would use his fingers (for legs) and “walk” up our arm and at the end of the [...]

12/29/2007 10:48 PM

Symbolic Foods Eaten Around the World for New Years

In many parts of the world, the foods eaten on New Years Eve and New Years Day have important symbolic meanings. These symbols seem to fall into several major categories. The first class symbolizes financial prosperity. This type of food is round like coins. Often, the dish will be round beans, like lentils, [...]

12/22/2007 09:40 PM

Las Posadas - A song about Mary and Joseph asking for Lodging at an Inn

Las Posadas is celebrated in Mexico from December 16th until Christmas. Las Posadas literally means “the inns”. The Christian festival is based around a reenactment of Mary and Joseph trying to find lodging at numerous inns and being turned away. People sing the song Villancico para pedir posada (Searching for an Inn Carol). In the [...]

12/22/2007 07:08 PM

A Spanish Song for Breaking the Piñata That’s Popular for Las Posadas in Mexico + a Video

Last year I wrote about the importance of the piñata in the Mexican celebration of Las Posadas. Las Posadas is a popular holiday in Mexico that’s celebrated before Christmas. Mexican people sing songs called Cantos para romper la piñata (Songs for Breaking the Piñata), while their children try to hit the piñata. Many people have [...]

11/12/2007 07:56 PM

Does Anyone Know about a Song Called Pancho Claus?

Aurora wrote: I am looking for the music/words to a song called Pancho Claus. I first heard it around 1957. Can anyone help? Aurora I’ve read on Mark Guerrero’s site that his father, Lalo Guerrero, wrote Pancho Claus in the 1940’s as a parody of the poem “’Twas the Night Before Christmas.” Perhaps emailing Mark would [...]

11/05/2007 11:14 AM

Looking for a Lullaby from a Venezuelan TV Show Called Esmeralda

Ericka wrote: Hi, my name is Ericka, I’m from Mexico City. I’m looking for a lullaby my mom took my name from, but I couldn’t find it. Lupita Ferrer sang it in the TV show Esmeralda. The line, “Aquí llegaste Erika, a la casita azul y blanca de mamá...” (“Here you came Erika to [...]

10/01/2007 02:27 PM

Announcing Mamá Lisa’s World en español!

We’re very excited to make an important announcement – Mama Lisa’s World, our collection of children’s songs from around the globe, is now available in Spanish! Mama Lisa’s World features almost a thousand kids’ songs from more than a hundred countries and cultures. Many are available in the original languages, with translations into English, French [...]