From Nicaragua with Love

My parents when they first moved to the USA

Growing up in a home where you learn the American culture side by side with your parents is rather interesting.  In elementary school, my friends always thought that it was funny that I called my father "Papa" instead of "Dad" & I was embarrassed by my parent's accents.  Whenever my parents would visit Nicaragua they would bring back jewelry or some home decor and I always thought it was odd looking and not modern & cool like everything in America. Lets just say... as a child I didn't really care much for my family's roots.

As the years passed, I grew to love my parent's accents and I envy their inability to pronounce words that start with "s" correctly. I find myself wondering why I don't call my dad "Papa" as much as I used to and I love the fact that there are little touches of Nicaragua around their home. Its funny how time changes things.  My parents recently returned from a trip to Nica and they came back bearing gifts made by locals.

sea turtle on vase

My mom brought me back a great purse, bracelet, & vase. A. The purse is something I've been wanting for a long time. I love the colorful textile mixed with the tooled leather. The bright colors make it a statement piece but due to the textures on the leather and material its a great bag for everyday wear. B. The vase is a great item to either decorate a patio or it can be a nice edition to an indie beach themed room. C. The bracelet is made from colorful wood beads. I love that it has a very native look to it but its still chic enough to wear with a fitted day dress.  What I most love about all of these items is that its all made and sold by locals in an open market. For instance, with the bracelet you can see that the elastic was knotted by  hand. I feel like features like that give it more value because you can see that someone put their hard work and time into it. 

Tooled Leather - bottom of purse

Moral of the story: Embrace your family's culture and you'll actually find more treasures. :)