Raising a family in the Alsace

- Preparing for baby
- Find a nanny/daycare in the Haut Rhin
- Enrolling your child in school
- Teenagers
- Food and health
- Indoor activities - Outdoor activities
- Fun and games
- Useful links

Preparing for baby

List of stores across the region selling clothes, etc. for babies and young children.

Join the BCT France forum - 'French Neighbourhood Network group from the BCT...for parents living in Alsace, affiliated with the Basel Childbirth Trust. Group for getting together with other parents, sharing information and ideas and friendships'


Find a nanny/daycare in the Haut Rhin:
Aujourdhui.com - france-nourrice.com - find a nanny through the Pole emploi (formerly ANPE)
Keepschool - private organisation for nannies and school support

 

Enrolling your child in school
How to register your child in school in Mulhouse or St Louis

For other locations, contact the local 'mairie' (town hall) for more information.

Bilingual schools

French school holidays by region


Teenagers

Training & careers: Onisep Sémaphore
School support private home lessons


Food and health

Food for babies - Wholesome babyfood - About.com - Weaning
Cooking for toddlers
Party food: Netmums.com - Annabel Karmel
Expat Cooking discussion group

Immunisations - US site - Create a vaccine calendar for your child


Indoor activities:

Find courses and activities to do with all the family, at the Université Populaire: Mulhouse and area - Saint Louis area and the Sundgau

Electropolis, EDF Electricity museum, Mulhouse
National car museum, Mulhouse
French Railway museum, Mulhouse
Tellure, Silver mining museum in Sainte Marie aux Mines
Olympic Ice rink, Mulhouse
Okidok soft play centre, Kingersheim
Baby swimming, Colmar


Outdoor activities
Mulhouse zoo
Monkey mountain
Ecomusée - Openair museum in Ungersheim
Bioscope - Discovery park in Ungersheim
Vaiseau science centre - Strasbourg

Fun and Games

Traditional Nursery Rhymes - words and pictures set to music. (click on the button at the bottom of the page)
Then go to this page to print off pictures to colour in.
Horse chorus (click on the heads to make them stop/start singing)
Short games to play with a baby (pampers site)

Clips:
relaxing train clip - long trains - tube trains - Thomas opening scene - Sneezing panda -

Episodes from classic tv series:
Ivor the Engine
The Wombles
Mr Benn: Part one - two
The Flumps: Part one - two
Bagpuss: Part one - two - three
Padington Bear
The Magic Roundabout
Trumpton: Part one - two
Mr Men: Mr Impossible - Mr Forgetful - Mr Funny - Mr Topsy Turvy - Mr Strong - Mr Sneeze -

Useful links:

Support groups/sites:
Bereavement support
Premature birth
SIDS/'cot death'
Post-natal depression
Cry-sis: Help with crying babies
Special Needs Abroad
Breastfeeding - 1 - 2
Pampers site - features articles and forums
Christmas in a shoebox - fill a shoebox with small gifts for a child less fortunate than your own.

Forums and sites for families living or moving abroad:
'Corporate expat' families relocation forum
ExpatMomsOnline
Expat Multilingual Families
AP Expat Moms: attachment parenting discussion group
For parents of twins and more

Expat Kids: Site for kids
ExpatWoman.com
Family Life Abroad

Foreign Wives Club: An online community by and for women in bicultural marriages.

Living Abroad

Tales from a Small Planet: 'The literary and humor magazine for expatriates everywhere'
TheTrailingSpouse.com