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“Oooooo… Eeeeee… Goooo goooo….. ” you hear Aunty’s high pitched voice squealing at the new baby in the house. Armenians love babies. Armenian women love babies. When you have your first child, make sure you prepare your cute, innocent, gentle, fragile baby for the overwhelming presence of the “family” when it comes to visit.

The moment Aunty steps in the house, it’s game over. Her perfume will take over the baby’s (sweet) smell. Her lipsticks will stain your baby’s cheeks. And most importantly, her squeal will vibrate in your inner-ear for days to come.

Babies are the next generation of the Armenian community. They represent our best hope for our survival and we have no choice but to trust our Aunties to make sure that they are as Armenian as possible. When the family visits, note that you will hear a myriad of advice on how to best care for this little being. Armenians are never short on giving advice and suggestions as to how you should lead your life and rear your children.

If anything though, thank God that you have 40 days of bonding time with your kid before the visitors come. For some reason, Armenians (as much as they love the baby) will give you exactly 40 days to spend alone time with your child before they visit and visit and visit.

Never be offended at the unsolicited advice that comes from the mouth of your Armenian friend. Instead, smile and thank them for the precious words that will guide you and your family to keep the Armenian legacy alive!

OK, so who doesn’t like things that are free? I know it is in our blood (as humans, not as Armenians) to try to get free stuff—whether it be free credit cards, free jam, free books, or free tv. Free is better than “costs money.”

But Armenians really really like things that are free. Armenians will stand in any line, no matter how long and no matter what the product so that they can the free widget. You might think to yourself, “but wait, time is money. Shouldn’t an Armo be concerned that they are spending their time in long lines?” You would think, huh?!? But Armenians don’t like the idea of spending money on anything they can get for free. Maybe it’s the Middle Eastern Culture or the Soviet one. Or maybe, it’s just the Armenian way.

Consider this anecdote: The day that God was giving out noses to the peoples of the world, the Armenians didn’t show up because they didn’t think they needed them. When they found out that they were free, Armenians quickly cut to the front of the line and asked for the biggest ones available! (As you can tell, this anecdote captures a few different elements of Armenian culture.