From the category archives:

Caring for children

Share with your Au Pair your system for ‘disciplining’ your kids

by cv harquail August 10, 2010

Usually I shy away from offering or requesting parenting advice on this blog… I know what has worked for my family and I also know that every family’s systems have to fit within its own values, norms and culture. So, when it comes to questions of “how should my Au Pair discipline my kids” I [...]

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Birthday Gifts for Host Kids: Yes and No

by cv harquail July 26, 2010

YES Any au pair with any sensitivity to the host child under her or his care should get that host child something to mark the child’s birthday. NO It doesn’t have to be expensive. It can be something as simple as a specially-selected yet store bought card with a photo insider. But, no, you Au [...]

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Birthday Parties for Host Kids: Should Au Pairs Be Expected to Attend?

by cv harquail July 26, 2010

It took me several years to figure out the whole birthday party thing. By the time I realized that most parents expected to stay for the party– and that I had to feed them — the kids were old enough to be dropped off. That was when I learned that you have to have room [...]

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New Babies and Au Pairs: A Series

by cv harquail July 12, 2010

When a new baby joins your family, lots and lots of things change… and all these changes can affect your au pair. Coming up is a short series of posts on New Babies and Au Pairs, where we can share ideas about how to welcome the new baby (or babies) and also how to welcome [...]

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Itty Bitty Babies: Ups & Downs of Au Pairs for Infants (and new Host Parents)

by cv harquail June 18, 2010

[[I'm delighted to share with your a Guest Post from a regular contributor, Dorsi. Dorsi noted that she hasn't seen much on the blog about infants and offered to share her reflections. Reading her post brought back so many memories of those tender first days of being a mom and having to look like I [...]

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Getting Down (on the floor) with Host Kids: Too much to ask?

by cv harquail May 19, 2010

One of my favorite moments as an au pair mom was the summer afternoon I came home to find my two year old in a diaper, my au pair in a bathing suit, both of them in the garden, covered in finger paint. They were having a blast. This particular au pair, although very mature [...]

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Recent Widower / Single Host Dad: How to find the right au pair?

by cv harquail April 21, 2010

Readers, Here’s a specific question about choosing the right au pair for a family that has lost their mom through tragedy. We had one host dad comment on our earlier post about single parents, and I know that there are at least two other host dad-readers who have lost their wives and who have hired [...]

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Help Your Au Pair Evaluate Potential Playdates

by cv harquail April 8, 2010

I firmly believe that working on your au pair relationship makes you a better parent, directly and indirectly. Any time you have to stop and reflect on your parenting principles and your priorities for your kid(s), you have the opportunity to become more mindful about what you’re up to with your family. Here’s one of [...]

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Au Pair Asks: When Host Kids Are Mean

by cv harquail April 6, 2010

Hi Readers, we interrupt our regularly scheduled plan for an emergency request for advice that popped up in the comments of the previous post. Here’s the issue, from VA AuPairMaidNanny: Some of you dedicated readers & Host Parents will remember that I posted a few weeks ago about my experience so far. Many of you [...]

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Au Pair Advice: Getting enough sleep & being noisy late at night

by cv harquail March 14, 2010

If there is anything about having an au pair — or anyone, really — in the bedroom on the third floor that bothers my DH, it’s noise after 10:30 pm. He is a fussy sleeper, and it drives him nuts to be able to hear a tv, or a phone conversation, while he’s trying to [...]

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