Get the easy email newsletter! Just add your address to the yellow box, below right.
Powered by MaxBlogPress  

Cars & driving

Who Pays For the Au Pair’s Car Insurance?

by cv harquail February 24, 2012

You do. Car insurance is one of the many ‘other’ costs that host parents incur when they have an au pair. Host parents who need the au pair to drive a car as part of his or her work duties obviously pay for the car insurance, just as they pay for the gas and for [...]

52 comments Read the full article →

Do you let your Au Pair drive in the snow?

by cv harquail January 23, 2012

Snowstorms in weird places (like Oregon) and snowstorms in predictable places (like Chicago) have raised the question for many aupair host parents – Do you allow your au pair to drive in the snow? Of course, there are a million variables that affect this decision. Here are the ones I came up with off the [...]

11 comments Read the full article →

Au Pair Asks: My Host Mom wants to get rid of me. … Am I alone in this feeling?

by cv harquail January 16, 2011

Readers, here’s another one of those emails that I just don’t have a good answer for… Can any of you au pairs or host parents offer her some comfort? Hi Au Pair Mom, I am an au pair and always read this blog, to know if I am doing right, to have kind of a [...]

52 comments Read the full article →

How can an Au Pair candidate hasten a match?

by cv harquail January 11, 2011

Yesterday we got this email from an au pair candidate who is very excited about finding a family. She asks: How could I be selected as an au pair as soon as possible? I offered her a little advice, and I’d love to hear what you all might suggest… Hi I’m Shannon from (Southeast Asia), [...]

27 comments Read the full article →

Your Au Pair Counselor As A Local Expert and Resource

by cv harquail November 27, 2010

All local Community Counselors are trained in the fundamental, general issues that are relevant to each and every au pair – host parent relationship. Community Counselors (CCs) must know the US State Department au pair regulations, the contract details of the agency they represent, and the au pair contact, support & rematch practices of their [...]

7 comments Read the full article →

5 Ways to Assess an Au Pair’s Driving Skill when Choosing an Au Pair

by cv harquail November 4, 2010

The original title I had for this post was “In which we address, once again, the issue of driving skills”.  However, since that’s neither SEO-friendly, nor really helpful, let’s see if we can actually come up with ways to assess driving skill. Everyone who has ever driving a car can call say that s/he’s an [...]

33 comments Read the full article →

Integrating an Au Pair when your household has an Older Teen

by cv harquail September 27, 2010

If you have both little kids and an older Teen, what are the things you need to consider as you plan for your Au Pair? Carrie asks,  because she and her husband are expecting a new baby, for whom she’d like an au pair caregiver. The challenge is that Carrie also has a son from a [...]

11 comments Read the full article →

Should you get involved in another Host Parent’s Au Pair issue?

by cv harquail September 24, 2010

I promised you that there was a part 2 to the story of the au pair and host parents who were struggling with responsibility for damage to a car. That issue was shared with us by a host mom with a personal connection to the au pair. In addition to hoping for some ideas on [...]

10 comments Read the full article →

When fault is contested, who pays for damage to the car?

by cv harquail September 21, 2010

Host Mom Ginger sent us a request for advice, that I’ll share with you in two pieces. The first piece has to do with a disagreement over how to pay for damage to the car the au pair uses: A host family has accused their au pair of having an accident with the car. She [...]

49 comments Read the full article →

Driving, Comprehending and Bonding: Can this Au Pair relationship be saved?

by cv harquail August 30, 2010

Here’s a request for advice– and it is a long one… read through and offer your wisdom! Hi All,  We are a first time host family of a lovely Au Pair from China. She has been here almost two weeks. She is neat, helpful, and eager; she is willing to learn how to work appliances, [...]

114 comments Read the full article →

← Previous Entries