Cultural Exchange Challenges

Cultural Exchange: Little things you’ve learned about the US from your Au Pair

by cv harquail May 22, 2018
mercwald

I was flipping back through some old posts and found one asking what our Host Kids have learned about other cultures from their Au Pairs.  Northern NJ Mom’s list (reposted below) made me smile, and wonder: What kinds of small things have you learned about the US or your Au Pair’s home culture? Let ’em rip, […]

14 comments Read the full article →

Support Gun Safety Legislation

by cv harquail October 4, 2017
Everytown-for-Gun-Safety-Logo

Dear Readers — A girlfriend reminded me this morning that, as a person who runs a website that reaches 16,000 people a month, I have a responsibility to use this platform wisely.  To promote community, to promote growth, to promote learning, to promote cross cultural understanding, and to promote safety. One of the most horrifying […]

4 comments Read the full article →

Religious Au Pair Doesn’t Celebrate Holidays. Would you still consider her?

by cv harquail July 22, 2017
1982446811_96d7342469_m

Celebrating American holidays with your au pair or host family is one of the biggest (and most fun) elements of cultural exchange. Holidays are a unique window into culture. The traditions, the food, the festive spirit all invite us to talk about the values behind the celebration. On the more personal, less ‘cultural’ level, holidays […]

35 comments Read the full article →

Explaining “America” to Your Au Pair

by cv harquail June 30, 2017
IMG_5111

4th of July is one of my favorite holidays… all about family, community and abstract patriotic notions. 4th of July is also the holiday when I am most likely to embarrass my children– apparently, as they get older, it is no longer cool to have a mom who dresses up in red, white & blue […]

4 comments Read the full article →

Any New Advice About International Travel During an Au Pair’s Extension Year?

by cv harquail March 2, 2017
19190121422_e25c2f7a68_m

There are some things I would never test. —  Whether the rope bridge across the gorge could hold me. — Whether that snake was was harmless. Or whether I could get my extension Au Pair back into the US after taking her with us on an international trip. With Federal Agents inspecting documents of passengers […]

27 comments Read the full article →

What If Only One Host Parent is a U.S. Citizen?

by cv harquail February 28, 2017
passport-and-visa-600x400

Here’s one of those “finer points” of the Host Parenting situation where we need some of you Agency experts to weigh in. The US State Department (not the Au Pair Agencies themselves) “(1) Require that the host parents are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents”. What happens when one parent IS a citizen but the […]

11 comments Read the full article →

How to find South American/ Central American Au Pairs that fit our family’s style

by cv harquail January 30, 2017
latin-america-political-map

Hello Au Pair Moms! I am in search of our 3rd au pair, perhaps someone from Central or Latin America.  We really loved the German Au Pair we had, and would love another just like her… but I’ve noticed the European Au Pairs are not as available. I live in Chicago, which has a large Hispanic […]

22 comments Read the full article →

Au Pair Getting High In Our Home

by cv harquail October 9, 2016
16463233379_b667727063_m

When we know an Au Pair is doing something that contradicts our house rules, but we aren’t able to present positive proof of this, what can we do? We don’t want to be accusatory. But then again, we’re sure we’re right. We don’t need to see him or her rinsing out the bong in the […]

41 comments Read the full article →

Visa Questions for Extension Au Pair Who Wants to Travel Home

by cv harquail September 8, 2016
au pair visa questions

Readers, here’s a topic where I’m in the dark. Have any of you experienced this issue and found a solution? We have a fabulous au pair and are looking to extend her for another year. Her visa expires in October. We are essentially getting no help from our agency about how to extend her.   

13 comments Read the full article →

Brand New Au Pair’s Extreme Homesickness — Can we turn it around?

by cv harquail August 16, 2016
8417935780_9fcdebf551_m

It seems like this brand new host mom did everything right (or, rather, took all of our recommendations) for getting started with an Au Pair. Careful consideration, lots of advance learning, deep interviewing, a handbook (!), and lots of positive energy. Even after their new Au Pair arrived and presented the challenge of extreme homesick, […]

74 comments Read the full article →

← Previous Entries