May 2009

I’ve caught a virus… and I want to share it with you!

by cv harquail May 7, 2009
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… Moms, I’m not talking about Swine Flu. I’m talking about "Mother of the Year"! Au Pair Mom is 2009 Mother of the Year! Whoohoo! MomsRising.org is spreading a virus … it’s their "Mother of the Year Award" video, the kind where you can insert the names of people you know who then show up […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: Special sensitivity

by cv harquail May 7, 2009
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International Au Pair Appreciation Week As shared by a Host Mom My daughters were born in China, and spent 12 and 32 months in an orphanage and in foster care. Ms. Dikun is a certified teacher in China, and we were incredibly blessed to have her join our family for a year. She was our […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: Setting a high standard

by cv harquail May 6, 2009
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International Au Pair Appreciation Week As shared by a Host Mom Johanna was our first aupair, and set a really high standard for what we would hope for from the aupairs that would follow. She showed incredible judgment in choosing which aupairs to spend time with, and often chose to stick close to our family. […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: Help some host families strengthen their au pair relationships

by cv harquail May 5, 2009
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As International APAW continues, you might be looking for another quick, easy and helpful way to show not only that you appreciate your au pair, but also that you appreciate the challenges and the responsibility of being a great host family. So here’s another suggestion for appreciating au pairs and host families that is easy […]

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Advice Wanted: German Culture insight?

by cv harquail May 5, 2009
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Host parents, here’s an awkward question; read it and you’ll see why. "I am in serious consideration of making a match with an au pair from Germany and have a question to ask you or your readers. When we were discussing her arrival dates, she mentioned she did not want to depart from Germany during […]

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5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Considering Rematch

by cv harquail May 5, 2009
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How soon can you know that it just won’t work? Dory asked a question (which I post below) about whether she’s reasonable to think that she should rematch with another au pair. She’s only had this one for 3 months, but it isn’t promising. My quick response to her prompted this advice … 5 Questions […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: Try this today!

by cv harquail May 5, 2009
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International Au Pair Appreciation Week Moms and Dads, it’s still International Au Pair Appreciation Week, and there is STILL TIME for you to send in a note, a sentence and/or a photo to share with the world something that you appreciate about your au pair. I’d love to have a few more submissions!  Still, I […]

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11 Tips for Considering an Au Pair in Rematch

by cv harquail May 4, 2009
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Oh dear. You’re in rematch. Maybe you were horrible. Maybe your au pair was horrible. Maybe you should have decided sooner, then again maybe you both could have tried harder. Whatever, it’s been a bad experience. The decision to rematch has been made, and now… you need childcare, and you don’t have much time to […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: A collage of love

by cv harquail May 4, 2009
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International Au Pair Appreciation Week As shared by a Host Mom After being with us for only 2 months, our AP made us a beautiful collage for Christmas of photos that she had taken of the children and our dogs. It was so thoughtful and we were absolutely thrilled! It now hangs on our bulletin […]

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Au Pair Appreciation: St. Lucia

by cv harquail May 3, 2009
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International Au Pair Appreciation Week As shared by a Host Mom Our last AP was from Stockholm, Sweden. Her mother sent her 3 Swedish white ‘nightgown’ style dresses, electric "crowns" and bulbs so that she could celebrate St. Lucia Day for our benefit in December 2008. She baked sweet rolls flavored with saffron, taught our […]

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