December 2009

Your Au Pair’s Room: How much mess can you take?

by cv harquail December 14, 2009
_2226_1763208598_89a0d43bf0.jpg

A host mom sent me a few photos of her au pair’s bedroom (taken with the au pair’s permission). The host mom was agonizing, because the room was a freaking mess. This family’s au pair was following the two most important bedroom-related rules: No dirty dishes and no candles/incense. But otherwise the place was a […]

52 comments Read the full article →

Mixing Grandparents and Au Pairs at the Holidays

by cv harquail December 12, 2009
200912120900.jpg

Who’d have thought this would be a topic? As I neatened up the spare room to welcome my mother-in-law, I was remembering some of the well-intentioned tensions we had our first Christmas with our au pair and Grandparents together, and how we tried to manage them. My parents-in-law, like most grandparents, were over the moon […]

9 comments Read the full article →

Advice Wanted: Damage Control for Possible Escape Artist

by cv harquail December 10, 2009
200912101943.jpg

Au Pair Host Mom “Not Smiling in Seattle” writes: I am hoping you readers have some honest input for us. My Au Pair last night announced her mother was ill and needs an operation. My first impression was “oh my gosh, is your mom ok?” When I asked for more information, our au pair could […]

39 comments Read the full article →

Christmas Tip: Make sure your Au Pair has a stocking

by cv harquail December 10, 2009
200812111017.jpg

If you are a first-time host family, and if you celebrate Christmas, you might find yourself caught off guard when you begin to incorporate your Au Pair into your family traditions. Some families will want their au pair to help select and decorate the tree, others won’t. Some families will invite the au pair to […]

21 comments Read the full article →

Holiday Gifts for Au Pairs

by cv harquail December 10, 2009
_3537_3306896833_74f71c7efa.jpg

It’s time to start thinking of gift ideas for your au pair, if you haven’t already! In previous posts we’ve talked about gifts that we like to give our au pairs, either for holidays or birthdays. These ideas have included scrapbooks, photo albums, scented bath treats, and of course, the ever-popular gift set from Sephora […]

27 comments Read the full article →

AuPairMom: Proudly Independent

by cv harquail December 7, 2009
4 puppies green.jpg

We interrupt our conversation to discuss the status of AuPairMom. In case you were wondering, AuPairMom is not affiliated with any au pair agency. I, CV (aka mom@aupairmom), am not a host mom affiliated with or currently using any au pair agency. I feel compelled to remind you of the independence of the blog, because […]

22 comments Read the full article →

We *are* making a difference

by cv harquail December 5, 2009
200912050954.jpg

We got this email, below, earlier this week, from a mom who’s been reading and participating on the blog for a while now. I’m sharing it with you because it’s a happy story, and because you all know that my main role here is to create a space for all of us to share ideas. […]

24 comments Read the full article →

Leftover Thanksgiving Tips for your Au Pair Relationship

by cv harquail December 2, 2009
_3280_3066034115_f74de309de.jpg

Do you have any Thanksgiving Leftovers leftover? We got cleaned out by my sister, who took several tubs of Gladware back to her house, leaving us with just one day of warmed turkey and too much cranberry sauce. Luckily, she overlooked Enid’s Pumpkin Chiffon Pie. DH and I polished that off all by ourselves. But […]

21 comments Read the full article →

Next Entries →