Can this relationship be saved?

This Is The Open Thread You’ve Been Looking For

by cv harquail October 18, 2014

I know it’s been a while– and questions are piling up. Time for an open thread! Keep in mind, it can take some time to clear the comment moderation gauntlet for first-time contributors. … This thread will be open until Monday. Got to it, readers! Image: Evan Leeson on Flickr

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How much can an Au Pair influence the positive climate of your home?

by cv harquail October 13, 2014

Add one negative person, and the whole ‘psychic weather system’ of a family can become depressed. Having an au pair who is a grump, a complainer, a depressive, a wet noodle, or a ghost can really be a drag on the family’s energy. But is an au pair’s impact on the family climate as powerful the […]

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3 Easy Ways to Help Your Au Pair Use Your Home Appliances Correctly

by cv harquail October 10, 2014

American appliances have too many options. Having endless options is great for getting just the right setting for a specific task, but it becomes quite a problem when you’re forever trying to remember which combinations of buttons and levers to press. Between our vacuum cleaner (5 attachments, 3 wands and 5 buttons), our washer (23 […]

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One Slight After Another: Can this au pair relationship be saved?

by cv harquail September 29, 2014

It’s interesting to get emails from host parents — and au pairs– where it seems that the very act of writing to us is helping them gain some clarity about how untenable their situation actually is. This seems especially true when there isn’t one prominent issue but instead several smaller ones that, when all pulled […]

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It’s the Parents’ Job to Teach Children Kind Behavior

by cv harquail September 18, 2014

Au Pairs can reinforce discipline and expectations, but it’s Parents who remain responsible. Many parents who are either new to parenting at all or new to host parenting specifically struggle with this issue. We all want our children to be kind. Full stop. (I’m assuming this is true. It’s true, right? We want our kids […]

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If an AuPair is being exploited, is it okay for her to disappear?

by cv harquail September 15, 2014

We’ve heard the horror stories of au pairs disappearing while the host family is at church, or in the middle of the night without warning. Although this is often selfish behavior by an au pair and intended as a slap in the face to the host parents, there are actually a few situations where I […]

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Should She Ask Her Host Mom To Read AuPairMom?

by cv harquail September 8, 2014

Dear AuPairMom – I have been reading AuPairMom while I was deciding to become an au pair and I was expecting that what you have on this blog explains what an au pair should expect. My host mom seems to be having some struggles with having an au pair. I’m my family’s first au pair. My family is […]

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Host Mom Desperately Trying — Too Hard?

by cv harquail September 3, 2014

What is it they say about choosing a third au pair after two huge disappointments: It’s the “Triumph of Hope over Experience”? OzHostMom writes with a quandary: She’s really trying, she’s really optimistic, except she’s lost her host mom mojo. I’ve reordered her story, below, so that you get the critical point near the start: […]

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Open Thread: Labor Day Weekend 2014

by cv harquail August 30, 2014

Happy Labor Day weekend– and for those of us whose kids (finally) go back to school this coming week, happy last day of summer vacation. Enjoy this open thread, to converse about anything your heart desires (as long as it fits within our Comments policy). Also, if there are things you want us to discuss on […]

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