Foundations & Basics

Share a page from your handbook …

by cv harquail February 10, 2009

When I started au pair momming 11 years ago, there was no such thing as an Au Pair Handbook. My au pair agency never recommended that I create a family manual, and my LCC actually laughed when I told her that I’d put together a printed list of guidelines for our incoming au pair. My, […]

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Don’t take your Au Pair on vacation during her first 3 months!

by cv harquail February 8, 2009

Okay host moms- I’m coming out with a pretty specific "Don’t": Don’t, I say DON’T, take your au pair on a vacation the first 3 months she is with you. Why? Because: 1. It sets up inaccurate expectations about how she will be treated (e.g., as a guest and tourist vs. as a ‘working’ member […]

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It’s YOUR vacation, not hers. Okay?

by cv harquail February 2, 2009

I had a long listen at a neighborhood party last week…one of my host mom friends had just come back from a family vacation to Disneyworld. Three kids, three adults, two bedrooms, 5 days. And for my friend, not a vacation at all. What went wrong? I’ll tell you what went wrong. My friend forgot […]

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Tip: Save those Ice Skates!

by cv harquail January 18, 2009

At the park across the street, the pond has frozen. (This is actually what it looks like!) Every time the pond freezes, I congratulate myself for saving my old ice skates. About five years ago, when my little ones were taking skating lessons , I bought myself skates that actually fit me so that I […]

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Help: My Au Pair is Blogging about My Family!

by cv harquail January 11, 2009

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It’s s Web 2.0 nightmare no Au Pair Host Parent is ready for — your au pair is blogging about your kids, your family, your discipline strategies, and who knows what all else. And the picture is not altogether flattering. What do you do? Here’s how md describes her challenge and her request for advice: […]

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Poll: Do you ask your Au Pair to walk your dog?

by cv harquail January 8, 2009

Let’s take a walk into another grey area of potential au pair responsibilities- your family dog. “Officially”, here in the USofA, your (See Dawn’s comment, below) with my agency, APIA, the Au Pair is not supposed to do any dog (or pet) care at all. Still, since the dog is part of the family, and […]

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How much cleaning do you ask your Au Pair to do?

by cv harquail January 6, 2009

Housework. The contested terrain. Just what housework tasks are appropriate to ask your au pair to do? "The rules" say that your au pair is in charge of things related to the kids. BUT since the kids shared the house with at least one adult, there is always some overlap as well as jointly-created mess. […]

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15 Tips from 15 Host Moms

by cv harquail January 5, 2009

Cruising through the comments and wincing at the many that I haven’t answered adequately, I was reminded how many little tidbits you all have been sharing on the blog. It can be overwhelming to provide advice for a knotty problem, or for a first timer, because there really is so much to share. Funny thing […]

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9 Host Mom Questions for 2009: Reflect before you resolve

by cv harquail December 31, 2008

How did we get here already? I was just testing the polling feature to see how many au pairs were on duty on Christmas, and — bam– it’s already December 31st. Maybe the holidays have been like this for you too? Just more family, more fun, (more work!), and overall less blogging time than I’d […]

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Poll: Will your AP be on-duty on Christmas?

by cv harquail December 18, 2008

Hi Moms- I’m testing out a new feature — polls! I’d love to get a sense of what everyone is planning for their au pair on Christmas day…. Given the percent of American families that celebrate Christmas — (according to the Associated Press , Gallup polls from 1994 to 2005 consistently show that more than […]

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