Foundations & Basics

How Can You Get Your Au Pair to be (more of) a Self-Starter?

by cv harquail October 6, 2008

Moms- We’ve got another request for advice! Not so surprisingly, this request shares a theme with last week’s question, about how to get your au pair ‘out and about’ so that you can have some alone-ish time. I’ve taken the liberty of highlighting some of the passages to call your attention to them… What are […]

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Plan Ahead for the Holidays. How will your Au Pair celebrate with you?

by cv harquail October 1, 2008

I was just stunned to learn this morning that there are only 12 weeks until Christmas. 12 Weeks!!! While my Jewish friends have been celebrating their new year, I have been stumbling along oblivious to how quickly the fall has been flying by…. so thank goodness that blogger Tsh over at SimpleMom.com reminded me that […]

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When your Au Pair has a Fender-Bender — Who pays, and what, and how?

by cv harquail September 24, 2008

I have dreaded writing about au pairs and car accidents, because fear of accidents is one of the scariest things about having children, and even scarier when you are entrusting your children to someone else’s driving. Even the best of au pairs can have car accidents. (Heck, even the best of drivers can have accidents!) […]

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After the Car Accident: Advice on what to talk about with your Au Pair

by cv harquail September 19, 2008

As I was working through the possible advice we could offer to MT, the mom whose Au Pair just backed into a BMW, I realized that we need to focus on the really big picture– that is, how to manage the damage that an Au Pair’s car accident can do to your relationship with each […]

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Au Pair Advice: Send a welcome package to your Au Pair’s orientation

by cv harquail September 10, 2008

[Help me find our 100th Host Mom subscriber!] Almost everyone loves to get presents and almost everyone loves to get mail. Put these two things together by sending your au pair a welcome package, and you’re probably going to make her feel happy, welcomed, and maybe even special. Once upon a time, when I thought […]

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Goodbye Gifts for Your Au Pair

by cv harquail September 4, 2008

Every year about a week before our au pair is set to depart, I realize that the scrapbook/ iMovie/ slideshow/ MixCD that I’d been fantasizing about making her will remain just that– a fantasy. I think that, because I dread saying goodbye to our au pairs, I put off until the last minute getting her […]

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Checkout Tasks List: Advice for when your Aupair departs

by cv harquail August 25, 2008

When your aupair is getting ready to leave for home or for ‘her next adventure’, there is a confusing array of tasks for her to attend to. Here is a partial list of tasks — tasks related to the home and the kids– that might help you and your departing aupair stay focused. Bedroom Remove […]

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When your Au Pair complains about working too many hours, but still less than 45… what can you do?

by cv harquail August 4, 2008

A Host mom/reader, Acicala, wrote in a comment/question last week that hit me right in the pit of my stomach, because this particular problem has been the source of nearly all the “APA” (AuPairAnxiety) that I have experienced as a host mom. The problem, in a nutshell, is when your Au Pair begins to complain […]

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6 Potential Problems with Au Pair Overlap

by cv harquail July 25, 2008

Even though the 6 Reasons to Have Au Pairs Overlap are compelling, there can be some significant downsides to this strategy for orienting your new Au Pair. Sometimes, these downsides will be deal breakers — the danger of having one of these problems go from ‘potential’ to ‘actual’ may outweigh the expected benefits of overlap. […]

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6 Reasons to Have Au Pairs Overlap

by cv harquail July 24, 2008

Once you’ve had the opportunity to orient a new Au Pair, you realize how much work it is to teach an Au Pair all of your family’s systems and personalities. When you imagine doing this again in only 11 months (!), you may start looking for opportunities to reduce the amount of work for you– […]

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