Your Host Parent approach

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

by cv harquail September 10, 2008
ap welcome package

[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
gift julia-rothman-gift-wrap

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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Exorcising the Ghost of a Bad Au Pair: Advice?

by cv harquail August 27, 2008
ghostlytooty102

– Thoughts of her send chills down your spine. – You see her in your dreams. – Thumps on the third floor make you think she still lives here. – You can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching you, criticizing you, maybe even disliking you. You can’t shake it, because you’re haunted. Haunted by […]

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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
no whining cat

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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Tip: Give your Au Pair your camera so she can take candid shots of your kids

by cv harquail July 24, 2008
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Marguerite, a community counselor, sent me this great idea she got from one of her host families. The family leaves a camera at home with their aupairs with instructions to take candid pictures of their kids whenever the children are doing something particularly cute or fun. This way the parents get to see some of […]

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What are Host Dads afraid of? The Top 3 “Fears of the Host Dad” & How to manage them

by cv harquail June 25, 2008

Back when you were deciding whether to get an Au Pair, you might have encountered some resistance from your potential Host Dad. “I’m not sure I want someone else living in our house.” “Isn’t it just easier to hire a bunch of babysitters?” “Maybe you should cut back at work.” “Why can’t the kids just […]

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Host Family Advice: Resist the Amenities Arms Race

by cv harquail June 17, 2008

Truth: Every good host mom wants her Au Pair to be reasonably happy. Truth: You can’t make her more happy by giving her more stuff. One important way to help your Au Pair feel happy with her situation is to provide her with various “creature comforts”, including a nice bedroom, entertainment equipment, access to family […]

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Advice: Increase your Au Pair’s gas allowance

by cv harquail June 12, 2008

The price of gas has gone up by more that $1 in the last year. That price increase hurts everyone, and it especially pains an Au Pair, since it eats up more of her already modest weekly pocket money. It has gotten much more expensive for your Au Pair to use the car for her […]

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