An Easy Way To Find Which Au Pair Agencies Serve Your Area

by cv harquail February 12, 2015
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Here’s a great question from NorthWestHostMom: What’s an easy way to find out which Au Pair Agencies serve my geographic area?   Other than calling each and every Agency, is there a simple way to identify my options? This is a not only a common question asked by potential host parents — Current host families that […]

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When Your Au Pair’s Efforts to Help Just Make Things Worse

by cv harquail February 10, 2015
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You know it’s a sad story when it begins … “One weekend in an effort to emulate Martha Stewart…” … I lovingly planted thyme in between the flagstones of my back patio. My plan was for the herbs to fill in the dirt lines, crowd out the weeds, and offer up a fragrance when we walked around […]

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Why Can’t I Buy AuPair Plane Tickets and Save Money on Agency Fees?

by cv harquail February 8, 2015
au pair plane tickets

What if you had 100 million frequent flyer miles? Or a $700 credit with an airline that flies from NYC to your Au Pair’s home city? Could you purchase your Au Pair’s plane ticket– in either direction — and save money on your Au Pair Agency fee? Our first au pair’s 2 years is about […]

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Which Au Pair Rules Feel Flexible?

by cv harquail February 4, 2015
breaking au pair rules

This is a companion post to “Which Host Family Rules Feel Flexible to Au Pairs?” Au Pair Program Rules are Great. One of the strongest elements of the US Au Pair Program is the framework created by the State Department rules.   These clear and specific boundaries around work hours and work responsibilities help US Host Parents and […]

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Which Host Family Rules Feel Flexible to Au Pairs?

by cv harquail February 4, 2015
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Okay, Au Pairs — It’s your turn to tell us which Host Family rules you feel it’s okay to be “flexible” with every now and then. [This is a companion post to “Which Au Pair Rules Feel Flexible?”] Since there is no set group of Host Family rules, I can’t create polls for specific ones. Instead, […]

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Eating On Duty: Managing Au Pair Meals

by cv harquail February 3, 2015
snack time au pair

Au Pairs often need to make meals for themselves (as well as for host children) while they are on duty.   We can’t (and shouldn’t) expect any caregiver to go for hours and hours without a proper meal. But when an au pair is ‘on duty’ with a primary responsibility for children, an au pair […]

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Teach Your Kids To Treat Your Au Pair With Respect

by cv harquail January 30, 2015
children rude to au pair

Here’s a host mom after my own heart. Why? Because her first thought after describing the problem is to ask what she might be doing to contribute to it. Not that I want host parents (or au pairs) to always shoulder the blame, but with all things social it’s the *relationship, the *context, and the […]

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New Year, New Expectations: Having A ‘Reset’ Conversation

by cv harquail January 28, 2015
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[ Here’s one from the archives — We’ve been using the term “reset conversation” a lot this past year… here’s where it comes from, and how to execute one. ] There are several times each year, and several times in each AuPair year, when it makes sense to reset your expectations with your au pair. The […]

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Does Your Au Pair Get Paid A Stipend When S/he’s Sick?

by cv harquail January 26, 2015
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 When your au pair gets sick for more than a few days, questions about substitute childcare, sick days, and additional costs can put pressure on the balancing act between “part of the family” and “employee”. Every family needs a backup plan for the occasional day or two (or three) when an Au Pair is laid […]

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Open Thread: Introducing a New Comments Tool

by cv harquail January 25, 2015
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Time for an open thread– and an upgrade in our commenting practices! I’d like to introduce a new tool, a tool that I’ve been using ‘behind the scenes’ — on about 20% of the comments — to help keep our commenting easy to read and easy to respond to. You might know it by sight or […]

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