Is An Au Pair Right For Your Family? Not if you need a Housekeeper …

by cv harquail August 22, 2016
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When people ask me whether an Au Pair might be right for them, I sometimes forget to ask them what kinds of help they *already* have, that they are aiming to replace. If a family currently uses a childcare center or a home-based center, then switching to an Au Pair offers more schedule flexibility, care […]

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Brand New Au Pair’s Extreme Homesickness — Can we turn it around?

by cv harquail August 16, 2016
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It seems like this brand new host mom did everything right (or, rather, took all of our recommendations) for getting started with an Au Pair. Careful consideration, lots of advance learning, deep interviewing, a handbook (!), and lots of positive energy. Even after their new Au Pair arrived and presented the challenge of extreme homesick, […]

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Au Pair Tech Update: Sharing SmartPhone Accounts & Apps while Staying Secure

by cv harquail August 14, 2016
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You know that whole argument that you should make sure both parents know how to diaper, feed, and soothe a baby, so that no one parent gets “stuck” with all the hardest work because the other parent quietly “deskilled” him/herself? I paid attention to that advice with my kids, and contradicted it with our phones, […]

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“Matching With” Versus “Selecting” an Au Pair: What’s your perspective?

by cv harquail August 12, 2016
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Writing about the AuPair interviewing process, I’m getting a little philosophical. I just wrote this section (below) about the difference between “selecting” and “Matching with” an Au Pair.  Am I crazy? Do you make these sorts of distinctions? Is this how you frame the process yourself? What am I missing?  I’d love your ideas. “Matching […]

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Au Pair Drinking Wine While On Duty: Okay or Ixnay? (Poll)

by cv harquail August 9, 2016
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Dear Au Pair Mom — I have been an avid reader of your blog for awhile now and absolutely love the invaluable information and tips I have learned from it. I’m not entirely sure this is an issue but I think it has the potential to become one so I guess I’m just putting some […]

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Interviewing Rematch Au Pairs: Special Questions?

by cv harquail August 3, 2016
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How to Interview Au Pair Candidates is the #1 topic that people search for on AuPairMom. This week, I’ve been hard at work on an eBook that can offer all the ideas in one place and one package.  It’s insane, trying to pull together (as much as is humanly possible) the wisdom that’s accumulated here […]

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Interviewing Extension Au Pairs: Special Questions?

by cv harquail August 3, 2016
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A companion question to the post on Interviewing Rematch Au Pairs: Special Questions? With Extension Au Pairs, the number one question I’d have is — Why aren’t you staying with your current host family? I can think of a million perfectly acceptable reasons for wanting to have a different family for an extension. Seeing a different […]

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How Many is Too Many Household Accidents Before Rematching an Au Pair?

by cv harquail July 30, 2016
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I’d say however many it took to get you to write this email, SafetyConsciousHostMom. Any email that asks “how many kitchen fires are too many?” gets my automatic reply “Rematch Now”. We are a family with an 18 year old bro pair who’s been so-so. He’s not super great with the kids or the chores, but […]

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Choosing an Au Pair: The Serious One or The Fun One?

by cv harquail July 25, 2016
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“There’s a lid for every pot”, we often say here on Au Pair Mom. No matter how weird your situation, or how picky you are, there is an au pair out there for you. Sometimes you’re lucky and you discover TWO au pairs who seem to fit your needs. So, how do you choose? The […]

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How to Reduce the Costs of Having an Au Pair

by cv harquail July 23, 2016
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Parents who are researching childcare options for the first time invariably experience “sticker shock”. Who knew that a year of childcare in America could cost as much as a year at a good instate university? Whether childcare is provided by a retail day care center, a someone-else’s-home-based childcare center, a nanny, or an au pair, […]

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