Does your Au Pair call you Mom or Dad, Ms. or Mr.?

by cv harquail July 9, 2013
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Just when I was thinking there were no more new questions about being an au pair, this one comes across the digital transom: I’m a soon to be first time au pair and I have a quick question for you. What’s the best way to address my host parents? My instinct is to call them […]

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Do Facebook Groups Really Help Au Pairs Find Host Families?

by cv harquail July 7, 2013
owl sunglasses

When it comes to looking for a new au pair, I’m a big fan of staying “inside the box”. Maybe it’s the cautious side of my nature, or the lazy side, but I’ve not been tempted to look beyond the official agencies. Meanwhile, unaccredited websites and facebook groups have sprung up all over the ‘net, offering […]

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Au Pair Asks: How Do I Ask Prospective Host Families About Guns in Their Home?

by cv harquail June 17, 2013
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Following on our earlier post about guns in the home, here’s a different take on the issue. An au pair candidate writes to ask– How do I ask possible host families about whether they have weapons in their home? When I replied this au pair’s email, I mentioned to her that she’s the first au […]

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Au Pairs and Guns in Your House: Rules, Principles, and Having the Conversation

by cv harquail June 15, 2013
gun safety, au pair advice

I remember the first time my baby was invited to someone else’s house for a playdate, without me but with my au pair. The other child’s au pair had extended the invitation, but I called the other parents myself just to check in. I asked them all the usual questions– what time, where, allergies, any […]

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Au Pair Confessions: All the stuff we don’t want to believe Au Pairs actually think

by cv harquail June 11, 2013
au pair confessions

Last month a regular reader/commenter brought to my attention the Facebook page called “AuPair Confessions” . It’s almost as bad as looking at Pinterest. It took me a long time to get up the energy to go check it out, because I just didn’t want to see what disgruntled au pairs might ‘confess’ about — […]

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Au Pair Scheduling: How to count time around Drop-Offs and Pick-ups

by cv harquail June 10, 2013
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When does an au pair actually ‘stop’ being on the clock?   Is it when the kids are off with someone else, or when the au pair is back at ‘home base’? Before we even address this substance of the question, I need to point out  => If you have to count minutes down to […]

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Male Au Pairs, Revolutionaries and Change Agents

by cv harquail May 30, 2013
justin

Can male au pairs change the world? The Wall Street Journal would like you to think so. Belatedly, I’ve come across this WSJ article: No, Girls Are Not Natural Baby Sitters, by Charlotte Alter, that suggests that ‘normalizing’ male au pairs would hasten the demise of sexism. Yea for that, I say. I love the […]

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Overnight hours: Should we be able to schedule Au Pairs to work overnight?

by cv harquail May 25, 2013
owl pillow

StudentHostMom writes with a question about overnight childcare. Our contract strictly forbids leaving the kids alone with the au pair overnight. Our main reason for getting an au pair was to support me as I returned to classes, part time, to finish my college degree. Since my husband travels all week, every week, our Au Pair […]

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Mother’s Day Musings, from Au Pairs to Host Moms

by cv harquail May 12, 2013
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What do our au pairs really think of us Host Moms? Every now and then I wonder about this. Au Pairs see us at our very worst mommyness (e.g., wet hair, no makeup, screeching about laundry) and at our very best (snuggling our kids, solving problems, singing in the car).  Au Pairs also see what […]

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Proposed Immigration Legislation Affecting AuPairs: What do you think?

by cv harquail May 10, 2013
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This week, many host families received letters from their Au Pair Agencies and/or from the Alliance for International Education and Cultural Exchange. (Note: The Alliance is an advocacy group for cultural exchange programs. Many au pair agencies are members). Previously, we’ve received requests to contact our Representatives about changes in Tax Law. This time, it’s US Immigration regulations. (See […]

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