Send an Excerpt from your Family Handbook to Prospective Au Pairs

by cv harquail March 19, 2013

In my house we have a saying: “Fewer, better things.” This advice is to keep me from buying those $2.00 sequined rabbit statues at Target when I already have ceramic bunnies that will make perfectly fine easter decorations thank you very much. This advice also works for the family handbook selections we send to prospective […]

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Au Pair Applications: What would you *really* like to know about an Au Pair Candidate?

by cv harquail March 17, 2013

There are only so many questions you can ask a potential Au Pair candidate in an interview. It took us only a few posts about interviewing candidates to come up with over 318 questions! (Well, maybe not that many. But it was a lot.) Even if we were able to ask that many questions, there would still […]

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Sample Family Handbook, from HM Amy Tea

by cv harquail March 14, 2013

When you’re planning to welcome a new au pair, nothing is a better use of your time than updating– or creating — your Family Handbook. Whether your Handbook is filled with instructions for how to use the washer, or whether it’s more like a  Manual that has all your car-related rules, getting that stuff written […]

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Should Au Pairs be expected to do chores on their Day Off?

by cv harquail March 12, 2013
au pair chores

In our earlier conversation about what chores are appropriate to ask an au pair to do, AussieAuPair raised an interesting question– When an au pair is officially having a day off, should s/he still be expected to do household chores? We need to make two sets of distinctions first, between — family member household chores […]

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Au Pair Confused: How much income to report for taxes?

by cv harquail March 11, 2013

Dear Au Pair Mom– I’m confused about Income Taxes. I am a second year Au pair who extended with a new family. Last year (2012) I worked 51 weeks and my host mom paid me $200 every week instead of $195.75. She declared $200 on her tax files. What number am I supposed to declare? I […]

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Au Pairs and Income Tax

by cv harquail March 9, 2013

Every year around this time I feel a creeping dread. Anytime now, my DH is going to ask me for receipts from my charitable contributions, any random pay stubs from freelance work, and those so called ‘records’ that I keep of medical copayments ‘n stuff. Because it’s time to file our income tax statement. Uck. […]

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Taking Brand New Au Pairs on Vacation: Best Practices?

by cv harquail March 3, 2013

Host parents generally agree that taking an au pair on vacation right at the start of his/her au pair year is inviting trouble. Starting your au pair year in a vacation location, with host parents who are not rushing off to work and with host kids who are not heading off to school makes the […]

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Au Pairs and Common Sense: Guest Post by TakingAComputerLunch

by TakingAComputerLunch February 27, 2013
Mother Owl, fox, baby shower card, baby shower invitation, adoptive mother card, grandmother, whimsical, blank card

Common sense plays a huge role in how we function as adults, especially those of us with children. As parents, we know a late night out will cause us to pay double in the morning, because the kids’ internal alarm clocks don’t reset just because we’ve had no sleep. We know we need to think […]

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Switching Your Au Pair to a Different Visa is Difficult and Costly

by cv harquail February 24, 2013

Many a host parent has wished to keep a great au pair forever and ever– or at least longer than the legal year plus year extension.   And many an au pair (including a few of my own, and their friends) have gone to great lengths to find a legal or vaguely legal way to […]

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Who Are The Mysterious Wise Women (and Men) on Au Pair Mom?

by cv harquail February 19, 2013
Au Pair Host Mom hiding her identity

I know some stuff about the folks on AuPairMom that I bet you wish you knew. Just to name a few: I know the real name of TakingAComputerLunch. I know what kind of music CalifMom enjoys. I know how to reach DarthaStewart with a moment’s notice, whenever I need her opinion. Lucky me, I know […]

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