honesty

Addressing a Vast Gap Between Ethical Standards: Yours vs Your Au Pair’s

by cv harquail March 25, 2016
john rawls

There are “cultural differences” and there are “philosophical differences”. With cultural differences, it’s less about “right” or “wrong” than about how folks prefer to do things. With philosophical differences, it’s all about right and wrong.   So how do you manage when you discover that your au pair thinks something is perfectly fair to do, but […]

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When Au Pair Candor Hurts Your Host Parent Feelings

by cv harquail May 18, 2015
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We Host Parents want our Au Pairs to be truthful with us. Whether the topic is homesickness, feelings of depression, concerns about children’s behavior, or even our own emotional situations, we want our au pairs to tell us how they see things.  As Americans, we believe that candor (being forthcoming) and honesty (telling the truth) […]

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My Au Pair Application Isn’t Completely True. What should I do?

by cv harquail October 8, 2013
truth lies

We host parents absolutely depend on an au pair’s application to get an accurate and complete representation of that au pair’s background.   Part of the reason why we use Au Pair Agencies rather than websites or Craig’s List is to have a professional (usually, a field person hired by an Agency) interview the au […]

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Cut Your Losses: When your Au Pair starts lying before she even arrives

by cv harquail February 10, 2013
cut your losses, au pair who lies

Our conversation about “when you discover that your au pair is lying” could go on forever, since there are so many different situations in which a lie can be a problem — or something to gloss over. We lie (parents and au pairs) to save face, to avoid consequences, and sometimes to deliberately deceive someone so that […]

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When You Suspect That Your Au Pair is Lying. A lot.

by cv harquail February 4, 2013

From Ananomousthistime Our current AP has been here since the summer. On one hand, she takes good care of the children, is responsible and follows our instructions. I used to think she was a GREAT AP. I should also mention that we place a very high value on honesty in our home. We respect the […]

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My Future Host Mom’s Sister is Creeping Me Out

by cv harquail November 28, 2010
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Okay, “creeping me out” is clearly an American idiom that I have supplied as a headline, but that phrase seems to capture the dynamic going on for this cautious au pair. She’s matched with a family, and getting to know them through emails, etc. before she joins the family in a few months. The family […]

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