So, it has officially been a decade (yes, that’s TEN YEARS!) since I worked as an au pair in Germany. Wow. Time flies. It really does! I can’t believe it’s been that long. But on the other hand, so many memories of my time as an au pair are as clear as if they had [...]
With the continuing recession (or are we in a depression?), au pair agencies appear to be continuing to offer discounts to new families interested in hosting au pairs.
Cultural Care currently has a special lasting until December 31. New host families will save the $350 application fee, and an extra $150 will also be shaved [...]
Yes, this year’s au pair of the year award from Cultural Care went to a young man from Brazil, Ricardo Silva de Araújo, who works for an American family living in Richmond, Virginia. So yeah, I admit, when I first heard that a guy one the award, which is not easy (this year there were [...]
Continue reading about and the 2009 Au Pair of the Year is … a “manny!”
Being in a recession isn’t entirely doom and gloom. Occasionally there are perks to being in a down economy. If you’re a family in search of an au pair, or are thinking about hiring an au pair, now might be the time to take that step. Some of the au pair agencies here in the [...]
Although host families in the US probably are not too happy, the deal for foreign au pairs working in America just got a little sweeter. With the July increase in the federal minimum wage, the au pair stipend, which is in part based on the minimum wage rate, has also gone up.
This means the au [...]
Continue reading about make more money in the US as an Au Pair
Summertime usually means fun, vacation, travel, and more … Some au pairs get to take their vacation this time of year, and will enjoy getting to see more of the country they are living in, and maybe even get to visit other places as well. If you are one of them, enjoy your time away. [...]
If you are lucky, you may have landed with a host family who lets you use one of their vehicles occasionally. If you are really lucky, you may even have what seems like total control over the ‘au pair car.’ Many families, especially those in the U.S. where cars are used more often than public [...]
Sex trafficking is now the fastest growing criminal industry in the world. According to the U.S. State Department, roughly 700,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year. Most of these people are young women and children who have been lured from their homes with the promise of a better future in a foreign country. [...]
Continue reading about au pairs and trafficking: a word of caution
My friend Brianna at www.hearthmanagement.com is doing a giveaway this week for an adorably cute, custom made apron from Marie-Madeline Studio. She mentions that aprons are in, and she is soooo right. And since most au pairs do their fare share of cooking for kids (and their host parents too, especially those who cook well!), [...]
Depending on where you are working, the fall and winter can be brutal, especially if you hail from a warm weather climate. Coming from Georgia, the cooler German climate was a welcome change to me while I worked as an au pair. However, days do tend to drag during cold months, and keeping children occupied [...]
