Bettina Velona's Au Pair Blog

This January, our cluster met other Boston area au pairs to go night time snowtubing in Nashoba Valley.   We have  au pairs that come from countries that usually don’t get snow and many of them are excited to participate in winter activities.  After enjoying a cup of hot chocolate and treats, au pairs braved the elements and headed for the slopes.

For more pictures please visit Snowtubing 2011

This week, five counselors from the Boston area organized a multi-cluster holiday party for their au pairs.   There was plenty of food (each attendee brought a contribution, many from different countries),  holiday singing, a visit from Santa and a fun gift exchange game.

German au pairs singing

This party truly represented the spirit of Au Pair in America’s cultural exchange program.  Au Pairs talked about their traditions, brought in food from their countries, listened to American holiday songs and sang songs in their own language.

For more photos of this party please go to Holiday Party 2010.                                                         Check out our holiday singing at   Au Pairs singing holiday songs

This month, our au pair group visited “Not-Me” in East Arlington, where owner Erik Kondo held a “Beyond Awareness – Physical Assertiveness for the Street”  self-defense class.  The class focused mainly on non-physical aspects of self-defense, like the decision not to be a victim, situational awareness, one’s attitudes and appearance,  assertiveness, body language, boundary setting, and steps on how to de-escalate an aggressive situation.   Erik and his assistants took us through potential aggressive situations and we got to practice strategies that we had discussed earlier.

This month’s meeting satisfies the State Department mandated quarterly childcare/safety meeting.   It also supports Au Pair in America’s high standard for safety.   Erik’s strategies can be applied to every day life and hopefully most of us will find ourselves remembering some of the things he taught us to keep ourselves and others safe.

We even made it onto the “Not-Me” blog.  Check it out at Not-Me.

For more pictures of our meeting please visit Au Pair Self Defense

Harvard University

Each month, Au Pair in America offers a regional event to au pairs in the Boston area.  It is another opportunity for our au pairs to connect with others and to learn about American culture.   This month, we offered a free Harvard Tour, led by a Harvard sophomore, Todd.  On a sunny, warm fall day, more than 50 au pairs attended and seemed to enjoy themselves.  Many of the au pairs are attending Harvard Extension School for ESL or other topics, because it is one of the affordable options for au pairs to satisfy their educational requirement.

At the steps of Widener Library

Todd did an amazing job.  His voice was clear and easy to hear, which is important for au pairs.

He made a sincere effort to keep everybody engaged.

Bettina's cluster

For more photos, please go to Harvard Tour 2010

Pumpkins

a lively exchange

Last Sunday, four Au Pair in America Community Counselors hosted an Au Pair and Host Family Picnic at Honey Pot Hill Orchard in Stow, MA.  This annual event offers au pairs and host families a chance to meet and connect with other families and au pairs in the program and to share a special New England fall tradition.

Our picnic satisfies the State Department requirement for Au Pair in America to offer at least one mandatory host family workshop a year.  This year, our focus was on International Day of Peace, which is today,  September 21.   As an au pair agency, we bring different cultures together, building a bridge of understanding so important in our world today.  Au pairs and host children had a chance to decorate peace rocks:

Au pairs and host families enjoyed this visit to the apple orchard and took advantage of what the farm had to offer: apple picking, hay wagon rides, farm animals, a hedge maze, apple cider and apple cider donuts.   For more photos please go to Au Pair and Host Family Picnic

Community Counselors

Nantasket Beach - partial group

For our July meeting, we went to Nantasket Beach.  We got the chance to say good-bye to a few au pairs who are finished with their au pair year.   We celebrated their achievements in style with homemade crumb cake.

Some of the new au pairs had a chance to meet the rest of the au pair group and many new contacts were formed.   It is nice to see when my au pairs develop a peer support group as part of their adaptation process.    In addition to their relationship with the host family and with the counselor, it is an additional resource that they can rely on during their stay.

Good luck to all my departures and welcome new au pairs!

Mini golfing group

American history came alive for my au pair group last weekend as we went mini golfing at  Golf on the Village Green in Natick, which carries a patriotic theme.  Among miniature historical builidings,  life-size statues and other Colonial replicas, au pairs were educated in the history of the freedom trail and had plenty of picture taking opportunities.

Now that it is summer time, our meetings provide a perfect opportunity for new au pairs to connect with peers and for au pairs that are leaving to say good-bye to the group and take care of last minute business with their counselor.

Once a quarter, Au Pair in America counselors are required to hold a childcare/safety meeting with their au pair groups.  This month’s meeting included a discussion about summer safety.  You can find the document under “Au Pair Info.”

For photos of our meeting, please go to Mini golfing photos

Mexican Table

Chinese Table

On Sunday, March 21, Au Pair in America brought the world to the Boston Children’s Museum.   Boston area counselors organized a Cultural Fair, open to their host families and to the public.

Au pairs from all over the world did an amazing job putting together information about their countries and presenting it at country tables.  They seemed very excited to share their culture with others. Parents and children talked to au pairs, played games, enjoyed crafts, danced, watched performances and learned words from different languages.   Children received passports and collected country stickers at each table.

Ukrainian Table

This event provided an entertaining and educational afternoon for children and adults.  It also satisfied the State Department requirement that counselors offer annual host family workshops for their host families.  Au Pair in America prides itself in providing an excellent cultural exchange opportunity for host families and au pairs in addition to offering affordable and flexible child care.

Brazilian Dancing

FrenchTable

For more Cultural Fair photos, please visit Cultural Fair Photos and Heidi’s Photos

Beautiful view of Boston

Last Sunday, on a beautiful sunny day,  my au pairs joined other Au Pair in America clusters in the area for a visit to the Prudential Center Skywalk.   Au Pairs enjoyed a bird’s eye view of Boston and the surrounding area and learned a lot about Boston’s history during the audio tour.  Since the weather was so nice we had a great turnout and about 50 au pairs showed up.   When we organize our meetings, we try to keep the cost down for the au pairs.  Thanks to the Prudential Center Skywalk staff who got us a very affordable group rate!

Au Pairs at the Prudential Skywalk

For more photos of our meeting, please visit Prudential Center Skywalk Photos

Bettina's Au Pairs enjoy the tubing

The cold weather did not deter over 60 au pairs from having fun going snowtubing at Nashoba Valley this week.  Bundled up and nourished by hot chocolate provided by their counselors, they were well-prepared.  Bettina’s au pair group joined other local Au Pair in America groups for their January meeting.  These monthly meetings, organized by the community counselors, give au pairs another social networking opportunity, especially important in the winter months which can be isolating.  This group certainly left in good spirits!  Check out pictures from Bettina’s group at Snowtubing Photos