Cindy's Suffolk Au Pairs News Bulletin

Kid Friendly Tacos  

Make lunch a fiesta by turning tonight’s leftovers into tomorrow’s tacos. With a simple make-your-own taco seasoning recipe, you can easily flavor meat from tonight’s dinner and add a variety of toppings on a tortilla. Who needs taco trucks parked in the nearby lots when you can make your own tasty tacos?

Taco Seasoning Recipe
Start with this easy taco seasoning, and add it to the meat of your choosing! The seasoning will store for up to six weeks in an airtight container, so you can make multiple batches.

Makes about 3/4 cup

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4  cup salt
3 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon paprika (use smoked paprika for deeper flavor)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Meat, fish or beans

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Whisk together all ingredients and transfer to an airtight container.
2. Add two tablespoons (or to taste) of taco seasoning and 2-3 tablespoons water per pound of meat, fish or beans. Stir to combine; simmer 5 minutes.

Taco Lunch Inspiration
Now comes the fun part. Use your seasoned leftovers and try some of these delicious combinations, which include adult and kid-friendly options.

Chicken

• Adult Option: Combine mashed black beans, shredded grilled chicken, grilled red pepper slices, diced tomatoes, pickled jalapeño slices, sliced green onions, salsa and sour cream on a flour tortilla.
• Kid-friendly Option: Season ground chicken and spoon it into a crunchy taco shell. Top it with a dollop of queso, shredded lettuce and salsa.

Pork

• Adult Option: Lay pork on a warm tortilla and top with grilled pineapple slices, diced red onion, cilantro leaves and canned chipotles in adobo sauce mixed with sour cream.
• Kid-friendly Option: Line a tortilla with sliced pork, and top with shredded pepper jack and cheddar cheese, diced avocado and orange sections.

 Beans

• Adult Option: Mix leftover white rice and black beans with chopped green chiles and taco seasoning. Top with greens, salsa, shredded pepper jack cheese and a squeeze of lime in a flour tortilla.
• Kid-friendly Option: Heap refried beans mixed with a pinch of taco seasoning onto a crunchy taco shell and top with guacamole, shredded cheddar, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, salsa, sour cream and sliced olives.

Fish

• Adult Option: Use leftover mahi-mahi, tilapia, or any favorite fish and top with shredded Napa cabbage, tomatillo salsa, sliced avocado, minced fresh cilantro and lime juice in a warm flour tortilla.
• Kid-friendly Option: Stack a couple breaded fish sticks in a flour tortilla or a crunchy taco shell. Top with shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream seasoned with a pinch of taco seasoning and a squeeze of lime.

Tip: Eat tacos on the go! Season the meat the night before and build the ingredients in a portable container, and refrigerate overnight. Put tortillas in a plastic bag. In the morning, pack it all, with a spoon, in an insulated lunch box. You’ll have a portable taco truck at your desk or in the lunch room!

Representatives from Au Pair in America around the world gathered last week in Costa Rica for a Conference.  Connecting with our team from around the world and especially with our Community Counselors from all over the United States was the goal of the conference.  Opportunities were offered to travel in Costa Rica before or after the Conference and many of us were happy to see the rain forest and coasts of Costa Rica.  We met the beautiful friendly people of Costa Rica and loved their mantra:

Pura Vida! 

At the Conference we had workshops on ways to provide great service to our host families and au pairs.  The connections we form at these meetings, help us service all our families and au pairs even more effectively.  It was a wonderful Conference and re-energized us in our mission of cultural exchange and providing the best and most trusted intercultural live-in childcare in the world! 

   One World – One Team!

Long Island Kids’ Activities April 21 and 22: Earth Day Festivals and Celebrations Galore, Kids Day, and Kids Kloset Sale

(Photo courtesy of Garden City Bird Sanctuary)

Long Island is celebrating Earth Day this weekend in a big way! Hopefully the weather holds out for the outdoor events, but either way, there are lots of activities going on this weekend, including many free ones, to entertain the family with. There’s an EcoCarnival at the Seatuck Environmental Center, a festival at the Rolling River Day Camp in Oceanside, and a festival in Islip, just to name a few. Plus several local museums are offering Earth Day programs for kids. It’s also Kids’ Day at Stony Brook University, and the Kids Kloset consignment sale is back on Long Island.

Happy Earth Day!

The Long Island Clusters of APIA saw Priscilla Queen of the Desert this past Sunday!

The show is so much fun and filled with songs we all knew!  Kristina Heinze from Germany said this on Facebook “Woop woop funnnnnnnnnn day!!! My 4th broadway show…Priscilla Queen of the Desert – I have to say, best musical i’ve seen so far! amazing! love it! yummy dinner at planet hollywood on times square and BEST company anyway!”  Patty Minetto from Brazil said “Amazing show! One of the best musicals I’ve seen so far! So much fun!”

Wishing all of you who celebrate Easter and/or Passover a very happy holiday!  Some lucky people get to enjoy double the festivities! 

Celebrating Easter

Easter is one of the most awaited Christian festivals. It is celebrated throughout the world by the followers of Christian community. It is considered to be very auspicious as it is believed that this was the day when Christ resurrected after crucifixion. This day is of immense religious as well as social significance amongst the Christian community.

Church services and festive celebrations blend together during the Easter weekend. On Easter Sunday in New York and other cities, large Easter parades are held.  Easter in USA is also very much commercialized. Easter symbols like bunnies, Easter tree, Easter Eggs and Easter lamb are found in different forms during the Easter festivities throughout the market. The popular trend of Easter symbols such as the Easter bunny and egg tree were introduced to the American folklore by the German settlers who arrived in the Pennsylvania Dutch country during the 1700s. Gradually American people took to crafts such as egg and Easter tree decoration. Easter in US is also a time to enjoy special Easter foods such as baked ham, potatoes and vegetables. Several special recipes are made at each home. Easter parties are also organized where traditional Easter delicacies are served and people enjoy wonderful get together along with Easter games and music.

For children’s Easter games and activities go to:  http://www.thekidzpage.com/easter_games/index.html

 Observing Passover

 Passover is an eight day celebration observed each year by the Jewish religion. It commemorates the freedom of Jewish slaves from Egypt during the reign of Pharaoh Ramses II.   Families celebrate Passover by having a seder. With special foods, songs, and customs, the Seder is the focal point of the Passover celebration. Seder means order, and the Passover story is read in order from a book called a haggadah.

Fearing that Jews were becoming too strong, a Pharaoh decreed that all male Jewish babies were to be killed. Jocheved and Amran, a Jewish couple, wanted to save their infant son – so they put him in a basket that floated him down the river. The infant was rescued by the Pharaoh’s daughter and she raised him as her own son. She named the baby Moses, which means “take from the water.”

When Moses grew up, he empathized with the Jewish slaves and tried to get the Pharaoh to free them. The Pharaoh refused – so there were 10 plagues sent down to Egypt: Blood, Frogs, Lice, Beasts, Cattle Disease, Boils, Hail, Locusts, Darkness, and Slaying of the Firstborn. The name Passover comes from the Plague of Slaying the Firstborn. The Angel of Death passed over the homes of the Jews who had put lambs blood on their doors.

After the 10th plague, Pharaoh agreed to let the Jewish slaves go. They gathered up their belongings quickly, and didn’t have time for their bread to rise, so they had to bake it and take it the way it was. This is why the Jewish people eat matzah during Passover.   As the Jews were fleeing, Pharaoh changed his mind, and sent his army after the people to bring them back. Moses parted the Red Sea for the Jews to cross, and as soon as they were safely to the other side, the waters closed on the soldiers, drowning them all. The Jewish people were free.

For children’s activities go to:  http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/passover/

Ariane Galvan from Brazil is an Au Pair with Pair in America.  Ariane, also known as Ane, is with a host family in Sag Harbor, NY.  Like most au pairs, she loves NYC!   She also loves to play guitar and sing!  Here is Ariane Galvan singing New York, New York! 

The day is generally observed by tricking someone. Think of a silly and harmless trick to play. Work with the children to write a silly story to read to the parents. Try serving breakfast food for dinner or some other harmless way to trick the children.

Alice Polzin, Au Pair from Germany with Au Pair in America, Watermill, NY

That feeling to cross the finish line is indescribable.  The whole stress drops from me and I have tears in the eyes.  My legs are shaking and I have the feeling I can’t move any further but my friends are there, hugging me and I have a medal around my neck.  Yes, I’ve made it . I smile. This is an experience what I will never forget!

How everything started …

On the first weekend in November, I applied for the New York City Half Marathon. When I had filled in the application on the internet, I already thought it would not come true.  I had to fill in which races I did before and I had nothing to put in.  I was worried, but also motivated to give it a try.  I didn’t really start with my training at this point because I wasn’t accepted yet. But the day of the lottry was coming closer and I was getting nervous.

When the day of the lottery came I couldn’t stay away from my computer for longer than 10 minutes.  I was so excited, checking my online profile everytime it was possible.  I also entered in a Facebook group for that race, so I was able to see how people commented that they were accepted and other ones wrote that they didn’t get a chace to run this year. My heart was beating really fast.  After a looooong while I could read the word “ACCEPTED”. I was so happy that I jumped on my bed. But I also realized that I have to start running now.

Running support…

I couldn’t stop telling everyone that I am accepted for the race and immediately my dad who’s a runner made me a run-schedule.  But the really big support for the whole time were my friends. Even if they had to work too and everyone has a different schedule they were my personal trainers. Whether with the bike next to me or also running there was always someone with my on the roads and beaches of the Hamptons. Thanks to Ane, Nina, Paulien, Catrin and Eva.

The Day of the race…

After a short night with two of my support girls in a hotel in Chinatown I woke up with a stomachache.  I was so nervous, anxious and thinking that I couldn’t run the whole 13.1 miles.  But my friends were all the time with me. They dropped me off in Central Park where the race started. The whole Central Park was crowed, 22 000 runners and their supporters.

The race started at 7:30 am and I waited in my running group for 40 minutes to cross the start line. These 40 minutes felt like 2 hours! Then I was running in Central Park for like 7 miles and it was amazing!  Everywhere people along the edge smiling at your face.  I was just running. My friends were waiting for me at mile 6 and I got new motivation after I saw them. The next big “stop” of the race was Times Square and then to the west side and all the way down to Ground Zero.

The finish was Water Street at Maiden Lane. And again were my friends waiting for me. The smile in my face was getting more broadly when I saw the finish line. I crossed the finish line in 2 hours 37 minutes 49 seconds.  I am so proud of myself and I’ll never forget that day in my life!

Taxes aren’t much fun, but they have to be done, even by au pairs.  On Sunday, March 18th, Cindy Garruba Senior Community Counselor in Suffolk County for Au Pair in America helped the au pairs prepare their tax returns.  Cindy handed out the forms, directions and provided the steps to complete the returns provided by Au Pair in America’s Stamford office.  Taxes done, they will mail them in on or before the April 17th deadline date!

Since Spring has sprung early here on Long Island, we reviewed playground safety.  Tips on safety can be found on the APIA website http://www.aupairinamerica.com/resources/safety_tips/ .  Au Pair in America considers the safety of the children in our au pairs’ care of the utmost importance.  The au pairs also viewed a video about playground safety                  

We also shared how important friendship is in the Au Pair program.  “Strangers are just friends waiting to happen.”  Lifelong friendships are formed as au pairs.  We exchanged friendship bracelets to remember to reach out to each other when we need a friend!