Cultural Insurance Services International now has a mobile app for the iPhone and Android. The app provides instant access to your CISI insurance coverage information wherever you are. It includes an onscreen display of your CISI insurance ID card, ability to view your travel insurance documents and locate medical providers. If you have not yet downloaded the app, take some time to you never know when you will need this important information at your fingertips!
While you still may have young children it is never too early to plan for their college tuition. The cost of a Bachelor’s Degree starts at $80,000, and can rise to over $250,000 for 4 years at some private colleges. This is a major investment, and having expert advice can make an enormous difference financially and emotionally. A great seminar to educate parents is being held on Tuesday, April 29th from 11:30 am until 1:30 pm at the Ports of Call at the Double Tree Hotel located at 210 Holiday Court Annapolis, MD 21401 . The event is free and lunch will be provided. This event is presented by Cori Dykman, Annapolis College Consulting (www.AnnapolisCollegeConsulting.com) and Pablo Alvarado, a financial advisor. If you are interested please RSVP on this evite link so that the organizers know how to plan accordingly. http://www.evite.com/event/03D0TWVUZV3YBYNDWEPDX2O4V7JJAU?gid=03D02UBKVR6IDEG44EPDYTIGRVSYLQ
Interested in finding out more about hosting an au pair? Come to this expo which will be held at the Holy Grounds Youth Center located at 623 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd in Severna Park. This expo will provide valuable information related to simplifying the care of the home and family through information-packed exhibits from 27 local businesses whose focus is making your life easier. Hosting an au pair provides an extra set of loving hands in the care of your children ~ getting them off to school, music lessons and sports practices. Come and speak to au pairs that are currently placed with their host families.
This question comes up from time to time and with the tax deadline approaching, I thought I would post a link with a great step by step tutorial. Click on the image of a check below to go to the tutorial on About.com.
Remember: Use pen and don’t leave extra blank space where someone can make changes.
If you don’t have a checking account and need to make a payment by check, you have two other options: money order or cashier’s check (bank check.) Money orders are available for purchase at your bank, the post office or the customer service desk of some retail stores (CVS, Safeway, WalMart.) You will be charged a small fee, $1.50-$5. Money orders need to be paid for with cash (not credit cards.) You will fill out the money order similarly to a check and keep your receipt portion for your records.
If you are paying your taxes:
Almost everyone experiences culture shock when they come to a completely new environment. Everything is different: the language, the food, and the people.
Here are my Top 5 Tips for
Dealing with Homesickness
1. Make Friends – Don’t wait for other au pairs to reach out to you, reach out to them. There are other lots of new au pairs who are feeling the same way you are right now. Set a goal to reach out to a few of them each day. Some will respond and some will not. Don’t let that discourage you. No one will ever be mad at you for sending them a message to say hello or ask if they want to do something together. Make friends from various countries and you will also get a chance to practice your English skills together.
2. Stay in touch with your home country, but not too much. Skyping or talking on the phone every day with your family and/or friends back home normally makes homesickness worse. Try emailing instead and reduce the Skype and phone calls to once a week, until you feel stronger. It’s much harder seeing the faces and hearing the voices of those you miss.
3. Get out of the house (or your room specifically) – Go to cluster meetings, have coffee or movies with other au pairs, join a gym, go to the library, go for a walk, visit the mall, get a manicure, visit a museum. If someone invites you out, say “yes.” Also, don’t be afraid to do the inviting. If your host family invites you to do things with them, say “yes.” This will help you get to know each other and contribute to your overall happiness.
4. Realize that it definitely gets better – All au pairs experience homesickness and nearly all of them stay and have a successful year (some stay for two years.) So, it must get better, right? Once you get past the initial homesickness, most au pairs report how quickly the year goes by.
5. Make Plans – Create your own Au Pair Bucket List (places you want to go, new foods to try, new things to experience during your year in the U.S.) and start doing them now. Post on our cluster Facebook group to find others who may want to join you on your adventures.
Photo by: Shimelle Laine (Flickr)
On April 6th the Baltimore and Annapolis clusters met in downtown DC and were given a private tour by the owner “Eddie” from DC by Foot. Eddie treated our group to a wonderful educational tour of the various monuments on the National Mall to include the Washington Monument, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. We learned some great facts to include that the term “Mall” does not mean a shopping mall but rather means “open space” and the Lincoln Memorial takes after the Greek Parthenon which translates to “perfect unity.” Lincoln was remembered in history as a great unifier of our country and the 36 pillars that adorn the Lincoln Memorial represent the 36 states that were part of the Union at the time. Our group was able to see the first signs of the Cherry Blossoms (a gift from Japan) come to life throughout the city on a wonderful sunny day. These delicate blossoms signify the beginning of spring! Something we in the DC area have been looking forward to after a long cold winter.
International Women’s Day is celebrated in 176 countries and allows women worldwide to connect, celebrate and honor women’s past, present, and future. On this day women will “Celebrate, Commit, and Connect.” They’ll celebrate like never before ~ connect as only women do ~ and commit to improve in 3 areas of their lives:
1. Personal ~ improve their personal health and well being, and their businesses as employees, business owners, entrepreneurs.
2. Family ~ help their families be healthier and prepare for the future right now.
3. Country ~ let their voices be heard: to speak up, to make positive changes in their communities/countries.
Au Pair in America is an organization fully committed to enriching the lives and minds of young women and this day is highly regarded within the organization. Young women from all over the globe, ages 18 -26, come to America to live with an American family and learn about American culture. The Au Pair in America cultural exchange program provides a platform to really the change lives of the young women that participate. Fanny Carvajal-Delgado, one of our former au pairs from Costa Rica, has said “Working as an au pair with Au Pair in America is a life changing experience. It has changed my life, the way I value my family and friends, the way I see the world and the way I think about myself, in a positive way. I will never be the same person! When I finished the program I was more mature, Independent and responsible.”
In recognition of International Women’s Day, below are some ways you can celebrate this day as well as National Women’s History month in your local community:
To find for an International Women’s Day event in your area, go to www.internationalwomensday.com!
Take a break from the hustle and bustle of the busy holiday season. This great website offers 50-plus great places to see the holiday lights in 2012. Lights on the Bay outside of Annapolis are listed as Number 2! It is a drive-through holiday light show at Sandy Point State Park along the Chesapeake Bay, where there are stationery and animated displays including a glowing lighthouse, Navy midshipmen, oysters and blue crabs. Visit between November 19th and January 2nd. If you are traveling out of town to visit with family and friends this website offers many other places to check out the holiday lights to get everyone into the spirit. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!
Click HERE for 50+ Great Places to See Holiday Lights.
A small group from the Annapolis cluster met on Friday night to paint their own pottery at Xpress It Studio in Crofton on Rt. 3 to make a mug for themself or a gift for a friend.
On July 4, 1776, Americans claimed our independence from Britain and Democracy was born. Every day thousands leave their homeland to come to the “land of the free and the home of the brave” so they can begin their American Dream.
The United States is truly a diverse nation made up of dynamic people. Each year on July 4, Americans celebrate that freedom and independence with barbecues, picnics, and family gatherings. Through the Internet we are learning about and communicating with people of different nations, with different languages and different races throughout the world. Bringing the world closer with understanding and knowledge can only benefit all nations.
Au Pair in America is dedicated to cultural exchange and hopes all our host families and au pairs are celebrating this truly American holiday together! Enjoy your barbeques, picnics, and all the fireworks!
