Au Pairs from the Annapolis cluster are getting very excited about volunteering at the Annapolis Film Festival that is scheduled to take place in downtown Annapolis March 27th through March 30th. Over 90 films from around the world will be featured over these 4 days. Last year over 5, 630 people attended this event and it is anticipated that close to 10,000 people will be here this year! Currently au pairs from Germany, Brazil, Hungary and Mexico will be volunteering in the four venues throughout Annapolis to ensure that all runs smoothly and that all guests have the best experience while they help promote and educate the populace that not only is Annapolis known for its sailing but also for the arts! For more information about this event please visit www.annapolisfilmfestival.net.
Tag Archives: au pairs
International Women's Day
Saturday March 8 celebrates International Women’s Day!
For more information on the history of this day, visit www.internationalwomensday.com.
This site offers all sorts of resources to learn more about women’s movements and initiatives worldwide – including articles, posters, pictures, videos, and much more. We are proud to be able to sponsor the amazing cross cultural home stay experience of Au Pair in America for some many young women across the globe!
Au Pairs experience Yoga at Golds Gym in Crofton
Yoga has been practiced for more than 5,000 years, and currently, close to 11 million Americans are enjoying its health benefits. Most Westernized yoga classes focus on learning physical poses, which are called asanas. They also usually include some form of breathing technique and a mediation technique as well. The greatest health benefits enjoyed by those who practice yoga on a regular basis is an increase in ones flexibility, strength, and balance. 
Gold’s Gym yoga instructor Kimberly Murphy in Crofton held a private yoga class for our group last Sunday for one hour. We were instructed on breathing techniques, stretching exercises to relax sore muscles from carrying babies and toddlers all day and learned the benefits of balancing skills.
Many of the au pairs that participated were amazed at how relaxing the experience was and some were enthusiastic to return again during the regular yoga class offered at Golds Gym. I had girls from Germany, Brazil, Mexico, Columbia and the United Kingdom!
Kim provided excellent instruction on a wonderful breathing technique to help the au pairs unwind at night after a long day of taking care of children and making it easier to fall asleep. Kim is an extremely knowledgeable instructor who has a passion for teaching yoga at all levels. Her yoga class is held at Golds Gym in Crofton on Rt 3 on Fridays from 10:30 am until 11:30 am. I highly recommend taking the time to stop in and experience Kim’s class. You leave refreshed and invigorated to take on the day.
2013 Tax Form Information Now Available
Au Pairs can find several helful links regarding tax filing by going to the right side of this blog and scrolling down to Tax Information for Au Pairs. Counselors have held, or will soon hold, cluster meetings to review the process of filling out the form.
SuperBowl Sunday ~ Broncos vs the Seahawks
Super Bowl Sunday is an American tradition and a super doze of the American culture for any visitor to this country.
Every year there is a lot of hype leading up to the game and the day itself brings parties, barbecues, funny TV commercials and the half time show. The game is the most watched television program of the year. Although it is not a national American holiday there is a “holiday” type atmosphere across the country on Super Bowl Sunday. Families and friends gather together, consume a lot of food and enjoy watching the game on TV, in sports bars or other public venues. Most au pairs will be experiencing it for the first time this weekend. Here are some fun facts:
- Kickoff is scheduled for 6:25 Eastern Time on Feb. 2 from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey
- Average list price for a ticket is $3,449 ~ much more cost effective to watch at home!
- Typically people eat buffet style on Super Bowl Sunday and enjoy such snacks as pizza, buffalo wings, chili, potato chips and dips
- The Broncos’ seventh Super Bowl appearance ties the New England Patriots for third most all-time (the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers have the most at 8). A loss would be record fifth for the Broncos.
- The Seahawks are making their second Super Bowl appearance. They lost Super Bowl XL after the 2005 season to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Many Seahawks fans still think the refs gifted the game to the Steelers.
- Stores are usually extremely quiet during the game and water usage across the country increases at half time when fans head to the restroom!
- The George Washington Bridge in New York is lit up in both team colors
- Players on the winning team earn $92,000. The losers make do with $46,000.
- One 30 second commercial cost between over 3 million dollars
- Bruno Mars is the featured artist for the halftime show. He has sold 10 million records in just three years and he had the two biggest hits of 2011 as both “Just The Way You Are” and “Grenade” were the only singles of the year with more than 10 million digital downloads. He was nominated for four Grammy Awards this year and picked up one trophy for Best Pop Vocal Album.
- Betting is one of the engines that makes the NFL go, and the Super Bowl is the most bet on sporting event annually in Nevada. Last year, a record $99 million was bet legally. Of course millions more are bet illegally.
Au Pairs Participate in Baltimore's Color Run
This past weekend au pairs from the Annapolis and Baltimore cluster participated in Baltimore’s Color Run. Our group ran a 5K around the stadiums downtown and as we ran past the various stations we all got splashed with all the colors of the rainbow to include: pink, blue, green, orange, yellow and purple chalk! There was live music and lots of celebrating at the end. It was a terrific time for all who participated and we are hoping to do this event again next year should this run come back to our town. Patty, the Baltimore counselor, surprised us all with a yellow rose for our accomplishment in finishing the race!
Multi-Cluster Scavenger Hunt at the Washington DC Zoo
We had the most amazing and beautiful day for our Multi-Cluster Scavenger Hunt at the Washington DC Zoo on October 27th! Au pairs from many clusters in the Maryland, DC and Virginia communities came out to participate in a hunt to find a variety of animals to complete their bingo cards! Afterwards we enjoyed the warm sun, gathered on blankets and and had a picnic lunch on the grounds. It was a great day to relax, chat and catch up with everyone! Then of course, the au pairs went home with a mini-panda as their prize!
Hints for Success – Homesickness/Culture Shock
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)
Au Pair Coffee Klatch at Starbucks
The Annapolis cluster twice a month meets at a local Starbucks in Severna Park, MD to get together informally for a cup of coffee. It is a wonderful opportunity for au pairs to get together and meet new au pairs who have just arrived to our cluster. Au pairs share information about what classes they are taking, where to take classes, travel opportunities and upcoming weekend festivities. The au pairs have the chance to share their experience with the new arrivals and offer tips and suggestions on how to have a great year with their host families and what to expect. Phone numbers are exchanged and play-dates are set! This is also a good time to ask me, their counselor, any questions that they may have about any aspect of the program. Personally it gives me the chance to get to know the girls a little bit better in a relaxed environment. I love the fact that it feels like I’m having coffee with many daughters at once!
Au Pairs take in an Oriole's Baseball Game in Baltimore
On Sunday, August 18th, the Annapolis and Baltimore clusters of Au Pair in America got together to see the Baltimore Orioles play against the Colorado Rockies. They won!!! A wonderful experience to see a true American sport at Camden Yards. For some girls this was their first baseball game in the United States.