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Water & Summer Safety Cluster Meeting

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20160612_144409_resizedThis Sunday, June 12th the Suffolk County Au Pair in America Cluster learned about Water & Summer Safety.  The meeting was held on a deck overlooking the beautiful Long Island Sound.  It was a very windy day, the water was too rough to swim, but the au pairs learned about being safe around the water from their Community Counselor, Cindy Garruba, who was a swim instructor and lifeguard.

20160612_145345_resizedThey also learned about prevention and treatment of sunburn by how to use sunscreen and when to avoid the sun.  Also covered was identifying poison ivy, preventing exposure and what to do if a rash occurs.  We discussed ticks and Lyme disease.  We also discussed playground safety, and basic first aid.

20160612_145356_resizedA former au pair, Nikoleta Todtova, from Slovakia, talked about her time as an au pair, returning home and then returning to the USA with a student visa several years later.  She is currently attending a local college with a 4.0 average!

20160612_154839_resizedCindy presented Alessia  Agistri with a good bye gift and education completion certificate because she is finishing her 2 years as an Au Pair with APIA!

We finished the meeting with local strawberries on shortcake with cream.  Everyone had time to socialize before heading home.

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Cluster Meeting with Trek America

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Trek America gave a presentation to the Suffolk County Au Pair in America au pairs on Sunday, Feb 28.  The au pairs learned about the great trips they offer for their vacations and their travel month.  All au pairs who complete their 1 to 2 years in the program successfully can travel for one month in the USA before they return home to their country.  Clayton, a tour guide with Trek America, gave a lively presentation with a great slide show.  He asked and answered questions, too.20160228_145923_resized


After the Trek Presentation, Cindy Garruba, Community  Counselor for Au Pair in America talked about playground and bike safety.  Each quarter the au pairs are taught a safety lesson.

The meeting included a chance for the au pairs to make friends and mingle.  We welcomed new au pairs who just arrived in the USA for a year in America and said good bye to a few going home.

Corrina Moore from South Africa, Cindy Garruba Senior Community Counselor, Kristi Halpern Community Counselor, Karolina Vitt from Germany

Corrina Moore from South Africa, Cindy Garruba Senior Community Counselor, Kristi Halpern Community Counselor, Karolina Vitt from Germany

First Major Snow of 2016 Coming!

 

SLOT1_LIPLEASE DO NOT DRIVE DURING A SNOW STORM!

This is a major snow storm and no au pair should be driving!  Please be very careful, the snow is supposed to stop Tuesday afternoon.  The roads will get cleared, but it may take some time.  The kids will be off of school tomorrow, some schools will be sending the kids home early today.  Be prepared and enjoy the snow days at home!

STAY HOME, YOU CAN GO OUT WHEN THE STREETS ARE PLOWED, BE SAFE!!

AAA recommends the following winter driving tips:

  • Avoid driving while you’re tired. Get the proper amount of rest!!
  • Never warm up a vehicle in an enclosed area, such as a garage.
  • Make certain your tires are properly inflated.
  • Keep your gas tank at least half full to avoid gas line freeze-up.
  • If possible, avoid using your parking brake in cold, rainy and snowy weather.
  • Do not use cruise control when driving on any slippery surface (wet, ice, sand).
  • Always look and steer where you want to go.
  • Use your seat belt every time you get into your vehicle.
  • Watch weather reports and do NOT drive in bad weather is expected. If you must leave, let others know your route, destination and estimated time of arrival.
  • If you become snow-bound, stay with your vehicle. It provides temporary shelter and makes it easier for rescuers to locate you. Don’t try to walk in a severe storm.
  • Make sure the exhaust pipe isn’t clogged with snow, ice or mud. A blocked exhaust could cause deadly carbon monoxide gas to leak into the passenger compartment with the engine running.

Tips for driving in the snow:

  • Accelerate and decelerate slowly. Applying the gas slowly to accelerate is the best method for regaining traction and avoiding skids. Don’t try to get moving in a hurry. And take time to slow down for a stoplight. Remember: It takes longer to slow down on icy roads.
  • Drive slowly. Everything takes longer on snow-covered roads. Accelerating, stopping, turning – nothing happens as quickly as on dry pavement. Give yourself time to maneuver by driving slowly.
  • The normal dry pavement following distance of three to four seconds should be increased to eight to ten seconds. This increased margin of safety will provide the longer distance needed if you have to stop.
  • Know your brakes. Whether you have antilock brakes or not, the best way to stop is threshold breaking. Keep the heel of your foot on the floor and use the ball of your foot to apply firm, steady pressure on the brake pedal.
  • Don’t power up hills. Applying extra gas on snow-covered roads just starts your wheels spinning. Try to get a little inertia going before you reach the hill and let that inertia carry you to the top. As you reach the crest of the hill, reduce your speed and proceed down hill as slowly as possible.
  • Don’t stop going up a hill. There’s nothing worse than trying to get moving up a hill on an icy road. Get some inertia going on a flat roadway before you take on the hill.
  • Stay home. If you really don’t have to go out, don’t. Even if you can drive well in the snow, not everyone else can. Don’t tempt fate: If you don’t have somewhere you have to be, watch the snow from indoors.

snow scraper 001Keep in your car for safety during the winter:

  • An ice scraper and brush
  • Spray de-icer
  • Cat litter – for getting out of a rut, for traction in the snow
  • Collapsible show shovel
  • Blanket
  • Cell phone – know who to call in an emergency
  • Flash light

Au Pairs and Host Families Enjoy Stony Brook Holiday Festival

20151206_132540_resized (1)On Sunday, December 6th Au Pair in America Suffolk County Au Pairs and Host Families decorated a tree for the Promenade of Trees in Stony Brook Village.  It was a beautiful, warm day and everyone enjoyed the festivities.  20151206_132012_resized

20151206_132501_resizedCindy Garruba, Senior Community Counselor for APIA, had decorations for the kids to make.  We handed out coloring books to the kids waiting online to see Santa.  Santa arrived in a horse drawn carriage at 2 pm to listen to all the kids’ Christmas wishes.  There was a petting zoo, performers doing skits and singing songs.  100s of trees were decorated throughout the village and will be up through till the New Year.

Come down and check out Au Pair in America’s International Peace Tree just to the east of the Post Office right in front of the Stony Brook Gift Shop!20151206_140610_resized20151206_143526_HDR_resized20151206_143421_HDR_resized

AU PAIRS MEET, LEARN AND SHARE AT SEPTEMBER MEETING!

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September is back to routine and school month.  Many au pairs from Au Pair in America arrive to their new host in the summer and their first chance to meet the local au pairs is at the September meeting.

20150927_140953_resizedWe start by doing some peace ornaments that will be displayed our Au Pair in America International Peace Tree in the Stony Brook Holiday Promenade of Trees.  Everyone gets a chance to be creative and chat with each other during the craft project.20150927_140932_resized20150927_150037_resized

Then we moved inside to have a lesson on back to school routine, playground safety, school bus stop safety, driving tips, baby safety month and more.  Everyone introduced themselves, talked about when they arrived in the USA, about the kids in the host family and what they hoped to see in the USA.  Friendships are very important among the au pairs and many new ones begin at cluster meetings.

We talked about upcoming Cluster activities like a Scavenger Hunt in NYC and seeing the Radio City Christmas Spectacular!

Then some food and conversation, and a group picture!

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Au Pairs Canoe on the Nissequoque River

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20150712_103752_resizedA group of Long Island Au Pair in America au pairs and two Community Counselors spent this Sunday afternoon canoeing for 2 hours on the Nissequoque River.  It was a beautiful day.  We passed ducks, swans, egrets and lots of other people enjoying the river.

20150712_112556_resizedThe au pairs each teamed up with 3 to a canoe.  They took turns paddling and navigating their way down the lazy river.  It was fun to see the other people on the river.

When we got to the end, Community Counselor Cindy Garruba presented Maria Tarnopolskaia from Germany with her Education Completion Certificate and a good bye gift.  This was Maria’s last cluster meeting before returning home to Germany!20150712_131052_resized

 

Water & Summer Safety Cluster Meeting

IMG_20150614_140727On Sunday, July 14th Long Island Au Pairs gathered at Community Counselor, Cindy Garruba’s beach house for the annual Water & Summer Safety Meeting.  Safe tips on watching children and themselves at pools and the beach was discussed.  Also covered was preventing sunburn by using sunscreen, avoiding high sun times of day and proper clothing.  They au pairs learned how to recognize poison ivy, preventing exposure, what to do if exposed and the care for the rash.  Cindy explained Lyme disease, the difference between a deer and dog tick, the bull’s eye rash, care and treatment.IMG_20150614_145021 (1)

The au pairs enjoyed time on the beach, each other’s company and even had a yoga class.IMG_20150614_152433

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We said good byes to au pairs who are heading home soon, and welcomed new au pairs! IMG_20150614_165034

 

 

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Everyone enjoyed an all American dessert in celebration of Flag Day, June 14th!  Strawberries and blueberries fresh from the farm stand, whipped cream and pastry shells!  Yummy!

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Memorial Day Festivities

Things to do with kids: Memorial Day Weekend Events for Kids and Families on Long Island

 

There’s nothing like a Memorial Day parade  for a little slice of Americana.  Kids enjoy wearing their red-white-and-blue and proudly waving the American flag as they salute the vets who nobly walk the parade route accompanied by marching bands, scout troops, fire trucks, and more.  The Suffolk County Fair is fun to visit: http://www.brookhavenfair.com/   Check out the Air Show at Jones Beach:  http://www.jonesbeach.com/

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Suffolk County Au Pairs Celebrate!

 

Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. The first state to officially recognize the holiday was New York in 1873. By 1890 it was recognized by all of the northern states then others followed. It is now celebrated on the last Monday in May (passed by Congress with the National Holiday Act of 1971 to ensure a three day weekend for Federal holidays).

Americans honor those who have lost their lives for their country by visiting cemeteries, placing flags and flowers on graves, flying the U.S. flag at half-staff until noon and attending parades. Children can be a part of Memorial Day too.  Here are some links to children’s activities:

http://sunniebunniezz.com/puzzles/memdykws.htm

http://sunniebunniezz.com/puzzles/memdymcr.htm

http://www.usmemorialday.org/activities/flag/index.htm

http://sunniebunniezz.com/memdyjbc.htm

“How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!”  ~Maya Angelou

Happy Mother’s Day!

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Sunday, May 10th is Mother’s Day!  I want to take this opportunity to thank all the Host Moms for all they do for their Au Pairs.  I hope the day is extra special and that you each have time to enjoy the day with your families!

“Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.” Zora Neale Hurston

MOTHER’S DAY AROUND THE WORLD
A special day in the honor of mothers, Mothers Day is celebrated in several countries around the world though on different dates. In a large number of countries including US, Mothers Day is celebrated on the second Sunday in the month of May, but in many other countries Mothers Day is celebrated in an entirely different time of the year. But what ever may be the date of Mother’s Day around the world, the spirit is the same everywhere. Everywhere in the world mothers are respected for their extreme devotion towards their kids. And on Mother’s Day children pay their humblest tribute to their mothers and thank them for giving them birth and providing them with the best of care and upbringing.