Monthly Archives: April 2011

Baskin Robbins 31 Cent Scoop Night is Wednesday, 4/27/11

31CentScoopNight

On Wednesday, April 27th, 2011, Baskin-Robbins stores across the country will hold 31 Cent Scoop Night from 5-10 pm to honor America’s firefighters. Baskin-Robbins will reduce prices of small ice cream scoops to 31 cents* and create an opportunity for customers to donate to local fire charities. Read more about the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation at www.firehero.org 

                                     *participating locations

Special Contest for my Au Pairs – First au pair in my cluster who emails to tell me her favorite ice cream flavor, will win a gift card to Baskin Robbins/Dunkin Donuts. It pays to check the cluster blog regularly. 
Update:  WE HAVE A WINNER. Congratulations, Hayley!

Celebrate Earth Day with FREE Coffee at Starbucks – 4/22/11

 From the Starbucks website:

Starbucks

On April 22, we’re inviting everyone to bring in a reusable mug or tumbler and get a free brewed coffee or tea. Your choice of brew, hot or iced – it is spring after all! This is happening at participating STARBUCKS in the U.S. and Canada.

Why are we doing this? We recognize the impact one can make through careful, conscious choices. So we want to encourage and reward those of you who use tumblers or travel mugs in your daily routines. You’re helping to reduce our environmental impact!

Although reusable serveware and tumbler use still only accounts for a small percentage of total beverages served, those of you who did bring in reusable mugs still made a significant impact. In 2010, people brought their own tumblers into our stores more than 32 million times, keeping nearly 1.45 million pounds of paper out of landfills.

Rike's Review of Sojourner Douglass Interior Design Course

Recently, I asked Rike, a German au pair in our cluster what she thought of the Interior Design Two Weekend Program she completed through Sojourner Douglass College.  Here is a review she was kind enough to write for me. 

I can tell you that I really liked the two weekend classes! I would recommend it to every other Au Pair because you can get your credits in a short time and you can choose more than just one class.

Next to your main course, you have different other little classes you can attend. And you have a big choice so there is something for every flavor.

sd interior class 2My main course was interior design which I really liked because next the theoretical part we were able to practice a lot. We learned how to create a floor plan with all the furniture, colors and lights. The homework for the second weekend was to make the same for a big family living room and then some of us had to present it. Next to this class, I picked for example digital photography, American holidays, travel Spanish, human development or yoga.

The teachers are very nice and really good and I never had the feeling to get bored although two full days of studying were very exhausting. The first day of study starts Saturday morning at 9am. Before that everybody arrives and gets their keys for the room. I liked the lodging a lot, the rooms are comfortable. You share it with another Au Pair.

sd interior classAt the first weekend I got to know one of the girls and we decided to take a room together for the second one. The food is also very good and abound. 😉 Between the classes you can always get a snack and there was a huge diversity for the main meals.

The studying part on Saturday ends at about 7 in the evening. After dinner there is a group activity with all Au Pairs and later they offer voluntary activities like karaoke or watching a movie. I didn’t join this because I was too tired. The second day also starts at 9am and basically ends at about 6pm.

The only thing I didn’t like was the homework (of course). We had to write a 5 page essay for both weekends and for the second one the floorplan in addition which was a lot of work and needed much time. But besides this, it is really worth it and for me it was better then to sit in a classroom one or to times a week or for a couple of hours at the weekends.

Hand Flowers Craft

This is a step by step tutorial for making the hand flower project from the April craft kit. Even if you didn’t pick up your April craft kit, you probably have the supplies on hand to make this easy project.
finished project

Finished Project

 

Supplies:
construction paper (various colors)
pencil
scissors
stapler
clear tape
drinking straws or chenille stem (pipe cleaners)

 

 
 
Step by Step Instructions

Step by Step Instructions

Greetings From Around the World

The Au Pair in America 25th Anniversary Cultural Fair was held at the Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park on April 9, 2011. At the cultural fair, I recorded clips of au pairs sharing greetings in their native languages. Here is that video.

My apologies to the ladies from Colombia, whom somehow I missed recording. Colombia was there and represented very well by Carolina & Alexandra from our cluster as well as several other au pairs.

Today is Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream!!!

Who doesn’t love ice cream?  It’s even better when it’s free!

ben & Jerry's

From the  Ben & Jerry’s Website:

ben-300x313Tuesday, April 12th is Free Cone Day, from Noon to 8pm!

You know what that means… Free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream cones for you! And you! And you, and you and you-ou!

As a way to thank our customers for their support and to celebrate 33 years of scooping the chunkiest, funkiest ice cream, frozen yogurt and sorbet, Ben & Jerry’s scoop shops are happily giving it away!

Maybe it’s time for you to try a new flavor that you’ve been wondering about or just rendezvous with an old favorite and savor in the deliciousness that is free ice cream! Hey, either way it’s on us, so grab a pal and come on down for some good, ’scream fun!

Au Pair in America 25th Anniversary Cultural Fair is Today!

Click here to view full information about this spectacular event.In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of Au Pair in America and the beginning of legal au pair programs in America, we will be hosting a Regional Cultural Fair. 

When: April 9th, 2011, 1:00 to 3:00 pm

Where: Spanish Ballroom at Glen Echo Park 
               7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo, MD 

Who’s Invited: This is a free family event and open to the public.

All of the clusters in the DC/MD/VA area will be participating. We expect to have au pairs representing over 35 different countries. Anyone interested in learning about other cultures and the Au Pair in America program are invited. For more information, email me at cicaupair @ aol.com

Au Pair of the Year Award Nominee in Our Cluster – Emilie

emilie for blog

 

I wanted to share a little bit about Emilie, a French au pair in our cluster.  Emilie has done such an outstanding job that her host family nominated her for the International Au Pair Association Au Pair of the Year Award.

 

 

Here are a couple excerpts from the lovely nomination essay written by her host parents:

Emilie epitomizes the spirit of the au pair program – she is an active participant in each aspect, taking each “seriously”:  She is a member of our family, nurtures our children, is an excellent student, is an exemplary ambassador of her native culture, and is actively engaged in experiencing American life.

Going “above and beyond” is perhaps the understatement of the year when it comes to Emilie’s thoughtful consideration of contributing to our whole family.  She sends weekly e-mails to us and to my parents with everyday photos of the children.  Emilie comes with us to Grandma and Grandpa’s house almost every weekend we go – I’ve heard my mother sharing family recipes with her as they dry dishes together.  She has a special bond with Grandma since I returned to work when our son was only 2 months old, and Grandma stayed with us an additional 10 weeks.  She remembered to help our daughter make a mother’s day gift for Grandma, and then had a tear rolling down her own cheek when Grandma opened the unexpected gift.

Emilie’s au pair year is coming to an end and she will return home to go forward into the next chapter of her life. We will miss her and wish her all the best.