Category Archives: Host Families

Au Pair Cultural Fair at Nationals Park on May 1st

Join Au Pair in America for a               1915609_10207257219523657_139700687365704839_n-300x300
Trip Around the World!

Sunday, May 1, 2016 | 1–4pm

Nationals Park, Norfolk Southern Club
1500 South Capitol Street, SE | Washington, DC

Help us celebrate 30 years of Au Pair in America and the U.S. Department of State’s au pair program! You’re invited to a fun afternoon of educational country displays, performances by au pairs, a photo op, face painting, and other fun activities for children. Au pairs from over 30 countries will be participating!

Organized by local Au Pair in America counselors from the DC Metro Area, the fair provides a great opportunity for families who are looking for child care to learn more about the program. Games and activities are planned for children in attendance. Children will be given a passport card that they can affix country flag stickers to as they visit au pairs from around the world.

Visit Au Pair in America’s DC Cultural Fair event page to RSVP and learn more information. (Current APIA host families are requested to RSVP using the link provided in their personal invitations.)

To get there by Metro: Take the Green Line to Navy Yard/Ballpark.
If driving: Free parking in Lot B for all attendees.
Entrance: Center Field gate and take the ramp/escalator to reach the club.

2015 APIA Au Pair of the Year Award

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Drum roll please… we are delighted to share the winners of the 2015 APIA Au Pair of the Year Award with you all! Congratulations to our winners – Mathilda from Sweden, Brighit from Peru and Janine from Germany – and all the other nominees! Over 100 au pairs were nominated by their host families, which is amazing!! Enjoy reading their stories…we are so proud of them and of all our au pairs who truly make the most of the Au Pair in America experience!

Read more….

Holiday Fun!

This time of year, many au pairs ask about what to do for the holidays for their host family! Holiday gifts do not need to be expensive to be appreciated. A handmade gift, especially if the children help you, can mean more than something purchased in a store.  Check these links to find inspiration for gift giving!

Stephen Depolo

 

Gift ideas for host parents from au pairs:

Photo magnets

Manicure in a jar

Cookies from your country

Personalized ornament

Gift ideas for au pairs from host families:

I left my heart in…. necklace

Gift ideas for au pairs

Tour tickets

Movie tickets

 

 

 

Thanksgiving

Loren Kerns

At Thanksgiving, we pause and express gratitude to others.  This year I want to thank all my au pairs and host families for the love and support they give each other every day.  I also thank each au pair for sharing with me and my family about their culture, for demonstrating their bravery for coming from far away places and giving so much to their host families and their friends in America.  I appreciate the uniqueness of each of you. Your spirits, sense of humor, enthusiasm. It is an honor to be a part of your lives for this time and beyond. I love the relationships that have developed that last after an au pair returns home. I am thankful for the warm, caring host families in Southern Maryland who welcome some of the most wonderful young women into their homes and entrust the care of their children to them.  Host families who inspire, encourage, celebrate, cultivate and share their culture and customs. Host families that embrace each new au pair as a unique and special person. Host families that encourage an au pair to share her culture and customs and incorporate it to their family life. It is a beautiful thing to witness.

“The people-to-people ties and transfer of knowledge achieved through international education builds and sustains a more democratic, secure, and prosperous world that benefits the entire global community. International education and exchange is vital to our diplomacy efforts and establishes lasting ties between individuals today that translate into stronger relations between nations tomorrow.” -Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, Evan Ryan

Some thoughts from au pairs current and departed about Thanksgiving:

“I didn’t know that thanksgiving was such a big holiday before I spent my year there. It was a really nice day. We started off with breakfast, cooking and baking in our pajamas and then we got ready and we were all dressed really chic and went off to my host mums part of the family in DC. There we had a lovely dinner with everything you can imagine! Everybody also had to say for what he or she is thankful, we were around forty people and it was so nice to hear about everybody.”

‘I was super curious on Thanksgiving and what it was like. It felt like something truly American and I had never tasted turkey or pumpkin pie before (which I had learnt you ate a lot of during Thanksgiving) since we went to Chicago and I got to meet a huge part of my hm’s family that was also something I really looked forward to! So the whole holiday was all food, food and some more food! And ALL kinds of pies! I believe there might have been around 7-8 different pies. I had a great thanksgiving!”

“Thanksgiving was actually one of my most favorite holidays in the states. We went to Ohio to spent it with family. Watching Macy’s parade while cooking the dinner and baking some pie. After eating the fantastic food watching some football and then of course some Black Friday shopping it was amazing!!”

“I really enjoyed Thanksgiving with my host family. It was as I imagined! So much food to try. Everyone got dressed up and shared what they were thankful for. It was so warm and special. The next day we began to prepare for Christmas. It was magical.”

“I am really excited to be with the whole family. To see everyone gathered around the table. I am so happy thinking about the foods, some I have never tried. I am curious about pumpkin pie. I want to cheer football too and maybe shop on Black Friday!”

“I am looking forward to experiencing the traditions. All the family coming, sharing good things and food….my host mom says there will be so much food!”

I wish each and every one of you a Happy Thanksgiving!

-Photo by Loren Kerns

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Making Pinch Pots

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Corn husk dolls and pinch pots

 

 

 

 

 

This year we celebrated our Host Family Day by attending the American Indian Heritage Day hosted by Jefferson Patterson Park in Calvert County. Many host families and au pairs braved the rain to enjoy the festivities! There were displays, artisans, dancers and plenty of things to make and touch! Highlights were corn husk dolls, pinch                                                    pots, grinding corn and fire making demonstrations!

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Learning how to make fire

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Learning how to shoot a bow and arrow

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 someone 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.

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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, go to get ice cream. 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, some even come back for a second au pair experience after being back home 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. Make sure you tell your host family, counselor and au pair friends that you are homesick – we’ll help you!

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. Pinterest is a great option to plan your adventures! Post on our cluster Facebook group to find others who may want to join you on your adventures.

You will never be completely home again…..

“You will never be completely home again, because part of you will always be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for loving and knowing people in more than one place!” –  Former Southern Maryland au pair

Recently, one of my previous au pairs returned to Southern Maryland to visit her  host family.  As part of a whirlwind, fun and exciting visit, they had a family portrait done on the beach. The host family, the current au pair and their previous au pair – all one big, unique family.

Blancastella

This relationship (and others they have formed with au pairs over the years) idealizes the true spirit of the Au Pair in America program – cultural exchange. The cultural exchange of joining two families for a common goal. With each placement, we have the opportunity to share all that is great about America, and in turn, learn what is great about their country.

Childcare is the obvious reason that a family chooses this type of relationship, but the bigger picture of cultural exchange for them and their children is, and should be, right up there too. The most successful matches between a host family and an au pair are the ones where both sides embrace the whole spirit of the program. Where the host family believes in learning not just about the au pair’s culture but about her and her family, where they welcome her and treat her as a part of their extended family, where they encourage the au pair to have the American experience, where they offer support and guidance, but also opportunity. That is the host family who is going to have the best experience.

The au pair who arrives full of excitement and plans for an amazing experience, who is open to sharing her culture, language, foods, customs. The au pair who is diligent in her childcare duties, who eagerly becomes a part of the family and the community, looking for ways to be engaged and helpful not just at home, but in the community as well,  embracing the opportunities she can have in 52 weeks… that is the au pair who is going to succeed and have the best experience.

52 weeks to change the life of a child, a parent, an au pair. 52 weeks to make a real connection between countries and cultures. 52 weeks can become a lifelong relationship. The choice is yours. How will you spend your 52 weeks?

 

Photo: Blancastella

 

Summer Safety

During the summer months we need to take some added precautions to keep children safe in the sun and by the water. Here are some good tips:

  • Avoid long periods of sun exposure especially between 10am and 4pm
  • Apply sunscreen of at least 15 SPF that protects against both UVA and UVB rays on both sunny and cloudy days. (Host family should approve and provide the type they prefer).
  • Infants should be dressed in lightweight clothing covering as much skin as possible and brimmed hats to shade the face.
  • Stay hydrated, drink water throughout the day.
  • Intense activities and sports should be reduced whenever high heat and humidity reach critical levels.
  • NEVER leave children or animals in a car unattended. Not even for a moment. Tragic results can occur.

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  • Actively supervise children in and around the water, giving them your undivided attention. Appoint a designated “water watcher,” taking turns with other adults. Be very clear who is in charge.
  • When in the water there should be an adult at arms length from young children at all times.
  • Children who cannot swim or who are not strong swimmers should wear water wings or life jackets when in the water.
  • Swim in designated areas supervised by lifeguards.
  • Always swim with a buddy; do not allow anyone to swim alone. Even at a public pool or a lifeguarded beach, use the buddy system!
  • If you go boating, wear a life jacket!
  • Secure your personal belongings. Be aware of your surroundings.

Insects, Ticks and Snakes
Summertime brings an onslaught of bugs- some of which can cause diseases like West Nile Virus, Lyme Disease and Rocky Mount Spotted Fever. Stay up-to-date on your region and how to prevent these diseases spread by insects.

 

  • Do a tick check after being out doors.
  • Learn how to identify the poisonous snakes in your area.
  • If traveling in unfamiliar areas, be aware of where local emergency medical care can be found.

Prepare a summer first-aid kit for bug bites and more.

  • Benadryl is probably the most important over-the-counter medication to have in your first aid kit to treat insect bites, hives, and other allergic reactions. Include dosing instructions for each child.
  • Hydorcortisone ointment can help the itches that come from bites.
  • Use bug spray containing DEET or picaridin (ask your Host Parents what they want you to use)
  • Simple antibiotic ointment or spray
  • Bandages of varying sizes
  • Chemical ice packs
  • Scissors
  • Hand wipes

Emergency contact info

  • As well as the host parents numbers, au pairs should have the phone number of the Community Counselor and the Au Pair in America 800 number saved to their phones.
  • Additionally, add the non emergency numbers for the local police departments (anywhere the au pair routinely travels). This way if they need assistance they can quickly and easily dial the number.
  • If your area is served by a Code Red Weather Alert type program or a Nixle police alert program, please consider adding that as well.
  • Remind your au pairs to call immediately if there is any issue with a child in their care. Host families should make sure that au pairs know what to do if there is an emergency situation while they are in charge of the children. This is a good time of year to review any family rules that apply to summer activities especially by the pool and while at the beach.

Enjoy the summer and be safe!