Tag Archives: childcare san antonio
Rock Climbing Fun
For our latest cluster meeting, we visited the rock climbing wall at Lifetime Fitness in San Antonio!! Most of us had never climbed before, but everybody did great!! 🙂
Agnes from Austria and Pui (Angela) from Thailand
Hana and Zuzana from Czech Republic
Hana and Agnes made it to the top (and so did several others) 🙂
Angela taking a break. Josefine from Sweden in the process of overcoming her fear of heights!!
Our Czech girls, Hana and Zuzana
Angela from Thailand, Josefine from Sweden, and Agnes from Austria
Travel Reminders
Au Pairs Traveling outside the United States
If you are planning to travel outside of the United States during your program term you must make sure you check with the embassy or consulate of the country being visited to find out if an additional visa is required. It is also important that you check the status of your J1 visa in your passport and the date of expiration. You must have your DS2019 signed by a member of staff in the Stamford office and returned before you depart for your trip. It must be an original signature for validation. The DS2019 should be mailed at least three weeks prior to the departure date for the trip. It should be mailed with the travel validation request form which can be found here: http://www.aupairinamerica.com/pdf/travform.pdf and a return self addressed stamped envelope and a check for $10 if you want it to be returned by 2 day UPS delivery.
NB: Make sure you have received your DS2019 before leaving for vacations such as cruises (where logistically it is very difficult for us to get the DS2019 to you after your departure). We want to make sure that no au pair gets stuck at a port of entry which can be a very stressful and unpleasant experience. Anything you can do to help us avoid this is greatly appreciated. Please note: au pairs should not be outside of the United States for longer than a 3 week period at any one time!!
We have some great travel tips for au pairs here: http://www.aupairinamerica.com/resources/travel_and_flights/travel_tips.asp
For au pairs planning for travel in the summer, please check out our TrekAmerica partnership, it offers wonderful group trips and a 20% discount for au pairs.
http://www.trekamerica.com/aupairinamerica/au-pair-travel-discounts.html
Have a great week everybody!
Holiday in the Park
Our December cluster meeting took place at the theme park Six Flags Fiesta Texas, located by The Shops at La Cantera. The au pairs got to experience the magic of Holiday in the Park (the park had been transformed into a winter wonderland with thousands of twinkling lights, thrilling rides, good food, and spectacular shows).
Countries represented: South Africa, Austria, Colombia, France, Czech Republic, and Thailand
Thanksgiving!!
Thanksgiving is Thursday, November 27th. So what’s it all about? Thanksgiving can be traced back to 1863 when Lincoln became the first president to proclaim Thanksgiving Day. The holiday has been a fixture of late November ever since. The Pilgrims who sailed to this country aboard the Mayflower were originally members of the English Separatist Church. They had earlier fled their home in England and sailed to Holland (The Netherlands) to escape religious persecution. Seeking a better life, the Separatists negotiated with a London stock company to finance a pilgrimage to America.
The Pilgrims set ground at Plymouth Rock on December 11, 1620. Their first winter was devastating. They lost 46 of the original 102 who sailed on the Mayflower. But the harvest of 1621 was a bountiful one. And the remaining colonists decided to celebrate with a feast – including 91 native Americans who had helped the Pilgrims survive their first year. It is believed that the Pilgrims would not have made it through the year without the help of the native Americans. The feast was more of a traditional English harvest festival and lasted three days.
It was Sarah Josepha Hale, a magazine editor, whose efforts eventually led to what we recognize as Thanksgiving today. Hale wrote many editorials championing her cause in her Boston Ladies’ Magazine, and later, in Godey’s Lady’s Book. Finally, after a 40-year campaign of writing editorials and letters to governors and presidents, Hale’s obsession became a reality when, in 1863, President Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a national day of Thanksgiving.
In 1941, Thanksgiving was finally sanctioned by Congress as a legal holiday, as the fourth Thursday in November.
To Learn more about the history and traditions of this holiday go to:
http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/videos#history-of-the-thanksgiving-holiday
Find fun activities to do with the children here:
http://www.pinterest.com/aupairinamerica/fall-halloween-thanksgiving/
PurpleStride San Antonio
The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network is a nationwide network of people dedicated to working together to advance research, support patients and create hope for those affected by pancreatic cancer. Saturday, November 15th, Au Pair in America helped support this very important cause by volunteering in the Kids’ Purple Zone. Au pairs Elena from Costa Rica and Agnes from Austria showed up bright and early and did a great job on the kids’ faces. See below for pictures! 🙂
Elena and Agnes did a wonderful job!! 🙂
If you want to help support the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, click http://www.pancan.org/?utm_source=2014-event-template&utm_medium=purplestride-event&utm_campaign=events-aboutthecause
Texas State Bobcats Football Game
Last Saturday we went to the Texas State Football Game (Bobcats vs. Georgia Southern Eagles), and, although the Bobcats did end up losing (final score 28-25), we still managed to have a great time 🙂
Left to right: Annerien from South Africa, Johanna from Colombia, and Elena from Costa Rica.
This was Elena’s first football game.
Countries represented: France, Germany, UK, Colombia, South Africa, Costa Rica, and Brazil 🙂
After the game, we all drove back to San Antonio together (and then decided to order pizza for dinner as we weren’t done catching up yet). All in all, a very successful day 🙂
And the winner is….
M & S posing next to their pumpkin 🙂
Jack O’Lantern peppers!! What a great idea 🙂
Johanna from Colombia showing off her finished product!
How creative!! 🙂
Thanks to all of you who contributed responses (pictures) to our pumpkin contest! We had a really hard time choosing the winning entry. In the end, we went with:
AGNES from Austria (as well as her two helpers) and her pumpkin + Jack O’Lantern peppers! Well done!! 🙂
Halloween Safety Tips
Halloween can be a lot of fun but it is also a time when safety should come first. Here are some tips for next week:
- Adult supervision is essential. Always accompany the children if they are going door to door to trick or treat
- Try trick-or-treat-friendly homes. Ensure the children only visit houses with lights on. And, you might also suggest the houses they visit have some sort of Halloween decoration on the porch.
- Stay outside. Make sure the children don’t go inside someone’s house. They can trick or treat on the porch.
- Remain visible. Dress the children in bright costumes or have them wear reflective strips or carry a glow stick or flashlight.
- Quality-check treats. Check the candy before they eat it. Throw out any candy that is not in its original wrapper or looks like it has been tampered with.
- Say “no” to strangers. Remind the children to never accept a ride or go anywhere with a stranger.
Why Choose an Au Pair?
Flexible and Dependable Care:
No two weeks are the same with most households. Hosting an au pair provides the flexibility and convenience you need to simplify your life. With an au pair, you will be able to create your own child care schedule of up to 10 hours per day and up to 45 hours per week. By having your child care provider living in your home, dealing with sick days, snow days and life’s little surprises has never been easier.
A Cost-Effective Solution:
You will receive 45 hours of child care for just $361 per week, regardless of how many children you have. If you have full-time school-age children we offer a 30 hour per week Educare® for just $290 per week.
When you compare the cost to other child care solutions, including a nanny or day care, you will find an au pair can be a surprisingly cost-effective solution. Choosing our Extended Payment Plan, spreading out payments several month makes it even more affordable.
Full Service:
With exceptional child care, you should expect exceptional service. You will receive comprehensive program support including assistance with selecting your au pair, coordinating logistics, providing orientation for your family and au pair, year-round local support, medical insurance for your au pair and 24/7 emergency assistance. With a quarter century of experience, we are able to accommodate and anticipate the needs of host families. Our local, professional Community Counselors reside in your area and provide daily, ongoing, local support to you and your au pair to ensure a happy and successful experience.
Expert Matching:
At Au Pair in America, we offer Expert Match, a flexible and effective approach to finding the caregiver that is a perfect fit for your family. You may search for your au pair with our user-friendly online search tool, our mobile app or work with our professional placement team to find the perfect au pair for your family. Should you require additional assistance, we are ready and willing to accommodate.
Large Pool of Au Pairs:
With Au Pair in America, you will have access to the largest pool of au pairs in the world. Applicants come from more than 60 countries on five continents and our multi-tiered screening ensures that only the most exceptional and qualified au pairs are accepted. View our au pairs available now.
An Enriching Experience:
With Au Pair in America, your family is getting more than just great child care. Your children will receive a global education during their most formative years, learning about the world and your au pair’s culture and customs. In addition, many parents want their children to be bilingual. The constant exposure and reinforcement provided by an au pair are the best ways to immerse children in a new language.
Orientation and Expert Training:
Your au pair will have recent and practical child care experience, the details of which you will be able to review in their application. In addition, all of our au pairs complete a pre-departure online training segment and attend a comprehensive four-day orientation program that features: child development training, child safety training and adaptation training.
During orientation, all of our au pairs receive exclusive Red Cross® training composed of seminars and hands-on demonstration and with training exercises for infant/child CPR and safety, plus sanitization and illness prevention.
Au Pair in America has also partnered with AAA, the nation’s most trusted name in driver safety and instruction, to offer a custom classroom course specifically designed for au pairs. Exclusively for our au pairs, the AAA driving course is one of a kind, tailored to the needs of the international driver and specific to the safety needs of driving children in a car.
Program options to fit your family:
Whether your children are infants or school aged, Au Pair in America has the solution for your family. Choose from Au Pair, Extraordinaire, or EduCare to satisfy your child care needs.
Organizational Strength;
Au Pair in America is a division of the American Institute For Foreign Study (AIFS), which has provided educational and cultural exchange programs for more than 50 years. Our resources enable reliable visa processing, comprehensive insurance for au pairs and discounts for host families interested in any of AIFS’s renowned programs.