Au Pair Encounters an American Critter

Maryland Community Counselor Cynthia Chan shares her blog post about her Au Pair: Kayleigh hails from South Africa and has been an au pair in Maryland for almost two years now! She shared some reflections on the impact of her time in the United States. “I’ve grown a lot since the beginning of my adventure [...]

By |2017-11-08T20:50:02-05:00November 8th, 2017|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on Au Pair Encounters an American Critter

New Au Pair Arrivals Have Such Interesting Observations!

I was having coffee recently with two new au pairs.  Both were doing well with their host families but not without some stumbling blocks.  As we discussed the importance of differences in styles of communication and child rearing and stressed the “American” way of doing things, both (one from Germany, the other from Colombia) sat [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:38:15-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on New Au Pair Arrivals Have Such Interesting Observations!

She Should Know

“I really must leave this host family,” said the au pair. “She knows nothing about childcare,” said the host mom. “Why,” I asked. Each party went on to describe the perceived error and ended with, “She should know…!” My response is always, “how can she know if no one has told her?” So often we [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:37:49-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on She Should Know

“Are American children the boss?”

“…in America, children are the boss!” I can’t begin to count the number of times I’ve heard that from au pairs. Many arrive in the U.S. “knowing” that American children are spoiled, allowed to do as they please and “bribed” (with candy) when having a temper tantrum.   Little by little they come to understand that the [...]

By |2016-09-29T16:47:22-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on “Are American children the boss?”

“I really thought…”

“I really thought that America was going to be filled with superficial, materialistic people who cared more about ‘things’ than people and relationships….I was wrong.” I heard this so often, not only from au pairs but from high school students who are arriving in the U.S. for an academic year. I’ve also heard, “this (meaning [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:36:29-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on “I really thought…”

Repatriation II: “I’m home. Now what?”

You’re home!  You’re finally home!  You’re so excited to see your family and friends;  you may feel like you’re on the “Honeymoon High”  that many au pairs experience when they first arrive in the U.S.  There are lots of ‘welcome home’ parties for you, lots of visiting; you’re a celebrity…for a short time! Uh oh, no [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:35:41-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on Repatriation II: “I’m home. Now what?”

“…it’s time to go home?”

Time flies  and more often than not, our au pairs tell us that they can’t believe how quickly their year in the U.S. (or two years) has flown by.  Feelings about going home are often mixed and in some cases, the prospect of ending a life-changing experience brings anxiety and dismay.  Our host families may [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:34:53-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on “…it’s time to go home?”

“Please don’t judge me prematurely!” – Redundancia – A Language Simulation

Au Pair in America recently hosted a national conference for the field of community counselors along with many partners and agents from around the globe.  At the opening ceremonies, Caroline, a former au pair from Costa Rica told us that it had taken her 6 months before she was fully comfortable with English.  This was [...]

By |2016-09-22T13:34:20-04:00September 22nd, 2016|Adapting to Life in the U.S.|Comments Off on “Please don’t judge me prematurely!” – Redundancia – A Language Simulation
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