AuPairCare

Why Choose An Au Pair With AuPairCare

For working parents the rising costs of private daycares and nannies are starting to make college funds for the kids look like a pipe dream.  But what alternatives are there?  The kids can’t stay home alone and the household needs more than one income.  Enter the au pair.  Au pairs are becoming a popular childcare choice because comparably they are a lower cost option for a necessary expense.  They offer high quality live-in childcare for just $7 an hour and can look after several children at no additional cost.  Which, for many families, makes this the most sensible and affordable childcare option. 

AuPairCare is the leading au pair agency providing dependable in-home au pair childcare services to American families; designated by the U.S. Department of State since 1989.  All AuPairCare au pairs attend a mandatory Au Pair Academy orientation and training to ensure that they are well prepared and confident to provide your children with the best possible care.  AuPairCare’s careful screening process includes extensive background and reference checks to guarantee the highest quality of au pairs.  When it comes to loving and caring for your children you want the very best.  AuPairCare strives to meet and exceed your family’s expectations, ensuring that both you and your au pair have the best experience possible.   

For families with very young children, AuPairCare’s Infant Specialized Care Au Pair Training utilizes a hands-on approach to train au pairs in infant safety and care giving, and infant stimulation and development.  This includes a separate orientation and hands-on training period that provides Infant Specialized Au Pairs with specific infant care instruction devoted to baby care and infant development.  The curriculum is developed in concert with leading specialists in the area of infant childcare and development.  Whether your au pair will be caring for your new born bundle of joy or your 13 going on 30 teenager, AuPairCare’s au pair training and orientation will make sure that they are fully prepared.

When it comes to the matching process, finding the right au pair for your family, AuPairCare has differentiated itself with an online matching system that assists families in finding au pairs based on particular needs.  With AuPairCare families select the au pairs they want to interview, instead of the agency dictating which people they think are best.  By allowing families to do their own searches through available au pairs AuPairCare gives families the opportunity to find the au pair that will best suite their needs.  Matching Experts are also available to provide guidance through this process and help find the best au pair for each family.  The online matching system allows families to search broadly or to filter search results with specific qualifications such as age, language, swimming ability, nurses training, and religion. 

AuPairCare’s local representatives are exceptional.  Local representatives are an essential part of an au pair agency’s mix because they are the point of contact for all host family and au pair needs.  They provide on-going support throughout the program year, typically twelve months, and are available to assist both families and au pairs with any difficulties or concerns that may arise.  The local Area Director will be the main point of contact once your family’s au pair arrives and will provide continuous support throughout the au pair’s stay.  Local Area Directors also organize events and activities with other AuPairCare families in your area.

With AuPairCare families choose from hundreds of pre-screened au pairs to find the one that best fits specific needs.   AuPairCare is committed to providing excellent childcare and dedicated support for every family.  AuPairCare strives to bring you the highest quality and most affordable live-in childcare, giving your family the peace of mind that comes with knowing that your children are well cared for and nurtured by someone that was hand picked specifically for them by the person who knows them the best: you.

Small world story: Czech teddy bear finds its owner in Royal Oak

Royal Oak, MI, April, 3, 2009- While delivering teddy bears to the pediatric wing at William Beaumont hospital for a charity campaign, Jeannine Lambrecht crossed paths with one inspirational family in a seemingly destined set of circumstances. The charity campaign that brought her to the hospital was sponsored by AuPairCare and Build-a-Bear Workshop, who teamed up to create the Share-A-Bear™ campaign where au pairs nationwide got together to create personalized teddy bears. The bears were then donated to children’s hospitals all over the country. As Ms. Lambrecht carried the au pair-made teddy bears into William Beaumont, she was recognized by a mother passing by with her daughter. The woman, Lori Koran of Troy, MI and her daughter Ingrid saw the familiar AuPairCare logo on the boxes Lambrecht was using to transport the bears and the three engaged in conversation. As it turned out, both of their families had hosted Czech au pairs in 2006 using AuPairCare’s live-in childcare services. Furthermore, Lambrecht’s son and Lori’s daughter were only a week apart in age. Lori and Ingrid were at William Beaumont for one of Ingrid’s routine treatments—the brave young girl had been diagnosed with a tissue cancer in 2007. “This was one of those times when I just know things happen for a reason,” said Ms. Lambrecht. “For me to bump into this little girl fighting cancer with her Mom, who I knew from the au pair program a couple years ago and for her to now be one of the children my au pair group intended these bears for was just surreal.” After learning of her condition, Ingrid appealed to the Make-a-Wish foundation with one of her biggest desires: to be reunited with her former au pair, Pavla. Fortunately her wish was granted and the whole family was sent to the Czech Republic to visit Pavla in 2008. After talking with Lori and Koran, Ms. Lambrecht proceeded inside the hospital to drop off the teddy bears. She was so touched by the Koran’s story, and the sheer coincidence of their parallel situations that now differ markedly, that she asked the nurses to set aside one of the teddy bears made by a Czech au pair, and save it for Koran’s next visit. “To find out that her “make a wish” was to go to Czech and visit their past Au Pair - Pavla made me realize what an impact loving an au pair can have on a child and their family,” marveled Ms. Lambrecht. “So it kind of came full circle—we made so many sick children happy with the bears and one of them had connections to the very program that made this all happen.” The Koran family recently returned to the pediatric care for a routine visit and Ingrid was united with her Czech Share-a-Bear. The nurses at the hospital also saved a teddy bear for Ingrid’s sister who sits with her during her chemo sessions. Ms. Lambrecht has since kept in touch with the Korans through periodic phone calls. A charity walk for childhood cancer is set to take place in September, according to Lori Koran. Ms. Lambrecht plans on organizing an AuPairCare team to take part in the walk.

In The Economic Downturn, Working Parents Look For Affordable, Quality Childcare Options

Increasingly, once stay-at-home parents are forced back into the workforce to supplement lost income due to the effects of today’s challenging economic times. These families are now faced with finding quality childcare at an affordable cost. AuPairCare, www.aupaircare.com, a leading U.S. au pair placement agency, is doing its part to help make quality childcare even more affordable by offering new families the chance to apply for free until April 6.

AuPairCare’s services are already more affordable than most nanny or daycare options as the program costs about $320 per week, or $7 per hour, for 45 hours of live-in childcare regardless of the number of children. With this promotion, AuPairCare intends to help families begin the process of solving their childcare needs by waiving new families’ $350 application fee.

A fun twist on this promotion is that the agency is also giving 50 families the gift of a portrait at any Picture People studio across the nation. Emilie Colker of AuPairCare says, “Families currently have so much on their plate that we decided to create a promotion which would not only ease the burden for families who are unsure or preoccupied with finding affordable quality child care but, also reemphasize the importance of spending time as a family even when other issues are front of mind. Picture People is widespread in malls across the country and a great way to create both a fun family activity and keepsake to remember the occasion.”

Au pairs come to the U.S. for at least 12 months on a J-1 cultural visa to live with an American family and provide 45 hours of flexible live-in childcare per week. Families select their au pair from a database of 100s by search criteria such as nationality, interests, previous hours of childcare experience with kids of a certain age, etc. AuPairCare’s program is regulated by the U.S. Department of State, reassuring parents that their children are cared for by a carefully screened and qualified childcare provider.

About AuPairCare

Since 1989, AuPairCare, www.aupaircare.com, has successfully placed more than 30,000 au pairs across the U.S with American families seeking great at-home childcare for an extended period of time. Au pairs come from over 40 countries and have been thoroughly pre-screened by AuPairCare’s overseas representatives. They all have previous childcare experience, speak English, attend a special training program, and have a sincere interest in living with an American family.

The Childcare Problem: As Companies cut benefits and daycares shut their doors, one agency does its part to reach out to working parents

San Francisco, CA, March 13, 2009-Childcare costs and availability have become an important issue for parents in these difficult economic times. The demand is higher than ever as working parents are forced to work longer hours with reduced pay and once stay-at-home parents are forced back to work to supplement lost income. Paradoxically, day care centers across the nation are shutting their doors due to a lack of government subsidies and families skipping payments. Many of the quality daycare centers left are at full capacity with lengthy wait lists. In addition, as companies across all sectors will stop at nothing to cut costs and reduce overhead, child care benefits are one of the first things to go. As a response to this widespread problem, the government has designated $2 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for child care and development programs. This money will go towards improving existing circumstances by supplementing or supplanting existing state funds for child care programs. While it is a welcomed boost to the industry, it is still a small amount once spread across the nation. It does not provide an immediate solution to the problem of inadequate child care resources at unreasonable prices and it may take a while for the child care industry, as well as parents, to actually see the benefits. In an effort to help alleviate the current trends, a leading au pair childcare agency, AuPairCare, is reaching out to companies nationwide with a discount on their services in order to inform them about au pair childcare as an affordable, flexible option for working parents. The plan is designed to be mutually advantageous to employers and employees. “The leading cause of absenteeism in the workplace is a lack of adequate child care. Problems with child care can adversely affect job performance when a parent is unsure or preoccupied with their child’s care or caregiver’s schedule,” says Emilie Colker of AuPairCare. “As companies cut costs, employee benefits are becoming much slimmer and making child care arrangements is increasingly problematic. With our program, there is no corporate liability and no tax implications for companies—it is simply a perk to offer employees with children, so they can get a great deal on ‘round the clock childcare to suit their needs.” Many working parents are unaware of the availability of au pairs at a cost that is often lower than other forms of childcare like nannies or daycares. Au pairs are young individuals from around the world who come to the U.S. and provide in-home childcare for families in need. They can stay anywhere from 6 months to 2 years, depending on varying program options and extension opportunities. Designated by the Department of State, au pairs can work up to 45 hours per week in exchange for room, board and a small weekly stipend. They work for a fixed cost that does not increase with family size. Through AuPairCare’s Corporate Program, participating companies will qualify their employees for a discount on the agency’s services which include government-regulated screening of au pairs, qualifying and matching au pairs with host-families, and providing professional and supportive staff throughout the duration of the au pair’s stay. “Research shows that childcare benefits raise morale and productivity. With the current economic situation, companies and employees cannot afford to ignore the opportunity costs of inadequate childcare,” says Colker. “This program is meant to reduce the recurring costs of recruiting and retaining skilled employees, as well as providing working parents with reliable, continuous care for their children.” AuPairCare services are nationwide and parents interested in learning more about choosing au pair childcare to fit their schedule should contact AuPairCare at 800.742.4274 or visit www.aupaircare.com

Celebrity lifestyle alternatives for the everyday woman

How to live like the rich and famous with these 3 more reasonable substitutes 1. Choose an Au Pair over a nanny Swap the infamous celebrity nanny, known for husband thievery and reckless-mom-damage-control, for a diligent (and more affordable) au pair. Celebrity moms need their nanny to supplement their penchants for late-night, paparazzi-recorded, cocktail-induced outings, or their ventures overseas to help save the world. Take Kate Moss’ love for night-life, and the nanny that finally abandoned her. Angelina Jolie is another woman dependent on her nanny; when she’s not making movies she’s busy reducing poverty in third world countries and shopping around for more potential adoptees. The humble, working mom, on the other hand, needs some dedicated childcare as well and should opt for an au pair. Non-celebrity moms juggle work, dinner parties, and charity volunteerism too! Enter the au pair. These young, international caregivers work for room and board and a small weekly stipend and provide moms on-the-go with up to 45 hours of childcare per week. For busy moms who can never seem to find the time for that relaxing spa retreat, problem solved! Parents should go through an agency for secure screening and visa reasons. All fees and costs considered, an au pair from a leading agency like AuPairCare boils down to about $7/hr or $320 per week per family. So for those hard working moms with two or more kids, an au pair is even cheaper than daycare. Visit www.aupaircare.com for more information. 2. Shop for Designer Gear at Discount Prices Shop strategically to get the same amazing labels for half the price. Everyone knows how celebrity moms have thousands of disposable dollars to spend on limitless Prada and Dolce & Gabbana, not to mention all those Choos! Unless you’re Carrie Bradshaw, we could all use a little more Vogue-worthy brands to spice up our closets. These luxury labels are not totally unreachable, if you know where to look. The two best ways to get expensive looks at a markdown rate are to shop online and pay an occasional visit to discount retail stores. A great website to visit for bargain-seekers is Yoox.com, which offers collection pieces for up to 80% off. Gucci, Versace, Marni and Roberto Cavalli are just some of the designers that can be found on this gem of a website. Discount retail stores that have some of the best hidden treasures are Nordstrom Rack and DSW. With new arrivals every week, and some of the best labels at as much as a 75% discount, look great without the guilt of buyer’s remorse. You don’t have to be a celebrity to dress like one! 3. Travel in Class Without Paying for First-Class Just because non-celebrity moms don’t have a private jet and VIP status at 10 different Club Meds doesn’t mean glamorous vacations are out of the question. Who doesn’t want to trot the globe in search of new customs, settings, cuisine and fashion? Gazing out on a beautiful ocean setting that feels worlds away from your regular routine is not patented by the likes of Madonna and Nicole Kidman. Most airlines offer low-fare calendars so you can sync your trip with the most affordable flights. Additionally, bargain packages can often be made through internet sites like Orbitz and Travelocity through which flight, hotel and transportation accommodations can be made together to save hundreds of dollars, and up to 50% of the vacation value. If you have your heart set on a specific getaway, set up a daily alert on www.kayak.com. You’ll get regular emails sent to you whenever flight prices change so you can find the most affordable flights while sitting at work! Perfect for a busy gal like yourself. Vacation hotspots that are more affordable counterparts to places like Paris and London include Argentina, Honduras’ Roatan Island, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru and Morocco. Many of these locations offer lavish, exotic surroundings to cater to the sophisticated tastes of those without a celebrity budget, on less than $100 a day! Meals in places like these cater to tourists at prices that start at $2 and $3. Bountiful activities revolve around the natural, interactive settings, and include hiking, exploration and even lounging happily on a beautiful beach. Save big bucks by picking up unique items in local markets, free from the compelling urge to spend money in expensive shops and galleries.

Parents working long, irregular hours struggle to find accommodating childcare

San Francisco, CA, February 20, 2009-Parents who work unconventional hours are faced with the daunting problem of finding childcare to fit their schedules. Professions that frequently encounter this problem or have ever-changing schedules are widespread and span the medical field, retail, customer service and public service jobs. Furthermore, as the economy weakens and more job losses occur across all sectors, many parents are obligated to pick up extra hours and even second jobs to supplement loss of income. According to a study published by the Federal Reserve, bout one-third of full time American workers have irregular, non-fixed schedules, and 40% of the workforce is made up of parents with children under the age of 18.

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As a result of having long hours and unconventional schedules, many parents are forced to make multiple arrangements just to cover one week of childcare. It is typical for a family to employ the aid of two or more options including daycare centers, babysitters, after school programs, as well as relatives and friends to meet the demands of their difficult schedules. Mary Gaudoin, a mother of two who works as a nurse in California, works12 hour shifts that vary from month to month. She admits that she relies on relatives and daycare programs to get through the work week. “It bothers me that my children lack consistency in their schedules but I don’t have much of a choice. I can only afford to send them to daycare a couple times a week and the rest of the time I depend on my relatives.”

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Mary is representative of thousands of American parents juggling long hours and limited childcare options. Many are not aware of one of the most affordable and cooperative forms of childcare available: au pairs. Au pairs are young women and men from around the world who come to the U.S. for at least 12 months to provide families flexible, in-home childcare in exchange for room, board and a small weekly stipend. Parents must go through a government-regulated agency for secure screening and visa reasons. The agency recruits the au pairs from overseas and then help families match with an au pair that meets that family’s specific requirements. AuPairCare is a San Francisco-based agency providing the highest quality, experienced au pairs to host families nationwide for over two decades at a weekly cost that is lower than live-in nannies and even most daycare options.  

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“At a cost that factors out to about $7 an hour, au pairs are often the most flexible and reasonable childcare providers for working parents,” says Emilie Colker, of AuPairCare. “They’re eligible to work up to 45 hours per week. Since they live on the premises they are available to cater to the family’s unique schedule which can be changed daily or weekly based on work requirements. The other advantage is that your children are in the hands of a screened and trained caregiver who families have previously interviewed. This means that parents can feel secure that their children aren’t in the hands of a stranger and are being cared for according to your preferences.”  Families with multiple children are particularly advantaged as the fixed cost gets them a bigger bang for their buck.

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In comparison to au pair costs that amount to about $320 per week, nannies usually average $400-$600 per week, and good daycare centers average a couple hundred per week per child. Additionally, nannies and daycares (and even the help of relatives) can be quite limited in the hours they are available to provide childcare. Au pairs can even assist with light housework so busy parents have one less thing to worry about when they come home from work, allowing them to spend more quality time with their kids. With AuPairCare, host families select an au pair based on his/her previous childcare experience and can opt for additional training if the family has infants. Plus, because the au pairs have undergone background checks by AuPairCare, families find that au pair childcare is much higher quality than many other options.

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AuPairCare services are nationwide and parents interested in learning more about choosing au pair childcare to fit their schedule should contact AuPairCare at 800.742.4274 or visit www.aupaircare.com