Family 1

Hello!  I live with my husband, 13-year old daughter and our 8 and a half-year-old son.  My husband and I both graduated from the University of Illinois.  I work as an animal veterinarian in two suburban animal hospitals (sister facilities).  My husband is involved with a large Architectural and Engineering firm in downtown Chicago.  My husband’s parents and my father live relatively close by and we enjoy family get-togethers frequently.

We’re looking for a special someone to invite into our home as a friend and equal, who we can depend on and trust to care for our daughter and our son as if they were a little sister and brother, and we would offer the au pair a special and important place in our hearts and our home.  The cross – cultural exchange of having an au pair join our family would be an added benefit to all of us.  We've enjoyed and welcomed au pairs from nine different countries over the last 12 years.  The experiences, adventures, and challenges we have had keep us coming back to Au Pair in America for more.

Our home is in West Chicago, a peaceful far west suburb of Chicago, Illinois.  A fifty minute commute, by train or car gets you to downtown Chicago with all its museums, theatres, beaches and shops at your fingertips.  Our house is a five bedroom split-level medium size home with a big yard where we enjoy badminton, croquet, volleyball, basketball, frisbee, jumping on our trampoline, swimming in our pool and playing ball.  The children love playing on their swing/gym set and in our yard.  We love bicycle rides and walks on a long scenic trail near our home.  There a few shopping malls in the area and a large community college.  We’re also really close to the train station and downtown West Chicago.

Our son is a happy healthy boy.  He likes to swim, ride his bicycle and play with his planes, trains and automobiles.  He play soccer on a team and takes karate classes.  He tries to do anything his big sister does and loves to play with other children.  Our daughter loves to dance, listen to music, play volleyball, go shopping to the mall and loves swimming in our pool.  She also enjoys getting together with her friends.

We look forward to meeting you!

Family 2

We’re really looking forward to welcoming another au pair into our family.  Our 12-years as a host family have brought us positive and rewarding experiences.  Since we both grew up with au pairs in our homes, we recognize the unique benefits of both being an au pair and serving as a host family.  We hope to take part in another cultural exchange and at the same time offer our boys another opportunity to form a special and memorable relationship with someone outside their immediate family.

My husband commutes to New York City where he works and I am a museum curator and work 3-days a week.  My hobbies include reading, playing the viola and yoga.  My husband is an avid golfer and runner. 

Our son is 14-years old and is quiet, responsible and hard working.  He enjoys photography and computers, and likes to play the drums, run and play lacrosse.  Our middle son is a happy, easygoing 11-year old.  He likes building legos, riding his bike and especially playing with friends.  Our youngest son is 6-years old.  He’s energetic, talkative and always on the move.  His favorite activity is making arts and crafts projects, and he loves to make things with his au pair. 

Our two eldest sons will be in school 5 days a week from 8am to 3:15pm.  Our au pair would help to get the boys off to the school bus in the mornings and then play with them and supervise homework in the afternoon.  She would also drive or walk them to music lessons, activities or sports.  On the 3 days that I work, the au pair would prepare dinner for the boys and stay with them until 7pm, when I return from New York.

We’re looking for an independent and motivated individual who has the patience and energy to keep up with a busy 6-year old!  It would be great if she had creative ideas for play.  Our goal is to have our au pair be as much a family member as a caregiver.  Our five bedroom house is close to town and one block from the school playground.  The au pair has a large, comfortable room with her own bathroom, TV, computer and phone line.  From our house we can walk or bike a mile to the University, shops, theaters and restaurants.  Many au pairs live nearby, some right in the neighborhood.  The bus to New York City stops a block away and the train station is a 5-minute drive. 

We really enjoy our community because it offers the advantages of both urban and suburban living.  It's an academic community with an endless offering of lectures, concerts, movies, plays, bookstores and cafes.  We are close to open countryside but also just one hour from New York City.  We hope our au pair will take advantage of the benefits of our community, and we look forward to sharing them together.

Family 3

 

Here is what our three little girls want you to know:

 

“Tell her I like to read Harry Potter”, “I plan to be a princess when I grow up and love to do arts and crafts”, “I like the playground, ice cream and to draw pretty pictures with my crayons.  I can make one for her”.

 

During the past 8 years, six au pairs have become loved members of our family and have all come back to visit us for vacation after they finished their years. From our experiences, the characteristics of au pairs that are best for us include truly loving children, wanting to take part in our family as more of a member than an employee, knowing how to have fun and to talk to people of all ages, open, honest and flexible, responsible and enjoying life.

 

We live in a nice house in a great area.  You will have your own private room with a double bed and a television.  We have two cars, which you can use when my wife or I do not need them.  We have a big yard on top of a hill with a nice view.  Sometimes, mostly in the morning, ten or more deer are grazing behind our house.  We are about an 1 hour by train from New York City.  There are many activities for you to do during your free time including coffee shops, movie theatres, parks, hiking trails, tennis and swimming.  All of our au pairs have enjoyed going out with their friends, especially on Saturday nights.  They have also participated in our family celebrations such as birthdays and holidays.

 

If you are concerned about getting enough practice for your English, don’t worry.  You will get many opportunities!  My wife and I are both full time professionals.  We don’t usually work weekends and most of our free time is spent mostly playing with our children, visiting friends, exercising and working on our home.  Some of the ways that we ask our au pairs to help include taking care of the children when we go out, sometimes cook for the children, do their laundry, help clean up their rooms and help with the family chores.  Most weekday mornings we ask the au pair to help get the kids ready so that everyone can get to school and work on time.  On most evenings the au pair can go out with her friends, although we do ask that she not stay out too late when she has to work the next morning.

 

As you can see, we have very busy and wonderful lives, which is why we need an au pair to help us.  We have learned that the best ways to keep our au pair and us happy are to talk often, work together and have fun.  We hope that we are the right family for you and we look forward to getting to know you more.

 

 

Family 4

 

The children and I have been living in Connecticut (close to my job and great schools) for the past year.  Our house is on a dead-end street with several families with children, walking distance from town.  Our town is a wealthy, suburban town with many resources.  There are museums, theatres, libraries, shops and community / sports centers.  I hope you will join us in enjoying the many things to do in the area.  I will also be glad to introduce you to some of the unlimited possibilities New York City presents.  I will tell you as best I can about the way we are.

 

Both my children are fun and like to joke around.  They are both well liked in school and like to have play-dates with classmates and neighbors.  I also plan to have them enrolled in after school sports and activities.

 

My daughter (will be 12 in November) is kind, tolerant, gentle, caring and creative.  She has a great imagination and creative instinct.  She tries hard and does well in school.  She has a dreamy personality so she has to make extra efforts and needs extra reminders to keep organized and remember things.  She likes to please and needs a little encouragement sometimes to express her own needs.  She likes sports and plays enthusiastically, especially swimming and gymnastics.  She has a very broad appetite for all kinds of foods.

 

My son (10-years old) is charismatic and just wants to have fun.  He is very energetic and outgoing, but if others don’t want to join him he is content to just play by himself.  He learns very quickly but it is often difficult to get him to do his homework.  He is generally very easy-going and cooperative, however, when he doesn’t want to do something, he can be quite stubborn. 

 

I am on the neat and organized side.  I am used to cooking and cleaning for the family, but I could definitely use some help!  I usually leave work around 7am and return home before 6pm.  I go out with friends a couple of times a week and like to have friends over for a barbeque or a movie once in a while.  You and your friends may fully share in the common areas of the house during your free time.  House rules will be: no drinking or smoking (except when there is a party) and a midnight curfew on nights before you are responsible for the children the following morning.  You will have a car and a cell phone for your own use.  I’ve shared the home with several au pairs.  They came from Germany, South Africa, England and Estonia.  Our current au pair has been a great help to us.  I believe it was a rewarding experience for us all and I hope your experience will be too.

We truly want you to enjoy your time in California and will always make and effort to accommodate your needs and requests so you can get the most out of the au pair experience.