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..."I had a wonderful time at orientation, with the highlight being the night time tour, where we got to see the main points of New York City - Central Park, Rockefella Centre, Trump Towers, Times Square, Lincoln Centre, The Statue of Liberty (at a distance) and of course The Empire State Building which we went to the top of. I was also impressed with our tour guides who managed to stage a three car pile up right outside the entrance to Central Park and you guessed it...they were all yellow taxis!! We all made a lot of friends, who we have kept in contact with, during our 4 days together and it was a little hard to say goodbye so soon after meeting them all.
On the Thursday I literally came in with a snow storm to Medway Massachusettes, which is where my host family live. Its about an hour from Boston. My host family are wonderful. I look after a soon to be 4 year old Kevin and there is a baby girl on the way. Unfortunately for me she is due just 8 days after I leave here, but I will get to come back and see her. Kevin has his own theory on how the baby is going to be born - "she is going to live inside mommys belly, and then she is going to cough her out!" I can't wait to see that happen! I have a large room, in a huge house, and a car for my own use.
I have enjoyed looking after Kevin this year, and just being part of the family. We love to do playdates with other kids in the cluster, and Kevin has been dubbed the "stud of the cluster" after the girls fight to hold his hand on our outings. There have been so many highlights of this year, including a trip to Orlando, Florida with another Christchurch Au Pair, Kirsten. We did the Disney Parks and Universal Studios and also hired a car and drove to Miami, where we drove around in a thunderstorm, and further on down to the southermost point of the US, the West Key, which is gorgeous. I went with my host family to Long Island, NY, and managed to go into Manhatten again and saw the sights during daylight hours.
My family have also come over to the US to visit me during my time here, and we spent some time here in Massachusettes and also in Las Vegas, and in Utah where there are some gorgeous canyons. Halloween, just a couple of weeks ago, was hilarious - its just a big "candy-fest" and is amazing to watch. I carved a pumpkin and went trick or treating too. 4th of July on the Charles River was spectacular, the fireworks seemed to go on forever. I am currently waiting for my white Christmas! My community councellor, Barbara, is the best. She is Australian, so knows all about things like Milo and pavlova, which the Americans have no clue about. She truly is there for all of us 100%. There are currently about 40 girls in the cluster, so it is impossible not to make friends from all over the world. Well, this is just a small sample of what I have been through this past year - there has been so much more! This truly has been the experience of a lifetime." Michelle S.
"It is coming up to my 5 year anniversary next month, in June, since I left New Zealand for the US. Even more know than ever, the Au Pair in America motto means more than ever - "A year abroad, a lifetime of memories".
I was placed with a fantastic family in Fairfield, Connecticut. It was a truly idyllic setting, with the beach at the end of the street, beautiful house, decent car, but more importantly a family who welcomed me into their home and lives. I was lucky enough to fly over with two other Kiwi’s, and even luckier to be placed within half and hour of each of them.
They were so giving towards me, and I really felt like I was needed. It gave me so much happiness to just wake up in the morning, and know that it was going to be a great day, because they were going to be part of it. Liz and Jay’s parents accepted me as part of their family too, and the bond I developed with Liz’s mom Bitsy, is one which I really treasure.
My duties included getting the boys ready for school in the morning, breakfast, last minute homework, finding shoes, jackets etc. After they were at school, I did laundry, cleaning and tidying, ran errands, and had my own time until 3pm when I picked them up from school. After school was usually spent at basketball, soccer or baseball practice, with a play-date, or at one of the nature reserves. Then dinner for the family. Although I did do some things which were not required of me, such as Liz, and Jay’s laundry, and dinner for the whole family, I found that they were so giving towards me, that I found ways to repay that feeling when things were busy for them.
We went on vacations to North Carolina’s Outer Banks twice, and to Vermont to go skiing, plus a weekend retreat with Church in Colebrook, CT. Summer was spent at the beach, or on the boat fishing, and having friends over for dinner. During the winter we still went out on the boat, played in the snow, went sledding, and stayed indoors.
My host parents played a major part in making me the person I am now, and how I look at my life and the kind of person that I am. They gave me my inner strength, and Jay gave me his words of wisdom, which I have used on several occasions "Don’t worry about it until it happens, or you might miss out on something really special". What ever the situation, I seem to find a way to use his advice.
The Au Pair program gave me the opportunity to see parts of the world which I might not have seen otherwise. I travelled all down the east coast, and took a Trek America trip from Seattle to LA, through the National Parks, and the Grand Canyon. I wen into New York with friends and saw Broadway shows, went sightseeing in the city, and did some great shopping.
I encourage anyone who is thinking about participating in the Au Pair program, to go for it. Talk about it with someone who has gone, or knows about it, and be ready to be homesick, because it will happen. But the good things outweigh the bad, and if nothing else, it’s a fun way to spend a year". Paula H.
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