15 – Part 2: Interview with Abbie & Maddie – Founders of Blog: My Au Pair & Me

Part 1 of the interview with Abbie and Maddie, Founders of the blog: My Au Pair & Me

Contact information for Abbie & Maddie:

Website: https://www.myaupairandme.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myaupairandme/

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/myaupairandme/

Hello and Welcome Back to Part 2 with Abbie and Maddie!

Today we are speaking with two host moms from Western Washington and we all share a Seattle connection and girls in technology.

Maddie and Abbie share au pair host family advice from agency agnostic point of view with their blog called My Au Pair and Me. Instead of question and answer blogs that are more personal one to one questions, they write actual helpful posts to encompass what Host Families face every year with their au pairs.

What is an au pair?

It is a group of young adults that come live abroad with a families to experience another culture and in return help support your family by bringing culture.

What is the most rewarding part of being in this program?

Maddie – Maddie lives a life that is extremely overcommitted (as we all have as parents), work full time, volunteer a lot and now running the blog. That 3^rd adult in the house understands what is going on and can help bring a calm atmosphere and being able to give back when life is a struggle is what is most rewarding. Maddie gives a few examples where an au pair has made her day when she had a crazy day.

Abbie – The teamwork aspect and while Abbie is also a busy mom, one area is that the au pairs take the kids outside and when the au pairs integrate in the families, the kids will ask the au pair to come out on walks even on off hours and while she or he might be off duty, the au pair still wants to go for a walk with the families and this is what is most rewarding for Abbie. The aspect of integration within a family.

The most successful au pairs are what you want out of the experience for your family. For Abbie and Maddie they prefer au pairs that want to integrate into the family and this may not be right for everyone so know what you want for your family.

What was the most challenging part of the program?

Abbie – First au pair wanted to be a perfectionist and didn’t know how to pick battles. Sometimes it takes a while to align parenting styles and recognizing when kids are outline and stepping in when kids might be going through a phase in life. In the case of Abbie the au pair was amazing by trying to communicate and work this out with the host parents. Abbie and her family never wanted to correct the au pair in front of the kids and always made sure to connect without the kids around and make sure there was good communication about what is going well and needs improvement.

Maddie – Maddie has really learned to deal with loss from a bond that may need to be broken. Maddie shares that she really learns to like and trust the au pairs as a person and an attachment is made but it was hard to lose a person from the family. Learning to have a difficult conversation and break up a match when it is not the right fit for the family and having to go through rematch and going through a difficult journey and learning to say it is ok and it might not be the right time for that match with the au pair as wonderful of a person.

Biggest growth or personal development joining the program?

Abbie – Learning not to be a micromanager and learning to let go such as a not loading the dishwasher a certain way. There are certain ways that I do things such as washing clothes for kids but she the children will fold it away. Delegation is not an easy skill and sometimes letting to let go on the details.

Maddie – How to have a hard conversation and then the person still lives with you, and how to use a hard conversation and build and a better relationship. Instead of a damaging a relationship but having a constructive relation and communication that continues to build.

How do you define a perfect fit?

Maddie – Looks for au pairs that catch my eye and provides a remarkable quality such as a committed pianist or horse back rider. Another au pair had a giant fish tattoo because they were not afraid to show themselves. I want them to be open and honest and feel free to share their lives and be a friend and family.

Abbie – My husband is a band director at a local high school. He is really good at reading people. They sit down together with basic requirements and filter out: allergic to cats, do they like outdoors vs fashion oriented, need to have a video, strong enough personality to work with the family and deal with 3 boys personalities and along with our household … sometimes the au pairs have already matched the family and we only need one to match.

What are selling points for au pairs to come to Seattle?

Abbie – Mountains and outdoors. Sporty type and love of Nirvana or a love of coffee and forests. If you are an adult then we treat you like an adult. The au pairs get a car and can take mass transit into the city because parking is $20 an hour and is a hassle … so help the au pairs understand how to navigate to sight see the local sights and cities.

Maddie – Doesn’t need to sell Seattle. Instead sends pictures of family and sell family and activities. Also shows what it is like to live with my family.

Join us next time as we explore Part 3 with Abbie and Maddie!

There is a lot more to come so we hope you enjoyed today’s episode and check us out at www.innovateyourlife.today

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