Rising temperatures, longer days and end-of-the-school-year activities can only mean one thing: summer is approaching.
For some parents this also means unpleasant headaches are ahead as they scramble to find new childcare arrangements that will keep their children safe and happy during the warm summer months.
Keeping children busy when school is out of session can be a daunting task, but one Overland Park working mom already has it covered.
Her four children will be spending the summer at home with the family’s live-in au pair, just as they have for the last four years.
Melissa Maurer and her family are a host family in the Au Pair in America program. The service pairs families who need childcare assistance with a live-in au pair from one of 55 different countries overseas. Host families then have the ability to set their own childcare schedule for up to 45 hours of care each week.
Maurer says she looked into the service when she was pregnant with her third child. With two children in daycare outside the home already, Maurer knew just how pricey childcare could be.
She didn’t want the cost of childcare to dictate the size of her family, so she began looking into other options. That’s when Maurer discovered an ad for Au Pair in America and was excited to learn that the cost of service was a set rate regardless of the number of children in the home.
The family is now host to its fourth au pair, and they couldn’t be happier.
“For my family, it’s really been absolutely fabulous,” Maurer says.
Megan Bailey, a local community counselor for Au Pair in America, says the company works hard to make sure au pairs are matched with families who share similar childcare practices and philosophies.
Each au pair must go through a detailed selection process before she is placed in a home. This includes documentation of at least 200 hours of previous childcare experience.
Au pairs in the program range in age from 18 to 26.
Host families are able to review candidates’ applications, check childcare references and conduct phone interviews before deciding whether the au pair would fit into the structure of their family.
The Maurer family’s au pairs have all been from Thailand, and although one previous au pair didn’t turn out to be a great fit, Maurer says she has been extremely pleased with the women with whom she has worked.
“It’s been a very easy experience,” she says. “They are very responsible. They are never late. They understand that we need them to do this job, and they do it well.”
Bailey, whose family is also host to an au pair, says the program is also an excellent way for children to be exposed to different cultures and traditions.
Her two children have already learned how to count in German, and her family even incorporated some German traditions into their holiday celebrations this past winter.
“It is just great bringing that education into the homes,” she says. “I just think that cultural exchange is invaluable for young children.”
Thanks to the Au Pair in America program, au pairs from Thailand, France, Germany, Chile, Costa Rica and South America are currently employed in Kansas City-area homes.
Living with American families also gives the au pairs a chance to see firsthand what life is like in America. The au pairs are given one-year work visas that can be extended for a second year.
Bailey says that, aside from the cultural benefits of the program, many area families are drawn to the service because of its flexibility and affordability.
Current au pair rates are $335 per week for each host family, regardless of the number of children in the home.
Families are also given the flexibility to set their own childcare schedules, which can change from week to week.
Bailey says she has seen a surge in interest in Au Pair in America throughout the last few years and attributes the increase primarily to changing workday schedules such as the increasingly popular four-day workweek and flexible start times. Flexible workday hours mean there is a greater need for flexible childcare as well.
Bailey estimated there are currently about 20 host families in the Kansas City area who use the service and that it’s likely that number will continue to grow.
“This is a really beautiful relationship that happens between host families and au pairs,” she says.
To learn more about Au Pair in America, visit www.aupairinamerica.com.