I was excited when
Dallas’ Cultural Care Au Pair joined She is Dallas as an advertiser. The more I learn about their program, the more excited I get! It seems like such a good solution, offering so much for both the au pair and the host family.
So I decided to speak to a
Dallas mom who is using the Cultural Care Au Pair program to see how it works for a real life DFW mother.
This is her story…
Barbara and her husband were living in Boston and working full time when she was pregnant with her first child 6 years ago. A co-worker told her about the au pair program and so she researched it to see if it would be a good fit for her growing family. She liked what she found and ended up hiring her first au pair 2 weeks before her daughter arrived. At that time she and her husband ended up using the au pair as a supplement to day care. Now Barbara lives in the Dallas suburbs, and she and her husband have 2 girls and have hosted 7 au pairs over the last 5+ years.
She says she couldn’t live without one. She loves the flexibility that they provide, and now that the girls are a little older, the au pair spends much of her time shuttling the girls to after school activities. She also does the children’s laundry and keeps the home stocked with supplies.
Barbara and her husband started in the program because it was going to save them money on childcare and have continued because they love how hosting an au pair has enriched their family life. Barbara requests that her au pairs speak Portuguese. This allows her girls to learn the language while still speaking English with their parents.
I asked about the downside of having a nanny living in the home. Barbara indicated that to minimize potential issues she has a home handbook she sends to the prospective au pairs before they arrive outlining the house rules, including areas of the house that are private. Over the years she has added rules and limitations to the handbook so expectations are clear from the start.
Barbara is now the local childcare coordinator for Cultural Au Pair. There are regular get-togethers for the Dallas area au pairs and host families. This helps the au pair to adjust to life in Dallas. It also helps host families learn from each other how to get the most out of the program.
Cultural Au Pair is running a special discount for
She is Dallas readers. They will receive $500 off of the program fee! Please
click here for more details and to be eligible for the discount.
Hurry as this offer will end soon.
If you have questions about the program, please contact Regan Flaherty, Development Director for Texas, 800-333-6056 ext 5535 or regan.flaherty at culturalcare.com.
For more information, check out The
Top 10 Reasons to Host an Au Pair in Dallas.
Hosting an au pair is very affordable and sharing their culture with your family is a huge bonus. In today’s world economy, your children will gain culturally as they share their home with foreign au pairs.
Au pairs are also safe and reliable and provide that live-in flexibility that most busy families need.
Cultural Care has been reviewed by their host parents on our consumer resource on au pairs, and they are on our Top 3 Au Pair Agencies List! They are the largest agency in the U.S.A. and host parents rated them high in screening their au pairs well for both English skills and driving.
We review all 13 au pair agencies in the U.S. and we provide expert advice and top tips on hosting au pairs.