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It's all in the family for Greys and Claudia, two of the Colizza family's au pairs, who also happen to be sisters. "The two girls have been our best ever au pairs and are like my other daughters." Claudia was their second au pair and a huge support to Ann while her husband was deployed to Iraq. Greys was only 14 when Claudia was the Colizza's au pair. "Claudia was incredibly mature and responsible and a natural with children," but always said that her little sister was even more of a natural with kids. When Greys turned 19 she was interested in being an au pair so Claudia called Ann and a phone interview was set up, but Ann says that they knew Claudia so well that they were certain that Greys would be a good fit with their family.
Greys makes an effort to have separate play time with each of the three kids every week. She takes Michael, the youngest at 3 years old, to the park or the library after daycare. Mila, 9, and Tania, 11, go shopping, pain nails, and confide in Greys. She's a member of the family and there are lots of hugs and kisses to go around! "Greys is always smiling and full of energy – she lights up a room just by walking into it. She is a natural people person and connects easily with children and adults. She is trustworthy and responsible, and strikes the perfect balance between authority and friendship with the children."
Both Greys and Claudia have become such a large part of the Colizza family's life that they all went to Peru last year to attend Claudia's wedding. She wanted the girls to be flower girls in the ceremony. Greys served as their tour guide and took the Colizzas to Machu Picchu, historical Incan sites, and local markets. The trip was a great learning experience for the whole family and a real eye opener for the kids, who were shocked to find that you can't flush toilet paper or drink the tap water. Au pairs experience a cultural exchange when they become an au pair in the U.S. and to be able to travel to Claudia and Greys' home country was an amazing adventure. "The girls even made PowerPoint presentations for their classes when we returned, explaining Incan construction techniques and religious symbolism." They were only 7 and 9 years old! After the family returned, they dug up Georgia red clay in the backyard, mixed it with dried grass and made little adobe bricks in the oven, then the girls built their own adobe houses. They imagined what it might be like to build a full-size house out of adobe, and live in a house with a dirt floor and no windows or door, like the Incans.
The cultural exchange for au pairs and families doesn't just exist when your au pair shares recipes, books, pictures, and stories of her home life. Host families get the chance to teach their au pairs about American culture, take them to local markets, laugh about cultural trends, show photo albums of the family, and share their own stories. Au pairs become such integral members of their host families and have so much to offer that often times the learning experiences are some of the best parts. For the Colizzas, the primary reason they decided to host au pairs was the flexibility of live-in childcare, Ann is a surgeon and often on-call. The low hourly cost compared to babysitters and nannies is also a definite benefit. But the cultural exchange opportunity is so tremendous. Michael, Mila, and Tania are now conversant in Spanish and really enjoy learning new words from their au pairs. They have fun learning songs and stories, traditions and typical food of all their au pairs, and having enjoyed a taste of Peru. They're also looking forward to visiting Argentina, Claudia and Greys' sister Luciana just announced her engagement!
For more information about hosting an au pair, visit www.aupaircare.com or call our toll free number at 1-800-428-7247.
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