Au Pair in NJ

I am writing to tell you about my time as an Au Pair in Montclair, New Jersey.  I decided to take a year off of school to learn a little about myself before finishing my studies.  I decided to do the Au Pair programme because it seemed interesting and I had no idea what to expect on the other side.  I am glad I listened to my gut feeling because my time in New Jersey changed me as a person for the better.

I lived with a family that had 3 boys.  They were 6, 9 and 12 when I arrived.  My family was great.  The kids and I mostly spend our days together playing sports or doing something they liked, we always planned to try new things.  That is what I loved most about them they were always open to trying new things.  When I arrived I wasn't even in the door 2 hours before the phone started ringing and other au pairs from my neighbourhood were calling to take me out and get to know me.  That was comforting.  I met with girls from all over the world.  We did everything together on our time off.  We would usually meet in the evenings for coffee or to watch a movie or just chit chat.  There were times where we were lucky to have corresponding schedules and were able to travel on our time off as well.  I was able to visit Washington DC twice, Boston, Philly, Connecticut, Maryland, New York City and several smaller day trips.  I was also lucky enough to join the family for several long weekends at their summer home in Maryland.  It was so relaxing and peaceful.  Sometimes they went there to hang out with family and I was fortunate enough to have the time to spend with friends back in New Jersey.  On August of 2007 the family surprised me with a trip to Italy!  I joined them along with their relatives on a 2 week trip to Rome and Tuscany, amazing!

On our weekends, the other au pairs that I had gotten close to and I always tried to do things together to get to know the area we were living or we tried to do some sight seeing.  IT was truly an awesome experience from start to finish.  I had to say goodbye to so many great friends, which was hard but we made promises and plans to see each other again one day.  I am sure I will get to travel to their home countries as well they will come to visit me in Canada.

My relationship with my host family was great as well.  It was very laid back and they respected me as a woman and know how important it was for me to have my privacy.  They supported my opinion and treated me with love.  I decided after my one year there in New Jersey that I wasn't ready to leave yet so I decided to extend my stay an extra 9 months.  I arrived in NJ in October 2006 and finally packed my bags back to Canada in August 2009.  It was the best years in my life to date.  I learned so much about myself, the world, and I also learned that being a mother is something I definitely want to do.  My friends joke around and tell me I was a 'mommy in training'.  haha.  I would recommend this program to anyone who may feel they want to take a year to get to know themselves, gain some independance, meet great friends and take time to explore and area you know nothing about.  The first that I met there in New Jersey I keep in contact with on a weekly basis.  My best friends are in Sweden, Germany, Denmark, South Africa, Mexico and Finland!  In closing I would like to say, if your up for taking a chance and want to grow as a person, do it...you will not regret it!:)

Misha