When you begin your year as an au pair, you’ll join an entirely new family with its own unique culture and traditions. This is truly the year to embrace the unfamiliar and immerse yourself in the American lifestyle. Luckily, your host family is there to guide you through it and show you the best parts of their culture! You’ll have the opportunity to join lots of family activities while on and off duty. How about a trip to a natural history museum or a family friend’s birthday party on the weekend? Even something as small as a family dinner is a great time to laugh, talk about your days, and form the special bond that will last for years to come. Here are some of the ways our au pairs love to be included with their host families. You’ll definitely experience a few of them as a Cultural Care au pair!

1 | Holiday celebrations From Christmas or Thanksgiving to Valentine’s Day, American holidays are a great way to exchange cultural traditions and celebrate little moments with your host family. “Thanksgiving was a very special time for me because my host family and I did everything together. Cooking, eating, playing games…when I sat down and my host family explained the meaning of thanksgiving, I felt truly included. I was so grateful to be somewhere I could call home, with people I can call family. It was a great day because we didn’t only get closer as a family, but I also got closer to the American culture!” - Jolina, 19, Germany

2 | Sports games Lots of American families regularly attend baseball, basketball, and even hockey games—and may invite you along! They’re exciting events that are sure to keep the kids (and you!) entertained. “We went to a Red Sox game about three weeks after I arrived in the US. I had so much fun seeing everyone rooting for the team, eating a Hot Dog, singing “Sweet Caroline” after the 7th inning etc. Sharing an experience like that, too, was amazing for my relationship with my kids since it gave us a fun memory to talk about and remember in the early stages of our time together! It also crossed one thing off my bucket list and I’m forever grateful to my host family for that!” - Magdalena, 20, Austria

3 | Vacations If your family invites you on a vacation, you’re definitely a lucky au pair! Travel is even more fun with your host parents as tour guides. “It’s true when they say that Disney World is a magical place! Being able to experience my first time there with my host kids, which was also their first time, made it even more magical. Sharing moments like this with my host family made me realize even more how lucky I am to have a second family that’s going to be a part of my life forever. I’m always going to remember moments like this, when I was the happiest living my dream with my second family.” - Mariana, 21, Mexico

4 | Family outings Weekends are a great time for smaller activities, like performances, restaurant trips, movies, or events! With your adorable host kids, it doesn’t take much to make a great memory. “Every single memory is a very special one but one of my greatest memories was going for a boat ride with the entire family. We took the boat early in the morning and drove to the coffee shop on the water! All the kids were so happy, and it was just a very happy and peaceful moment. My host dad also showed me how to drive the boat since that’s an au pair tradition in my host family.” - Klara, 22, Austria

5 | Birthdays During your year in the USA, you’re sure to celebrate a couple birthdays. Some Americans love to fill these special days with balloons, cake, presents, and more! “My best memory with them was my birthday. They threw a fiesta! I invited some friends, we ate Mexican food, we listened to Mexican music, we had a piñata and a piñata cake! It was a special day. I felt very happy having my friends and my host family together, sharing and celebrating. I'm very grateful for everything they did for me that day.” - Abigail, 25, Mexico

6 | Family dinners At the end of each day, family dinners are a perfect time to reflect and talk over good food and good company. Don’t be afraid to introduce some of your culture’s dishes to the mix, too! “We love to cook! Most of the time my host parents cook and I enjoy the food, and almost every night we have different dishes. I like to show them Brazilian food and they loved Moqueca. My host dad cooks the best steak ever.” - Dara, 26, Brazil

7 | Religious events If your host family practices a religion, they may be looking forward to sharing their religious holidays and traditions with you. This is a great opportunity to participate in and learn about an entirely new culture! “My host family is half Indian and half American and my host parents share both of their cultures with their kids and me. We celebrated Diwali, the Indian festival of light together. My host mom lent me an Indian dress and we celebrated the day with the kids’ grandparents, cousins, and other family members. Together we danced to Indian songs, cooked and ate Indian food. I loved the five-day long festival! We had a lot of fun and I learned new things about the Indian culture.” - Sarah, 20, Germany

8 | Group Halloween costumes Halloween is one of the most exciting American holidays, and lots of families choose to participate in group costumes. Get ready to dress up as practically anything: from a pineapple to a laundry machine! “My host family is always introducing me to American traditions and customs. On Halloween week, they took me to see a pumpkin patch so we could choose which ones we would use to decorate the house. That same day, we also went in a maze and it was a lot of fun trying to figure out together how to get out of there. On Halloween day, we dressed in our costumes, decorated our pumpkins together, and had a really good night eating, delivering candy to the kids in the neighborhood, and talking about the customs of that day!” - Bianca, 26, Brazil

9 | Children's milestones Showing up for your host kids’ special days—like their first day of school or a piano recital—is a great way to show how much you care and support them and can make for some of the most special moments. “As an au pair I got the chance to be a role model, a big sister, a listener and a safe haven at the same time. It is such a pleasure to see my host kids grow in their personality every day—it makes me feel unbelievably proud. The first day of school, which was about two weeks after I arrived in the US, was probably the first event I ever felt this pride for my host kids. It was magical, because I never thought I could be so involved with them after such a short time. But I was and I still am.” - Sabrina, 20, Austria

10 | Family photoshoots What’s more fun than a photoshoot? Joining in on family pictures will help you feel like a real part of the home—and you’ll leave with a great photo to remember them by! “My host family had a picture day with everyone. I couldn’t imagine that I was going to be part of it, and I loved it! Weeks before that they told me the colors we were going to use. When it was the day, we were ready, and the pictures started. You can’t imagine how hard it is to take one picture of them together, but it was a very fun day! I loved being part of that moment with them and I really appreciate that they included me that day! I love them and they always make me feel like part of the family.” - Luli, 26, Argentina