October in Oz

Ahhh, October has come, and it marks 3 months for me in Australia. It's getting warmer and warmer here each day, which means the pool is almost ready for us. I can't wait to teach Ai-Vy to swim!

We started off this month by going camping at the beautiful property that Young and Stephanie's friend's parents live on (are you following :) ??). There were endless acres of land... fruit trees, beautiful gardens, walking paths, and lakes. We settled by one of the lakes where everyone enjoyed canoeing, swimming, and fishing.

Young even caught an eel! Disgusting, I know! He put it on the barbie but there was no way I was trying it. Noooo thank you, we had enough wonderful food to eat as it was! We had wine, bread, fresh salads, pastas, fruit from the land, and not to mention the very tasty cheese that was made there on the property... yummm. I also tried Jackfruit for the first time... I had never seen, heard, or tasted it before. It didn't even taste like fruit, more like lollies.

I learned during this camping trip that Kien-Nhu is deathly afraid of bugs! HA HA, I hate to admit it, but it's the funniest thing I have ever seen when they come near him. It's so hard not to laugh but he is truly terrified. What a rough life for KiKi!
Soon he will have to adjust, as Young thinks it's hilarious to put fake spiders around the house and scare me. Look out, Talisa and Maureen.. you're next! I hear stories that the real spiders that come in the summer time are just as big...... :p

I have enjoyed spending some time with Stephanie in the kitchen. We don't always know what it is that we would like to cook or bake but it's always fun to see and taste the end product. I will soon cook something for dinner that is popular in my country, and I will leave them with a couple of recipes to add to their cookbook. The Australian and American culture is very similar in a lot of ways, so I am very fortunate to have an opportunity to learn more about the French culture here.
With such an open family, it's a great and comfortable way to experience and accept our differences/similarities.

I have tried the "Teach me French" program on my computer but find it's a bit difficult to determine the pauses between words. Ai-Vy has taught me a few words.. One night at bath time she thought it was hilarious to have me repeat a word in French, and later I learned it meant "fart"... thanks Ai-Vy! First she wants to eat my brains, now this!

Kien-Nhu and Ai-Vy have really become my little buddies. I can always look to them when I need a smile. I have determined that Ai-Vy is the leader, and Kien-Nhu will always be one step behind her. He always watches and repeats her. KiKi and I are working on how to say "finished" instead of "fishy", and how to say "Please" instead of making a whiny noise.
Ai-Vy still says "Chicken Muggets" instead of nuggets. Hilarious! She loves to sing songs, especially Christmas carols. I am very proud of her for mastering "Twinkle Twinkle" and "Ba Ba Blacksheep" recently.

We have walked to school with the dogs and learned to look both ways before crossing the roads, gone to Southbank to see the events of Riverfire, the arcade, bird watching, and collected snails. We went to the library, picked flowers, and swam at the lagoon. And of course one of their favorites is getting chips at McDonalds :)

I went to Currumbin last week for a surfing lesson with my friends Naomi and Ashlee. I stood up on the board a couple of times but it was very difficult and didn't stay up long. We are planning to go camping and horseback riding at the end of the month, and I will also get to explore Tamborine Mountain finally.

We look forward to welcoming Talisa very soon. One more month until she is here!

Only one month left

Hey everyone!

My name is Talisa, I am almost 19 and very lucky to say that I am going to be the next au pair in Stephanie and Young's family!

I can’t wait to leave for Australia by the 14th of November – in exactly one month!

Currently I live with my family in Mainz, a town of 200.000 inhabitants in southwest Germany.

It has a big university and therefore many young people live here.
There are many lovely locations and interesting attractions throughout the year.

Although Mainz is not a small town, I mostly move from A to B by bike.

We even have some tourism here in Mainz! ;)

My family is kind of a patchwork family.
I live most of the time with my mum and my three siblings Benni (13), Kim (11) and Dominic (6).
So it never gets quiet when they are at home ;).
Moreover I spend a lot of time with my dad, his wife and my little sister Florentine (8), who live 15 min by car away from me.

I finished school in April this year with the “Abitur” (German qualification for university entrance). I decided not to start studying immediately but spend time to gather experience abroad.
Unlike most of the au pairs, English (or French) is not my mother tongue. So please excuse me for any grammatical mistakes ;)
I hope my English skills will improve during my stay in Brisbane!

Since June I have been working at the reception of a dental office.
I started working there to find out whether being a dentist could be the right thing for me.

Me at the dental office

The work there has convinced me to study dentistry.
I like the fact that – as a dentist – I am doing something with my hands, it is somehow a manual and artistic thing, although I am aware how many people are afraid of dentists. ;)

I really like outdoor activities - I like swimming, hiking and skiing but I have to admit that I am doing that mainly on vacation. In general I love trying out new sports, last summer I tried several water sports so as windsurfing, water skiing and catamaran sailing.

I am quite interested in photography, I like taking pictures of my family, friends or anything interesting near me and my camera.

Our dog Tosca in the garden

I am interested in arts, particular contemporary arts. I like drawing and painting and also had arts as an advanced course in school.
I am looking forward to do some handicrafts and painting with Aivy!

All in all I am really excited to fly to Australia in exactly one month and I am looking forward to get to know you all!

I am sure it will be a great time! :)

Présentation

Premier poste, une introduction avant le début de l'aventure australienne.

Je me présente, je m'appelle Maureen Pillon, j'ai presque 23 ans (demain pour être exacte) et oui, si j'écris en français c'est parce que je suis française.

Je vis à Paris, plus belle ville du monde je ne sais pas, mais elle a du charme c'est certain.

J'habite, avec ma mère, dans un quartier plutôt populaire près d'un très beau parc appelé "Les Buttes Chaumont". C'est dans ce quartier que j'ai grandit et que j'ai rencontré mes meilleures amies.

Mon père, quant à lui, habite Compiègne, une ville à 80km au dessus de Paris. Pas de chance, le temps y est souvent pire qu'à Paris.

Une petite résidence sous le soleil du sud ne m'aurait pas déplu mais ça aurait aussi limité mes visites donc pas de quoi se plaindre, ça permet de prendre un bon bol d'air frais entre deux bouffées de pollution parisienne.

C'est une très belle ville avec un superbe château et une grande forêt qui permet d'assister à des courses hippiques, de faire du vélo, des grandes ballades, de ramasser des champignons.

Passons à ce que j'aime faire. Je pratique la danse classique depuis 15 ans au conservatoire, depuis le temps c'est comme une deuxième maison. Je suis très proche de mes deux professeurs dont une était danseuse étoile il y a encore quelques années.

J'aime aussi aller à la piscine y pratiquer l'activité à la mode, "l'aquabiking"! On se sent toujours plus légère en sortant, j'adore. J'aime également la gym, il y a un espace sportif super à côté de chez moi où faire du fitness, je vais d'ailleurs essayer la zumba, une autre pratique très tendance. Il faut bien se mettre à la page!

A part le sport, j'aime cuisiner, recevoir des amis, sortir avec eux dans des restaurants ou des bars sympas, aller au ciné... Et par dessus tout j'adore voyager, c'est une des raisons de mon post. J'ai pu voir de très beaux endroits avec mes parents tels que l'Ile de la Réunion, la Guadeloupe, le Kenya, la Grèce, la Croatie..., mais un pays m'a toujours fait rêver l'Australie!

J'en arrive au pourquoi du comment! Après mon bac, j'ai tout de suite entamé des études de gestion à la Sorbonne. J'ai suivi quatre ans d'étude dans ce domaine puis j'ai réalisé un master 2 en ressources humaines, toujours dans la même université, tout en travaillant en alternance à la SNCF (entreprise ferroviaire). Une année assez chargée et parfois un peu difficile. Elle s'est achevée le mois dernier, je peux enfin dire que je suis diplômée bac+5.

Il est donc temps de partir vivre une belle aventure à l'étranger, comme j'ai toujours eu envie de le faire, et bien sûr j'ai tout de suite pensé à l'Australie.
Souhaitant partir au moins un an et partager la vie d'une famille sur place, j'ai commencé à me renseigner pour être fille au pair. Je voulais essayer de trouver seule avant de passer par un organisme et de me faire dépouiller.

Je me suis donc inscrite sur un site spécialisé, et avant même de créer mon profil je suis tombée sur celui d'une famille qui me paraissait parfaite: j'ai nommé la famille Truong! Une magnifique photo, une longue et plaisante description, oui c'est le coup de cœur, les autres familles finissent par me sembler fades.
Ma motivation n'a fait que s'intensifier et j'ai décidé de les contacter le plus vitepossible, tout en voyant, non sans stress, le nombre de candidatures augmenter tous les jours. Par grand bonheur, après quelques semaines de discussion, et je dois l'avouer une certaine appréhension à l'idée de ne pas plaire, j'ai reçu une réponse positive.

Et me voilà m'extasiant pour une arrivée prévue mi-février 2013! J'ai déjà tellement hâte d'y être, de partager la vie de Young, Stéphanie, Ai-Vy, Kien-Nhu, et bien sûr Todd et Chom Chom!!
Je sais que ce sera une formidable aventure, et je peux déjà les remercier de me permettre de réaliser ce rêve.

Depuis cette merveilleuse nouvelle je me prépare donc à ce futur départ. Permis de conduire, baby siting (je serai au top pour jouer avec Ai-Vy et Kien-Nhu), faire des économies (pas la partie la plus facile, le shopping c'est le mal) et je commence une liste des choses à faire sur place (m'essayer au surf, faire de la plongée près de la barrière de corail, visite de Sydney et de Brisbane...).
En attendant de prendre la relève en février, je prends mon mal en patience et continue de rêver!

How rude of me!

How rude of me not to introduce myself! Let's start over ;)

Hello all!! My name is Jordan. I'm 23, and I'm from Portland, Oregon which is the Pacific Northwest in the United States. Oregon is known for it's truly breathtaking and diverse scenery.

There you will find our extensive coastline, lakes, rivers, mountains, valleys, deserts, and forests. Just depends on where you are.

Before I moved to Australia, I was working full time at a non-profit hospital in the Emergency Room as a Registrar. My job was a lot of things - exciting, stressful, and rewarding in more than one way as I met my current boyfriend there. Talk about working hard! ;)
So yes, it's true, I do have a boyfriend back at home and he's finishing his Paramedic schooling while i'm here (are you catching on about how we met yet??)

In my free time at home, I enjoyed hiking, photography, kayaking, going out, weekend getaways to the mountains, or just relaxing and watching movies. I'm pretty much up for whatever and will try anything once.

I decided to become an Au Pair because I love children and I love traveling, and I was really looking for a change in pace and culture. Here I am now, and it's safe to say that it has been an extremely awarding experience thus far. I look forward to many more days like the ones I have already spent :)