Visa Appointment

Over the past few weeks we have been trying to make sure that everything goes according to plan.

With Go Au Pair all Au Pairs are required to do 32 hours of training before you are able to get the forms for the visa. Well we had a few issues getting the training stuff to me because we had to wait for the manual to arrive in Auckland, then the courier lost (delivered to the wrong house) the package and I had to wait even longer for it. When it did arrive I spent the next two days constantly doing the training.

Now that I have completed the training and received most of the stuff for my visa and I have booked my appointment. I am supposed to receive my DS-2019 around December 27th so I made took the first available appointment that ensured I would have the form. I will fly from Wellington to Auckland the evening before and spend the day of the interview in Auckland then I will fly back down to Wellington that evening.

I will write an update before and after my interview.

Until then, have a Very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year.

It's Happened!!!

Yes, Yes, Yes!!!

Today I had my second interview with a family and GREAT NEWS! They asked me to be their Au Pair!!

I am so excited!! Now I just need to get my visa and pack.

Plans are for me to fly into the USA in January.

I'll be going to New Jersey!

SO HAPPY!!!

A New Family to talk to

On Friday morning I received another family profile to review. I read through it and emailed the family say that I would like to talk to them.

We set up an interview time for today. We spoke for an hour and they were really nice.

We are going to talk again on Wednesday and maybe even make a decision in regards to matching.

Featured Country

One of the things that Go Au Pair does each month is they feature one of the countries that Au Pairs come from and if a Host Family chooses an Au Pair from the featured country they save some money.

This month is exciting because November's featured country is............

NEW ZEALAND!!!!!!

Yay! So hopefully that means more opportunities to be selected.

http://www.goaupair.com/Host-Families/Available-Au-Pairs/Featured-Country.aspx

Hurricane Sandy

Coming from New Zealand where we don't have big storms like Sandy I can't even begin to imagine what it is like to experience one.

I have only two things to say here and the biggest one is that I hope that all those affected by Sandy are ok and have help. I would urge people to help anyone who has lost their home or a family member or a pet or something that just simply means the world to them.

I believe in the powers of positive thought so I will be sending out all of my positive thoughts to those who were affected.

I would also like to wish all those who are Au Pairs and host families that were hit my best positive thoughts as it can be hard being in a new country and then being hit by such a big storm.

So to all of the people from all over the world who have been affected by Sandy, I wish you all the best and hope that you recover without too much loss.

All my love,
Ashleigh Marie xoxox

A fun family......and some 'fun' questions

As I mentioned in my last post I was released by one family, but I was also waiting to talk to another family.

Well I finally got to talk to the Mom is the second host family and she was really nice. We talked about what she wants from an Au Pair and about her kids. We talked about emailing as a follow up and we have done that too. I emailed saying how lovely it was to talk to her and she replied with some questions for me.

I answered all of her questions which were 'fun' questions that required a bit of thought on my behalf. I am hoping to hear back in the next couple of days.

I will update again when I hear back.

One gone, another coming

So this morning I received an email from the family I have already had an interview with and unfortunately it was not good news. They have decided to go with another Au Pair. The good part was that they wished me luck and said that if I was ever in California that they would be more than happy to let me visit them.

In other family news I am waiting to hear back from another family about an interview time.

Just a brief update

Over the past week or so I have had a Skype interview with one family and hopefully I will hear from them again sometime soon. I have also received a profile from another family, so I should hopefully hear from them sometime soon also.

That's it really on the matching side of things. I have also been organising Halloween with some friends and what costumes we are going to wear.

Hopefully I'll have more news soon.

The BIG 20!

So this week has held a very important day for me... My 20th birthday!!!!

I have finally left my teenage years and have entered my twenties. I didn't do much for my birthday but I did go to the movies on Tuesday (my actual birthday) with a few of my friends. I also had a family dinner on Saturday and I had a special Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting which was super yummy!

So far I have enjoyed my first 2 days of being 20.

UPDATE: Talking to a Host Family

It's been over a month since my last post meaning it has also been over a month since something has come up.

Last week I received an email from a host family asking that I take a look at their profile and letting me know that I could email their current Au Pair if I wanted. I emailed them back letting them know that I had read their profile.

I received another email that contained a few questions for me to answer. I took some time to think about the answers and type them out. It took me about two hours to finish typing the email which included a couple of questions of my own. They emailed back with their answers and said that they were going away for the weekend and would talk together and then talk to me again when they got back.

I have also emailed their current Au Pair and we are going to sort out a time to Skype so that she can tell me all about being an Au Pair for this family and what its like being an Au Pair in South Lake Tahoe.

Haven't heard from the family again yet but its still Tuesday (night) in California.

Interviews and Upsets

Since my last post I have been talking with the Host Mum that I mentioned and we talked a few times and she contacted my references and asked them some questions.

The last time we talked was on Monday and I was told I would be told of her decision in the next few days.

Well today I heard from Michal (Au Pair Link OE) and she had emailed me to let me know that the family had fallen from matching and that they wouldn't be offering me the Au Pair job. Then a couple of hours later I received an email from the Host Mum saying that they had decided to go with another Au Pair, but that she wished me the best in my search for a host family.

I think the thing that upsets me most about this is that I didn't hear about this from the family first.

Things happen for a reason so maybe it wasn't meant to be....

A change in US Partner agency and an Interview

Ok, so over the past couple of months things took a downward turn. I hadn't been on view since the middle of June.

Michal (my International Rep) called me and we talked about a new plan of action. We would cancel my application through InterExchange and put it through Go Au Pair instead.

My Go Au Pair profile went live last week (Friday) and also on Friday I received a Host Family Profile. After the weekend I received an email from the Host Mum saying that she would like to talk with me.

Today (Wednesday) we talked and once we finished talking she emailed me and we are going to talk again in the next few days.

Can't wait :D

Releasing the tension within.........

I'm going to seem really petty right now, but I sometimes get a bit jealous when I hear that other girls are on view and I'm not. I understand that its probably because they are all over 20 and I'm not quite there but surely someone is looking for an Au Pair without narrowing the search to Au Pairs aged 20 and over.

Although my 20th birthday is only 2 1/2 months away it seems like its going to take an eternity to arrive. This is probably one of the only times where I wish I was just that little bit older.

I truly believe that the perfect family for me is out there but where? and how long will it take for them to find me?

I am still 100% positive about being an Au Pair is the US of A but my family is starting to have doubts and that negativity can become so overwhelming sometimes that you just want to give up. Well I don't want to give up but I'm not sure how much long I can handle all of the negativity and cynicism.

Normally I wouldn't write anything like this but I guess I just needed to blow off some steam and get it all out before it becomes too much and takes over.



Much love,

Ashleigh Marie xo

UPDATE: Application Progress

It's been a while since I made a new blog entry and that's because I was waiting until something new actually happened but I'm writing this entry now because I was asked via my website that I update my blog so that they could see what is happening with the progress of my application.

So here goes...

I haven't been on view with any families for a few weeks now but I'm still positive because I know that as soon as I give in to the negative thoughts I'll want to cancel my application and I don't want to do that. One of the things that keeps me out of the negatives is knowing that it's not just my application profile that isn't on view and a big reason for that is because its the Summer holidays in the USA.

I have spoken to my International Co-operator Michal about it and she has told me that things should pick up soon. With Wednesday being American Independence Day many people will be off work and won't want to be looking at Au Pair profiles, they'd rather be having fun.

I have a few things I need to change in my application and then there is nothing I can really do except wait.

I am always hoping a family will show up soon but everything happens the way it does for a reason and I reckon that the perfect family will come along.

Application Video

For the past couple of weeks I have tried to film a video for my application and I never really got anywhere. I am too small to hold the camera and film myself so I had to find someone to help me, and I did....

My youth mentor AJ (Girl) helped me and we ended up filming all of the things I wanted last Friday (June 8th).

I then tried to piece all of the bits together on my Aunt's computer as my laptop needed a new cable, but her computer didn't have the movie maker that I wanted to use.

I ordered a new cable for my laptop that afternoon and it arrived this morning (Monday) and I have spent most of the day working on the video...

I finally managed to upload it onto Passport at about 3:40pm today and hopefully it is approved by the Au Pair USA staff.. although sadly it has a stupid watermark in the centre of the screen.

Updates to my Application

I decided today that I was going to rewrite my 'Dear Host Family' letter for my application as it was suggested that I add some things to it.

It's actually really good that I did because I am much happier with the new letter and I feel that it is a little less in depth.

I am also planning on filming an application video this week. Should be good!! :)

Unfortunate Release

As I checked my emails this morning I was looking for one in particular, one from either Au Pair USA or from the host family. Sadly I got the one from Au Pair USA stating the my profile had been released.

This means that after my interview with the family, either they chose not to interview me again and that I would not be offered placement with them or they ran out of time with my profile.

So maybe it wasn't the family for me but I just have to keep positive about it all.

An Interesting Day

Today has been a bit of a hectic day!!!

To start off with I only got about two hours sleep due to our new puppy squealing and screeching all night, then I had to get everything sorted (washing, make-up and hair), wait for the washing to be done so that I could take it to the laundromat to go in the dryer, then get home and change clothes and then be at the library connected to their Wi-Fi all by 11am (NZST).

I managed to get all of that sorted in time and I just had to wait for the Skype call from the host family. It came and I saw the house and we talked about what I'd be doing and what I can do when the holidays come or when the family goes on Vacation.

We had a few difficulties with Skype (it stopped working) and we ended up talking on the phone about the rest.

I should hear back from them soon...

Looks like it could be all go from here....

Also if I do get offered placement with this family I would be leaving/arriving on Monday 6 July

First Contact

I am on view with a new family and a few hours after being notified of this I received a message from the family with some good news! They like my application profile and would like to talk with me via Skype!!

So we've organised a time and now I just have to wait... until tomorrow (Thursday 17 May) at 11am (NZST)/today (Wednesday 16 May) at 4pm (PST). I can't wait to talk to this family!

They are from a suburb in Phoenix, Arizona!!

That's all for now. Will write again after talking to the family :)

Takes a bit of perseverance...

The past couple of weeks have had their downs and up, and the downs were the worse of the two.

My mum tries to be as supportive as she can but sometimes she struggles to keep the positivity and she tells me that I shouldn't get my hopes up and that I shouldn't think that this is all going to work out.

I disagree with her about all of this and I believe that having hope in something and thinking that it'll work out is a good way to stay positive about what I am trying to do.

Then, in the weekend me and one of my friends were heading out, it was late and dark and we ended up in an accident which destroyed my car. I was in shock for a few hours and we both only ended up with a couple of bruises. The saddest thing about this is that I was going to sell my car so that I could pay for the Au Pair USA program fees.

The upside to all of this is that all the things that were in my car like seat covers, stereo and speakers were all worth a bit of money and so I can sell those things to make up for losing my car.

And despite all of this I still want to become an Au Pair this year and I still want to change my life through doing so, even though my family keeps telling me I should put it off for a year.

This is my choice and I want to keep on with my application and I don't want to back down because of one accident.

A Walk in the Rain

Today I changed the template for this blog and I thought that it would be cool if I could get some photos of my hometown to use as the background. I went out while it was sunny and I took a couple of nice photos that I could possibly use.
  

 

I thought about another place where I could get some cool photos and that place is called Rivendell, situated at Kaitoke Regional Park. For those of you who don't know what I am talking about, Rivendell is one of the locations used in the Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring.

I decided that I would make a good time of it and I picked up my little sister on the way.

After we arrived, unfortunately, it started raining and Rivendell just didn't want to be seen. In the end, because my sister wanted to go over the swingbridge, we ended up going for an hour long walk in the rain and took some photos along the way.

Surprisingly it was really nice to walk through this track in the rain.

 

The Matching Pool

I have officially been in the 'matching pool' for about a week and a half now and my profile is currently on view with my third (I think it's the third...or fourth?) family and I am really hoping that I get contacted by a family soon.

From what I've seen by trying to look at the family's profile I don't think that the host family side of 'Passport' is properly ready, but I wish it was. I would love to see the profile of the family that is viewing me.

Also for some reason, because of the notifications on 'Passport' each time my profile is released by a host family it makes me wonder if there is something about my profile that makes me seem off putting or troubling. I really hope that there isn't and I am trying not to doubt myself and I am trying to be as positive as I can about the whole situation.

To anyone else who is in the 'matching pool', how do you feel about everything that is going on?? and to all of you in the application process I wish you all the best with your application.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Yesterday my cousin and me decided that we wanted to bake and I really wanted to try making Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting..

Here is the result

These are 9 of the 72 mini cupcakes we made

This is the middle of one of the mini cupcakes

They are so YUMMY.........

A Random Thought

As the title states I have just had a random thought about something that I could do when I am away in America.

I love to cook and I really love to try new recipes or experiment with food so what I thought was that I could have another blog all about the food that I cook, taste and experience during my time in America.

Even if it it just a simple recipe from home or a new one from my host family, it could be anything from the differences between McDonald's in New Zealand and the McDonald's in America to the other types of food that I may try during my time away.

I would also love to hear from people who have recipes they recommend or if they try my recipes what they think of them.

That is my random thought for this evening... :D

Passport

Applying to be an Au Pair in the USA has been an interesting experience. The American partner, InterExchange, has launched a new application system called 'Passport' and at first it seemed like it was just an inconvenience because I had already filled in the paper application but now I really like it for the following reasons.

1. You can update your application with new photos whenever you want to.

2. If your contact details change you can change them on 'Passport' instead of having to contact your International Co-operator (Au Pair Link) and have them then contact the American partner.

3. The more child care experience you get, you can add that to your application too.

and some other things too....

I have completed my application and my current status on 'Passport' is Under Review.

I can't wait to hear from Host Families in the next few weeks...

Cafe Style Interview

Pre-interview:
2:18pm - Interview soon, a bit nervous. Thank goodness its a relaxed interview. What questions will I be asked? and how on earth am I going to answer them?

Post-interview:
3:30pm - Oh, well that wasn't so bad, it was actually quite nice.

4:45pm - I had my interview today (Wednesday) with a couple of really nice women. It was really relaxed and I felt really comfortable. We talked about things like culture differences, stress, family, study and a few other things. I truly feel that I answered the questions the best that I could.

Now that the interview is done I am really hoping things can continue to progress.

Interview time

Pre-interview: Today (Monday) I got a call from one of Au Pair Link's Wellington personnel to arrange a time for me to have my interview :) and I am so happy that it is this week, Wednesday to be exact.

Thankfully we are meeting in a little cafe. I'm one of those people who does better in a relaxed situation than in a very formal one.

Honestly I can't wait to have my interview so that I can (hopefully) enter the 'matching pool'.

The Big Clean Up

Ok, so in my application I put down that the earliest that I could fly into America is June 4th 2012 and I know that gives me plenty of time to do things but.....

Guess what I have been doing for the past two days.....? Cleaning, sorting and binning.

I have gone through almost every item in my bedroom and put each thing into one of four piles: keep and take with me, keep and store, not keep/sell and rubbish.

The keep and take pile consists of clothes, shoes, toiletries and books of various kinds. Naturally it is the smallest pile.

Next comes the keep and store pile. Now neatly arranged into boxes, there are currently four boxes and two sports bags of things to be stored, probably at one of my parents houses..... shhhh ;D

More than half of my stuff is currently sitting in boxes and bags and has been given the label of NOT KEEPING! It's sad to see so much of my stuff going but I realised that I don't really need it.

And last is the rubbish pile, sitting by my door waiting for me to take it to the landfill, which will probably be tomorrow... Surprisingly it is actually the biggest of the four piles :O

I know that its ages until I should even be thinking about this but I think that this is a good thing to get out of the way because it means that I don't have to think about it later on and have it stress me out. It also makes it easy for me to move in the mean time (if I have to....).

I am glad I have managed to get this done before the weekend... :)

Almost Finished!

So this week has been a quiet one for me due to having surgery on Tuesday and having to rest since then. I'm not allowed to work for the next six (6) weeks so that gives me heaps of time to complete my application.

I have just scanned almost all of the documents I need onto the computer and I have just realised that I only have two forms left to scan and then I've got all the forms done.

I am just waiting on my second childcare reference and the medical form, and I need a couple more photos and then its all done.

I can't believe that I have almost finished my application already!

Application Changes

Ok so as I said I have paperwork that we want to have completed by the end of March. I started filling in the form that was used for the application to be an Au Pair in the USA and I was almost finished when I got an email from Au Pair Link saying that their USA Partner agency has just introduced an online application this week and that I have to fill it out there.

So I clicked the link and it took me to the online application and asked me to login/set a password so I can save my work. I did all that and then got on with answering the questions and ticking any boxes that I needed to.

I have completed Part 1 of the application and most of Part 2. Currently I am stuck on the photos section. I have clicked the upload new photos link and it says click the browse button and select media. Ummm.... what browse button??? Its not there and I really would like to start uploading some of my photos.

I have some really cool pictures that I want to use but the online application just wont let me. GRRR...

So for now I'll just put a couple up here..

This is me and my cousins baby in 2008

This is me and my nephew Nikora-Sharne in 2011

And this is me and my nephew Nikora-Sharne when he was newborn

So there we are.

A New Choice

Unemployment sucks!

We all know that having a job is a very important part of growing up. Well I have been struggling in the job department and I started thinking that I needed to look at a few more options.

I have wanted to be an actor for many years now and here in New Zealand I know that the industry just isn't large enough, I've worked in Hospitality and Customer Service but I don't feel like that is my true calling.

Over the past couple of years I have done quite a lot of babysitting and one of my friends mentioned that I should try making a career out of it.

So I started Google searching full time babysitting jobs and one of the results was a website called Au Pair Link. I checked it out and saw that it was the exact thing that I was looking for.

I searched the whole website and saw that they offered overseas placement, and that they have placements in the USA.

After a couple of days of thinking I decided to apply with them and see what happened.

Well that was last Friday that I applied and today I got a call saying that we are going to try and get my paperwork all completed and in by the end of March. :)

It's so exciting to finally find something that I am good at.

So now I have so many things to get sorted....