In January, I moved to Perth in Western Australia to go work as an Au Pair for a lovely family. While I was so upset to leave my friends behind in Sydney, I was looking forward to a new challenge and new adventures.
What is an Au Pair?
An Au Pair is someone who lives with a host family and helps out with childcare and housework in exchange for food, board and pocket money. Hours of work will vary depending on what the family needs.
I’ve been really lucky with the family I chose. We have been on some adventures, live in a lovely area and have great fun together. I help out with 4 children aged between 1 and 10 years old. The 2 oldest are at school during the day so I really only help out with the 2 little ones. The children nap during the day so I usually have time for myself during their naps. Family Dad works shifts so there are some weeks I don’t ‘work’ as much as others, so I do get a lot of free time.
A Day in the Life of an Au Pair
7:00am
I wake up, shower, and get ready for the day. When I’m ready, I head to the kitchen to make a cup of tea and maybe some breakfast. The 2 oldest children are getting ready for school and the 2 youngest are having breakfast. After breakfast, there’s the school run, playtime, and watching kids shows on Netflix. Then it’s time for the youngest to have their first nap of the day which usually lasts around an hour.
10:00am
Littlest one wakes up from their nap and we have more play time. Around 11-11:30am, it’s time to start thinking about lunch for the children before they both go for a nap. Lunch usually consists of fruit and a sandwich of some kind. Then it’s time to make bottles for the children and put them to bed for a nap. When the children are napping, I can have a chill out, have some lunch and watch something on Netflix.
2:00pm
The children are awake and ready for a snack and playtime. It’s also almost time to collect the 2 oldest children from school. They come home from school and usually play on technology for the afternoon. We continue with playtime and watching shows on Netflix. The youngest will probably go down for a final daytime nap around 3pm.
5:00pm
Parents are home and I can relax. It’s usually time to the children to eat dinner and have bath time so I’m around as an extra pair of hands. This is roughly around the time when I may call home and speak to my family.
7:00pm
Children all in bed, it’s time for the adults to have dinner. We usually hang out, watch some tv and chat until late. Time to get ready for bed, have a good sleep and get ready to do it all again tomorrow.
How can I find work as an Au Pair?
Like me, you can put an advert on social media – I used Facebook. Host families post on social media too so by posting to social media sites, you can both respond to each other. You will see plenty of ads and you will get a lot of responses if you post an ad yourself. It can be a little overwhelming.
I put my advert out, introducing myself and put about my experiences and what I was looking for. I had so many responses in a very short amount of time. I spoke to a few families that really stood out and had a video call with the wonderful family I have come to work for. We clicked straight away and I’m happy to say that I’ve been with them for only a month and feel like I’ve been part of the family for years.
Note: Working as an Au Pair is not for everyone. It can be challenging, especially if you don’t have much experience with children. Looking after young children or children with additional needs can bring extra challenges. You need to be adaptable and take everything in your stride. If you do choose to work as an Au Pair, I promise you it is rewarding and great fun. I have enjoyed every minute so far.
Shout out to my amazing Aussie family. Thank you for making me feel so welcome and making me part of your family.
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