Christmas is a time for giving and receiving. The holiday season is a useful opportunity for both families and au pairs to take full advantage of the benefits that can enrich each other's lives.

By definition, the term au pair means "on a par with" or "equal to," the principle being that your helper is a fully-fledged member of the family while you are hosting them.

So what can you do, as your au pair's employer, to ensure Christmas really is the happiest season of all? Read on to find out!

"All I Want for Christmas Is..."

It's not uncommon to be more than a little envious of friends or family who run households that always appear immaculate to the last detail. The most galling part is that they can make it all seem so effortless. Do you want to know their secret?

You can bet your bottom dollar that there's a well-devised plan behind every perfect home. Starting early to prepare for Christmas will pay dividends. It helps manage the expectations of everyone involved, including your au pair.

There is likely to be a long list of dependencies to consider. These include:

• How and where you and your family intend to spend Christmas
• What your au pair prefers to do in the holidays and how this fits with your plans
• The amount of leave your au pair has left

The best advice is to start thinking and talking about Christmas early so that no one gets left out or disappointed. It's also important to establish whether Christmas is an event your au pair celebrates at all.

Get Leave Sorted First

Before you begin any conversations, check how much leave your au pair is likely to have over the holiday season. Although there is an emotional dimension to having an au pair in your home, as an employer, your role is to manage the "family business," first and foremost.

Au pairs have the same entitlements as any other employees. These often involve the rules around public holidays and annual leave. These rules can be complex and hard to keep track of. If you use Pay The Nanny, you'll be able to see in an instant how much leave your au pair has accrued, knowing that they'll get paid correctly too.

Paid and Unpaid leave

You may have your own Christmas wish list. You might, for example, be planning to travel with the family and have your au pair in tow. But, how will that work with public holidays and what happens if your au pair has their eye on an adventure trip with some friends instead?

Trickier still, what happens if they have their heart set on the tour but don't have enough leave left to cover the time off?

All these issues are up for negotiation. You may be able to persuade your au pair that joining you and your family on a trip offers greater benefits. If you're happy for them to go their own way, you may be able to build in some unpaid holiday if they've run out of leave. It may also be feasible to agree that they go into "negative" leave which they would then build back in the future.

”I’ll Be Home for Christmas, You Can Count On Me”

For some young people who are away from home for the first time, Christmas in a strange country with a family who may speak a different language can be challenging. There may be a lot of complex emotions going on for them to process.

Be mindful of homesickness issues and on the lookout for any signs that your au pair may be struggling with being away from home.

You can help by making your au pair feel welcome, included and part of the family. So, if you're planning to stay at home for Christmas, give your au pair an outline of what they should expect well in advance. There may be barbecues or parties you and the kids are planning to go to, for example. Make sure they know they're welcome to join you too.

There are likely to be cultural differences in how you spend the holiday season. You should see these as opportunities to learn from one another. Ultimately, this is a chance for you to make special memories with your au pair by learning and sharing new traditions and customs.

Working Over Christmas

It could be that what works best for both you and your au pair is for them to help at home over the holiday period. If you are working, it could be exactly the kind of time that you wanted to employ an extra pair of hands to help out at such a busy time.

There tend to be a lot of last-minute jobs to get done. Those could include running errands or simply making more time to spend playing with the kids while you take care of the final bits of Christmas shopping.

You could also, for example, get them working on some special Christmas table decorations with the children. They might also be able to show the kids how to make some Christmas treats to give elderly relatives as gifts.

What Should I Buy My Au Pair for Christmas?

Because your au pair is part of the family, at least temporarily, you should include them on your Christmas present list. Many young people who work as au pairs intend to travel with their earnings once they've worked out their contracts.

You should go for gifts that add value to this experience. Cash is always a clear winner. But, how much is too much or too little? Saying "thank you" is important but there can be dependencies. Performance and affordability can be key drivers.

A typical figure to spend on a gift for a full-time au pair at Christmas would be between 1 to 2 weeks net salary. That is though simply a useful rule of thumb.

You could also add in a travel gift so that they have something to open on the big day itself. This could be a quick-drying towel or a water bottle, for example. The important point is to make sure your au pair feels included and that you have taken time to consider them over the holidays.

It's not unheard of for some families to even welcome the friends of their au pairs into their homes for Christmas if they've been unable to get home and have nowhere else to go.

Some Typical Kiwi Foodie Favourites

Find out what traditional foods your au pair eats during the holiday season where they usually live. You could try incorporating a few ideas into your seasonal menu. You might even ask them to prepare some local dishes for you and the family to try.

You should also share some top Kiwi classics. Kiwis tend to celebrate with a barbecue or hāngī. Although some families still cook a hearty traditional roast lunch of turkey and all the trimmings, others may opt for a simple barbecue or beachside picnic. Whatever your choice, it's going to feel exotic and different if your au pair comes from far away.

You might also want to introduce your au pair to New Zealand's iconic Christmas dessert, the Kiwi classic pavlova, topped with plenty of whipped cream and summer berries.

Here's a fail-safe recipe for this meringue-based dessert with a crisp outer shell and soft, light interior.

Ingredients

• 4 egg-whites
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 350-millilitre cream, whipped
• 4 bananas, peeled, sliced
• A small punnet of strawberries, sliced into smallish pieces
• 3 kiwifruit, peeled, sliced
• Pulp of 5 passionfruit
• 
  

Method

• Preheat oven to 150°C. Line a baking tray with baking or grease-proof paper.
• In a wide, clean bowl, beat egg the whites with an electric mixer in a large, clean bowl until they form soft peaks.
• Gradually add in the sugar, beating until it dissolves and the foam becomes glossy, stiff and thick. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla extract.
• Spoon the mixture onto the prepared baking tray to form a 20cm round.
• Bake for 20 minutes. Then, reduce the heat in the oven to very slow, 120°C, and bake for another 45 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the pavlova to cool in the oven, with the door slightly open to let it dry out fully.
• Once cool, top with the whipped cream, strawberries, bananas, and kiwifruit. Drizzle with passionfruit just before serving.

Happy Holidays!

Hosting an au pair at Christmas can be a little like having a far-away relative coming to visit. It has a few extra dimensions, not least the extra help your au pair can offer you during such a busy period.

Plan leave and time off well ahead to make sure everyone gets the Christmas they're dreaming of. Be a little extra mindful too because Christmas can throw up a lot of home-sickness emotions for those far away from home.



Find out more about how Pay The Nanny can help you keep track of leave and paid holidays.