Avery: Au Pair or Superhero?

Unfortunately, just an au pair.

The short version of what you’re about to read: This was my first week as an au pair. It was both stressful and rewarding. The kids are cute, but sometimes they scream. I am excited to see what the future has in store for me.

1 September: While I was riding on one of the trains to Nijmegen, I accidentally sat in the first class, but I had no idea! The conductor told me I needed to move, but a lady, or perhaps she was an angel, gave me an extra first class upgrade that she had so I wouldn’t have to move. I am forever grateful for the kindness of strangers! I arrived in Nijmegen and Malte and his parents picked me up in a huge van after spending the day moving Malte into his new apartment. We went out to dinner at a delicious restaurant where I ate flatbread with mozzarella and pesto. For those who know me, this was a huge step up from my typical order of French fries and water. After dinner Malte and I went to his apartment and hung out there for a while. Then we went on a walk in his town and we stopped to play jenga with some guys who live in his building. They were high, but I think that’s part of the full Dutch experience. It was fun to spend time with Malte again because I hadn’t seen him since he left the US in 2017.

2 September: Malte and I woke up and had a very nutritious breakfast of bread and Nutella. I had to leave his apartment fairly early because my train was departing to Bamberg at 9:24. I had a large suitcase, a small suitcase, and my backpack, so this day was jam packed with embarrassing moments of me struggling to get myself and my luggage on a bus and 5 different trains. It will be one of those days that I will look back on and laugh at myself for. My last train finally arrived in Bamberg at 6 PM and my family was there to greet me as I got off! The boys were eager to help me with my luggage which was really cute. When we arrived at my new home, the boys gave me a brief tour of the house. They love to read and the Werner’s have a huge selection of English books for the au pair to read, so after the tour, I read a few books to them. After dinner and after the boys went to bed, I went down to my new room and unpacked my things. The parents then gave me an official tour of my space. Here are some pictures that showcase the luxury I am living in:

3 September: This was my first full day of working as an au pair. It was equal parts stressful and exhausting, but that’s to be expected living in a new country with a family of basically strangers. In the morning, I learned where the boy’s kindergarten is. It’s a cute yellow building and it’s within walking distance of the house. Right now, only the older boy is attending kindergarten. We also went to the Rathaus (city hall) to register me as a citizen of the city and we went to the bank to set up my bank account. I spent some time playing with the younger boy and he is sweet, but he is two, so tantrums are not a rarity. I picked up the older boy from kindergarten for the first time by myself and when we got home, he wanted me to read a book with him. He is very smart and he’s four years old and speaks fluent English and German! The rest of this day was pretty uneventful, so I will spare the details.

4 September: I woke up at about 8:30 and I got dressed and ready for the day. The Werner’s have a bike for me to use, so I went on a ride to do some exploring and I found the path that goes directly into the Bamberg city center. It’s about a 20 minute bike ride, but the city center is filled with shops, restaurants, cafes and lots of other places to have fun. On this morning, I got coffee, went shopping, and I bought a new shirt at h&m. Not surprisingly, shopping makes Bamberg feel like home. At noon, I picked up the older boy from kindergarten and when we got home we ate lunch and played. We made a “Stopkeller” (or a stop sign) out of paper. The boys also saw the friendship bracelet I have on my ankle from Chloe and they both wanted to have one too. So we spent about an hour making friendship bracelets for both of their arms and legs. This was a really cute moment that I want to remember.

5 September: This day presented quite a few challenges for me. I woke up and brought the older boy to kindergarten and when I got home, we ate breakfast and I babysat the younger one. He and I had a bit of a disagreement, so he had a terrible, terrible tantrum. He was screaming for his mom and he ran outside the front door, and I ran after him and we ended up getting locked out of the house! So, I just sat down on the steps and let him scream. He kept yelling at me to go back inside, but I didn’t because I am a strong woman (and because we were locked out). Eventually, he got so mad at me for staying outside, that he threw a rock at me. As I’m writing this story, I am laughing about how this moment was both parts insane and funny. He cried for about 20 minutes and then he finally stopped and we played in the backyard like nothing happened. 2 year olds are weird. After the mother got home, we ate lunch and I played with the older boy for a while. Then I was free and I went into the city center. I went shopping, got ice cream and had dinner at a restaurant called “Little Italy Bamberg”. I also was in the more tourist-oriented areas of the city so I heard a lot of Americans speaking, which was refreshing.

6 September: I woke up and we ate breakfast as a family. We rode our bikes into the city to go to a really cool park. There is a part of the park that has water and the older boy ended up falling in. Thankfully it wasn’t deep water, but I still went in after him. We were both soaking wet! After he got over the initial shock of falling in the water, both the boys were happy to splash around and play. For lunch we ate at a cute cafe that is in the park area. Then the dad took me on a formal tour of the city. Bamberg has a lot of history and most of the architecture is still original because it was not destroyed in World War 2. I learned a lot about the city and the university I will be attending starting in October. Afterwards, we went home and I had one hour to relax. Then we all loaded up in the car and drove to the parents’ hometown. The dad is part of a quintet and they were playing at an event for one of the mayoral candidates for the town we were in. It was a very interesting event for me to attend and it was very relieving to know that there are politicians who act fake all over the world, not just America! After the party we played at a park and then we went to the house we were staying at and the boys went to bed and I enjoyed some brezel and lebkuchen that the mom had bought for me.

7 September: I got to sleep in this day. We woke up at ate breakfast as a family including the mom’s parents, Inga and Gunther, and the dad’s sister. We had a big, delicious breakfast spread and it was nice to meet more of the family. After we packed the van back up, we drove to a petting zoo that had lots of great playgrounds for the boys to play at. The grandparents also came along. This was a lot of fun and it was cool to see how a German petting zoo differs from an American one. When we got home, I relaxed and then I went into the city center. I went shopping, ate ice cream, ate French fries, and I bought some chocolate bars for me to eat when I got home. When I got home, I ate both chocolate bars and I watched a few movies and went to bed. (Just so you know, vacation calories don’t count, and I am on vacation for the next two years.)

8 September: Now it’s Sunday and I am at a coffee shop, using their free Wifi to my advantage. I did so much in this first week, and all though there were moments where I myself wanted to have a tantrum, those moments are nothing compared to the moments where we are all smiling and laughing together. Not to sound sappy, but the homesickness goes away when one of the boys grabs my hand to show me something or asks me to help them do something they’re just too little to do on their own. They are cute little monsters and I like them a lot. I know this is going to be an amazing and rewarding experience for me. And shoutout to the moms everywhere, you the real ones. I am so excited for the weeks to come because I am meeting another girl who is here as an au pair for coffee this week. Britt and I also booked a trip to Vienna for the first week in October. This truly is a European adventure!