Things that annoy you about your aupair...

[ChocolateBiscuitCake]

Have just given the au pair the heave-ho and a huge weight has lifted. However, I am now enduring the two week notice period with a stroppy teenager.

Thought I would start a lighthearted thread on the annoying things that they do mine does:

Empty the dishwasher but after 6 months still not know where everything goes, so leave it on the side.

Filling the dishwasher with cleaned things left on the side of the sink to dry.

Hoover around things on the floor (rather than put them away). Definitely no hoovering behind doors!

Always let the dog lie in the only ground floor room with carpet, mostly when wet (when specifically told, no dog in this room).

Feed the fat dog treats (we don't have any, she has bought her own!).

The list goes on.

Any one else able to add their experiences?

I don't need support about my nightmare au pair...just a good rant!

Like a good rant about lots of things (people) on MN: mil, PIL, dp's, friends...most threads on Aibu!!!

Above all said slightly tongue in cheek (and after another sleepless night filled with cramps and heartburn, which admittedly makes me a little less forgiving) and I accept the title could have been less inflammatory.

Right, off to hide Easter eggs (for the fat lab to eat!)!

Happy Easter!

It's the employer/employee relationship which makes it difficult.

It's not acceptable to rant about all sorts of things on a chat forum. For instance, teachers don't rant about their individual pupils, and I wouldn't expect carers to rant about their patients, among other things.

It's just not professional.

There's nothing wrong with hiring help! But starting an au pair bashing thread is totally unprofessional and rude OP! I'm a nanny and if I found my employers had done this I would be sitting them down for a long chat about respect! If you have issues with youe staff talk to her not a forum full of strangers.

Op, if you were to start a thread on AIBU titled "Things that annoy you about your MIL" etc., they would hang your hide out to dry!

Especially as the things in your OP really don't sound that bad.

You're not entitled to slag anyone off, no matter how pissed off you are.

You seem very immature.

Of course you can OP, but maybe see it as a learning curve.
Did you put it in the contract, Do not use the land line to make any calls? Did you ask the phone company to block outgoing calls? Did the Aupair sign your house rules stating calls must only be made via wifi and that any calls on landline must be paid by the au pair?
There are friends and family deals you can add to your phoneline to give you free calls to certain countries (not to mobile numbers).
Did you approach the au pair with the bill and ask her to pay?
In my contract i clearly state the rules for mobile and home phone usage, the mobile is a capped contract so its impossible to run up bills, and i clearly state that any damage bills etc is to be covered by the ap. She signs and keeps a copy of the house rules.
If I were you I would have asked the au pair to pay the bill, but if you hadnt made it clear then where do you stand?

Tanith that's already happened here.

You seem very immature.

'Classic' MN putdown, there...

Any more entrants for the Queen of the Comeback Cliche Award 2015?

Have no PPs yet uttered the crappy 'classic' "OP, you seem very entitled" trope yet?

This thread late April fool effort, right?

So true, July.

I also noted 'they would hang your hide out to dry' on AIBU - so it's immature/ rude/ shocking etc. to have a rant at someone who just racked up a £1000 phone bill, among other things, but it's perfectly fine to lash out at them in return and call them all sorts of names, preferably as a pack?

OP - I have had many au pairs, some great, others less so, and sometimes living with them is really tough. One thing I've learnt is to never ever complain or even ask for advice about it here.

July; that was my point! The Op seemed to think that AIBU is made up of similarly titled rants about MILs, PILs etc.. It's not. She'd be pulled up there, too - far more harshly than here.

I challenge the Op to start a similar thread on the nursery section about nursery workers and see the reaction she gets there.
No?

So why is an au pair fair game?

There's nothing wrong with hiring childcare. However, if you want someone to look after a house, three children and a dog, then you need to find someone more qualified and experienced than an au pair, who are often just teenagers themselves. Of course, the pay will reflect this! OP, you have now recognised this, and have hired a nanny. Au pairs are supposed to be an extra pair of hands and a part of the family - you can expect them to do some basic hoovering and childcare, but you can't expect the childcare or cleaning standards of a nanny or housekeeper. If you want things done to that standard, hire a nanny and housekeeper, or do some of the work yourself and get an aupair to fill in the gaps.

chocolatebiscuit to the £1,000 phone bill.. OMG.. she'd be out on her ear from my house too.

I'm interested in the number of people on this thread who have never had childcare and feel that it makes you an unfit / lazy parent... Did you stumble on this area of the forum by accident? Were you looking for the 'smug / frazzled / sanctimonious parent-care only' area? If so.. you missed it.. this is the area for Parents who need / want / fancy getting our little darlings looked after by SOMEONE ELSE WHO WANTS THE JOB.

I'm sure the OP didn't kidnap her au pair and force her into labour against her will (although if you did, OP.. tut tut, put her back :-) )

Mine used all my truffle oil and I found her eating my caviar on a slice of warburtons! The final straw was when she brought fabreeze instead of my usual citrus infused room sprays... Well she just had to go! Back to the Ukraine with you Magda, I bellowed.

I am joking, I don't have an au pair. But if I did I'd work them like a dog the way I am feeling today!

Olb... the waxing story! Hahaha
Wow
Shocked
Bet you kept her on despite it.
In my experience, au pairs are people. I annoy them more than they annoy me, I'm sure.
I've been an au pair three times. Can't say I loved it but it WAS a good experience, each time - in retrospect. I grew up, became more responsible and enjoyed my relationships with the children for whom I cared.
My experience pf MN threads on au pairs has been that most who actually comment are completely biased and have never had or been one. (So aren't wirth taking any notice of, OP).

On MN an aupair must be included in everything a family does, must do nothing more strenuous than walk children to school and must never ever do any housekeeping. In my experience most aupairs do a combination of childcare and housekeeping including, shock horror, cleaning toilets.

I had aupairs for years, I was always very clear that the role would include cleaning and ironing as well as childcare we never had a separate cleaner. I also included babysitting every Saturday night for no extra pay and you know what it was fine!

All our aupairs stayed a minimum of a year, the second last stayed 20 months and our last aupair stayed 2.5 years. They stayed because we were clear about our expectations from the start, we supported them when they dealt with the children and we made sure that the children treated them with respect. We also paid a decent salary: £80 a week for a 20 hour aupair with minimal childcare responsibilities and £120 a week for 30 hours where they had more sole care. At times I was a SAHM with an aupair, at other times I was working and they did pre and after school care.

Like a previous poster said, it gave DH and I a social life and it meant we never had to drag all children out to activities. We don't have an aupair anymore as we reached the point where we felt that we wanted our house back and the children are a bit older but I imagine we must be terrible people to work for as I've just spent 2 hours having a coffee with our old aupair who has stayed in the area, who facetimes the children regularly and who is coming to stay with my mum for 3 nights later this year whilst DH and I go away although I guess that she shouldn't be doing that as she was only an aupair, not someone who is 25 and who we have known for 3.5 years who the children adore and who will get £250 for her time even though she offered to do it for free.