The weekend at Carla's house was abslutely fantastic! She is another au pair girl from Switzerland, she and I have been getting along very well. She is a lot of fun and know the Boston area very well as she drives the children around a lot. She speaks German and invites German speaking au pairs once a month to her house. Her host parents go to New York to visit their relatives. This is a nice chance for us to get together. I guess my social life has not been bad here, I can't complain. Carla can cook great Italian food. She knows where to shop and how to shop. We bought so much stuff at the season end sales, I hope I can take all of it to Germany. I don't know how she knows so much, she is only 23 years old. I guess I have a lot to learn from her.

Finally, the summer is about to arrive. Host family is already planning to take us all to Martha's Vineyard. I heard nice things about the place from other au pairs, it's supposed to be a favorite summer place for the Boston families. My host mom said we can go in July for a week. I'll be working and won't be using my vacation time, which is really nice. All au pairs also get a month at the end of their stay to travel and two weeks vacation during their work! There are so many places I want to see. This country is huge! A group of au pairs are going to California soon, I wish I could go. They will travel the west for 3 weeks. I will try to get a group together like this. It will be more fun, safer and cheaper to travel in groups. My host mom says I shouldn't go alone if I want to travel such distance. I guess I should start working on this now so that everyone can start planning!

I took my first real vacation with the family last week. It was amazing. We went to Orlando Florida. I absolutely loved Florida. It was such a nice break from Boston weather. Sunshine, Disney World and Sea World, wow. I want to go back there with my friends when my au pair job is over. It's a must see for children and adults who feel young! Sea World was my favorite. The dolphins are the cutest creatures on earth. I had to share a room with the children, but it didn't matter. I love traveling, I wish I could get a job traveling the world after my au pair job!

Play date today with Tanya (another au pair from Brazil) and her host children was a success. Nothing is broken in the house, thanks to little Aidan (toddler!). It is very cold outside and I don't want to even leave the house nowadays.I have to keep the kids entertained! My friend Tanya and her young charge came over to our house. Tanya is an au pair from Brazil who lives close to our house. It was nice not to leave the house in a cold day, but cleaning up afterward wais not fun. We all had a good time even though Aidan was all over the place. There is no way stopping him until he takes a nap. Tanya has to run after him all day, he never stops. I don't know how he gets his energy but I am glad I am not taking care of a 2 year old boy.

My first and probably the last Thanksgiving holiday here. Host mom invited her sister and her family. Really nice people, but kids are a handfull. She has 2 boys who are so active I ended up with a headache in the afternoon. My head couldn't take that much screaming. I think the children were excited to see their relatives. They asked me questions non stop about Gernany and asked me how to say everything in German.

Host mom got up at 6 in the morning to cook a turkey. I can say this was the biggest turkey I've seen in my life. She made so much food, I wasn't sure how many people were invited. We ended up eating the leftovers the next day as well. I have to admit she is an outstanding cook. Too bad she can't cook too often because she works too much at her job. The next morning, host dad went shopping for the latest gadgets, his specialty computers, while host mom, her sister, children and I ran to the department stores. As if I need to shop more, I found great gifts for the kids and one of my au pair friends. Our coordinator has a party in a few weeks and I have to find a gift for her as well. She has been very nice to all of the au pairs here. I really like her and give her something to remember me. I have no idea what to buy for my host dad and mom. I can't buy anything expensive, something that they can use and remember me. I can't think of anything, it seems like they have everything. I need to do some research and find the perfect gift. I can't believe Christmas is really close.