No-maid: Week 2.

We've been through several more biodata, but still couldn't find a suitable candidate. As it's now the Hari Raya fasting month followed by Raya itself, it's hard to get an Indonesian now.
We looked at Myanmese maids but most of them are very fussy and not willing to look after babies and young children.
Sometimes I wonder whether these maids are genuinely here to earn a living or to have an all-expenses paid holiday. Throw in free medical checkups every 6-monthly.

We showed some interview video clips to Adam, and he had explicitly declared that he does not want another maid.

It's hard to blame him I guess, especially when our previous maid liked to mimic the children crying or whining.
Or when she starts singing out-of-tune music. It makes him extremely annoyed.
When we sent her off to the airport, he wasn't sad or emotional or sad at all.

Right now, we're still trying to find the balance between work, family and housework.
Everyday is like a race against time - soaking and washing kids' clothes, adult clothes, boil water, mop the floor once every 2 days, wash and sterilise bottles, prepare Adam's uniform and school bag.
We've engaged a part-time maid to come in on Sunday when Adam is at swim class, to do the major chores like scrubbing toilets and general cleaning.

I've never been one to baby-talk to my children, and I always make it a point to listen to Adam's opinions and decisions, especially when it comes to family matters.
I feel it is important to respect and listen to our children's needs, so when Adam resisted the idea of having another maid, Andy & I discussed it and decided to KIV the maid plan for now.

I just hope I can continue to cope! What worries me is when the time comes for me to supervise Adam's school-work or attend to Ashton's growing needs, I cannot split myself into so many persons.



AIYO my slitty-eyed baby Ashton Tan Tian Yang.



Mr Adam Tan Tian Kai #likeabigboss



Adam snapped a photo of me using my Canon Powershot. This boy loves taking photos, just like me!
I'm about to go wash the kids' clothes :P
 

It sure is exhausting as hell, but the smiles on my children's faces make my daily fight and struggles worth while. 

 

Story about my maid, and how I manage without live-in help.

When my maid initially told me she did not intend to extend her WP but instead wanted to go back to Indonesia, I was in a panic.
Who was going to get the chores done?
Who was going to help out with the kids? Especially at meal times with family and friends?
Who was going to keep tabs on the perishables in the household?

However, when push comes to shove, you will somehow find your inner strength.
It's been a week without maid for us now.

On retrospect, I thought of the advantages of having live-in help, but also examined the cons of it.


Advantages of live-in help:

- Housework is taken care of, obviously.

- Can spend the time on kids instead of doing chores.

- Having an extra pair of hands at home who can help to receive parcels / deliveries / open door for groomer to pickup & dropoff Mavy / etc.


Disadvantages of live-in help:

Ever heard of the saying "Too many cooks spoil the soup"?
This is what happens when you have 3 women overseeing to the care of your children and household: my MIL, helper and I.
Whenever an instruction has to be passed down, it must be repeated at least twice to the different people. There is also miscommunication, the most common being "I dunno Mam, Ah Ma didn't tell me".
Sometimes, I feel that rather than instructing over and over, it would be faster to accomplish the task myself.


Initially, she was quite good in her work and attitude.
But subsequently, she started getting lazy and even started comparing with other maids on her off days (her friends / relatives who work as maids in Singapore).

- She told me her ex-employer would often drive her and another maid (they had 2 maids) up to KL where their 2nd property was.

- She also said her cousin, who has been working in a family in Singapore for 10 years, is very lucky as her employers bring her travelling on their family trips. Most recently to Hong Kong.

- She told my MIL that her friend, who just came to work in Singapore as a maid, is getting $500/mth with 1 day off per week.

- More things got damaged / lost in the span of her living with us than without.

- Detergents and soap get used up more quickly because she is quite wasteful.

In the grand scheme of things, such matter may seem trivial, but they can indeed be helluva annoying.



So how do I cope without a maid?
- I do the chores in instalments - when the kids are sleeping / when Andy is playing with them.

- I buy diapers / milk powder and household detergents in bulk so that I do not have to frequently keep tabs on them running out.

- Andy helps out in the night when we are all asleep because he sleeps late while I sleep early.

And introducing.... a mighty hardworking machine called Rainbow:

Child labour



Sucking every nook and corner

Rainbow comes equipped a special nozzle for washing of mattresses, and an assortment of other brushes / nozzles which have bristles made of horse hair.
Short of performing kinky favours, it pretty much does everything from mopping of floor to cleaning of mattress to purifying the air.

[Media event] Baby Bjorn carrier One VIP Launch party.

As a parent, you must have heard of or personally experienced a child who resists sitting in a stroller.

Ashton is one such baby, therefore for the first time in motherhood, despite having another baby  before, I'm using a carrier extensively on Ashton. Bless my petite body!

 

Today, I am very honoured to be invited to the VIP launch party of Baby Bjorn's new carrier, the BABYBJÖRN Carrier One.

The many different ways of baby-wearing with this new carrier.

The ambassadors giving their opinions about Carrier One.

With one of the Ambassadors, Taufik, and his 13 mth old daughter.

Speech by Executive Director of Mothercare, Ms Pang Shu Min, on the evolution of Baby Bjorn carriers.

Live demo on the carrier.

Talk on body mechanics and common physiological problems in parents and children, by Paediatric physiotherapist Ms Aparna, from Physioinmotion.



Trying out the Carrier One on Ashton. He looks all wrapped up but he was actually very comfortable in it. I give it 2 thumbs up!

The event ended with refreshments for everyone.

 

Did you know that the first Baby Bjorn carrier was born 40 years ago? That's 10 years before I was even born!

 

As I was pre-occupied in the previous month working with VW for their photoshoot and launch of their new GTI, I missed the trial of Carrier One as one of its ambassadors prior to the launch. Pity!

Having personally used the Bjorn Active and Synergy, and now the all new Carrier One, I would say my favourite of the 3 is Carrier One.

Firstly, the weight is distributed on your hips instead of your shoulders and back so you do not feel the strain. Once the staff helped me prop Ashton inside, I immediately felt the positive difference!

I even walked around in it for a while to trial it.

 

Secondly, with the new function of carrying it with your baby on your back, it allows you to wear older children. As Taufik's wife, a work-from-home-mum (WFHM) shared with me, she said it was handy as she carried her daughter on her back hence she was able to bake her orders with ease.

 

 

Function:

I'm rating Carrier One's function 5 stars because it has surpassed my expectations of a baby carrier.
Previous Bjorn carriers allowed for baby to be worn in front, but Carrier One allows parents to wear their babies front- or parent-facing, as well as being worn on parents' backs.

It wears better than my current Synergy even with my 10kg, 10 month old baby in it.

The guideline states for use up to 15kg.

 

 

 

Design:

Not only it is made of the same mesh material as Synergy, it also did not compromise the aesthetics part of a carrier. To be honest, I love fashion, but the back panel of the Synergy creases my blouses. This Carrier One does not have the panel on the back, so that's definitely a plus!

The only thing is I wish they came up with other colours instead of just black. I would love to see it in White, or even bi-coloured.

Apart from colour choices, I also feel that the closure clasps of Carrier One do not give me as much peace-of-mind as the Synergy, in which the former uses snap-clasps VS the latter uses slot-in pins about 3 inches long to secure.

 

 

 

Cost:

At a whooping cost of $289, not all parents can bear to part with such money on a carrier, especially first-time parents who do not know whether their baby would like being strapped in a carrier.

Same goes to buying anything expensive for our babies (Jumperoo, exersaucer, stroller) - it's a gamble.

 

 

Overall, I would still recommend the Carrier One for the following reasons:

- If you do not drive.
- If you often go out with baby alone and need hands-free to carry diaper/shopping bag.

- Traveling to not-so stroller-friendly countries like Hong Kong and Bangkok.

- Value-for-money carrier which can be used from birth to toddlerhood.

- Short trip to nearby mall / supermarket and do not want to block shopping aisles with your stroller.

- Convenience of not having to wait for elevators at crowded malls as you can easily take escalator while wearing your baby.

 

 

My only grouse is, why didn't Bjorn design this marvellous carrier 10 months earlier!

 



My Saturdate at Park Royal on Pickering.

In the days preceding the departure of our helper, Hubby decided to book a spa appointment for the two of us at St Gregory, situated at Park Royal hotel on Pickering.

 

Such couple dates are much cherished, because God knows when we will be able to enjoy such dates again in the near future.

 

We arrived slightly earlier to enjoy the infinity pool.

The view was captivating.

I could do this all day!

Sipping bubbly and eating samosas, simply lazing around and whiling the afternoon away.

 The waters and perfect weather provided such respite.

Keeping it simple: beating the heat with my Raybans (matching with Hub's) and Hermes Oran slippers.

 

 

After that, it was time for our spa appointment where the skilled masseuse kneaded and pulled and pressed and tugged.

Thank you Hubby for constantly spoiling me. For loving me.

source: tinyme on Facebook.

 

 

 

My week as a SAHM: Adam's new Nursery and maid updates.

I'm on leave this week - Yay!

Adam starts Nursery in his new school this month, so I decided to be with him the first couple of days.

 

This is our daily routine:

 

6AM: Wake up and get myself ready for the day.

6:30M: Ashton wakes up for milk.

7:30AM: Wakes sleepyhead Adam up to wash up and get changed into his uniform.

 

 

 7:50AM: Waits for school bus downstairs. Needs to hold Mummy's hand before boarding bus.
Love my Mama's boy so much!

 

8:15AM: The kids reach school. I arrived early on my own to wait for him since I'm not allowed onto the kiddy bus.

This is the canteen where the kids have tea break at 9:15AM - 9:30AM.

 8:30AM: Assembly and into their classrooms they go. This is their courtyard and classroom area.

 

Different classes take turns at the playground.
They have such large premises!

 

Surprise, surprise!! From my Facebook status, I found out my cousin's daughter, Noelle, is studying in the same school! But in another class in Pre-N.
Such coincidence! These are my cousin's lovely girls Noelle(3) and Nellie(2).

And since she's not working at the moment, we went for breakfast at Changi City Point la kopi and chatted for hours about our maids/ husbands/ children, while I whatsapped my Aunt about it.
Aunty-ism runs in my family.

My pretty cousin and my niece Nellie!

 

After school, Adam reaches home at 12:30PM. He has his lunch, drinks milk and watches his iPad, then naps for 2-3 hours.

During this time, if I'm lucky, both kids are asleep and I get to do my blogging / reading etc.

 

 

In the evening, we go to the nearby playground:

Ashton #likeaboss. Dig ears and kar-kui kui, watching his brother play.

Back home, at about 9PM, the kids play a bit before bed. By 10PM, I chase them into their room as I'm quite ready to collapse.

 

 

By the way, as I was telling you about the topic of my Indonesian maid in the previous post, she dropped the bombshell that she does not intend to extend her work permit and that she would like to go back.

Her WP is due to expire by 31st July 2013.

That leaves us less than a month to have the admin sorted out - closing her bank account and getting them to stop sending her statements to our residence, booking her flight, cancelling her WP, asking our agent to find a replacement maid, etc.

Andy & I browsed through several Biodata but have yet to come across anyone suitable (1 Burmese is a Bach of Arts holder but English is rated poor; the others are either asking too much or do not fit our criteria).

All new candidates request for 2 days off per month. Weekends are the busiest period for us and without the help on 2 out of 4 weekends, it defeats the purpose of my hiring a maid really.

 

Bottom line: It's hard to get good help these days!

 

So here I am, stranded with 2 under 5 and still very much holding my full-time job.

Thankfully, Andy & I are alike in many ways. We share the same attitudes toward finances, holiday choices, and most other things in life.

He's Ok with me either decision I make - and I intend to go maid-less for the time being and enjoy some of the privacy we lost over the past year. Until we throw in the towel, that is.

It sure feels great not having an extra mouth to feed/ person to clothe/ pay $600 per month for.

The only downside is: we get no babysitter when out for meals with family & friends. A bit overwhelming when both kids demand attention at the same time!

 

Let's see how long we can go maid-less.

 

To all the working Mums out there managing your household without a helper, you rock!

I would also love to hear tips from you.