The clock is ticking away. My live-in helper who has been working for us for over 4 years will be leaving early next week… for GOOD.  After 10 years of having 5 maids (excluding 2 temporary maids), the day has finally come where I will have to learn to live without a maid and be the maid myself. 3 school-going kids, 3 blogs, an online store and a household to manage –pray tell I can cope and stay sane!  Over the past 1 week, I had given the helper several days off to go to the Indonesia Embassy and to go shopping. She will be having another day off (at her request to go sight-seeing) on Monday next week before she leaves. When she was away, I struggled a wee bit but I think I will survive without her. I had both my palms cut by wires when the pulley clothes hanger snapped, had the kitchen top flooded when I tried to juggle between filling up the kettle with water and putting clothes into the washing machine (thinking it could save time BUT…!) and was feeling a tad giddy having to do housework and online work and having to rush down to pick my 3 girls up from school at different timing. I know I have always been a good multi-tasker but as I get older, the brain just cannot function as efficient. Thankfully the hubs could take-away food for us and I had some frozen food which I had cooked extra earlier, for the girls on those days that the helper was away.
I can still manage light cooking, bathroom washing and moping of the floor on a daily basis. What really turns my mood off is doing the laundry and cleaning up after cooking. Not that we have a big kitchen. You know how squeezy a kitchen in a condo can be. The dirty pots, pans, wok, bowls, plates and cups filling up every space on the kitchen top and sink just make my eyes sore. I think with the helper leaving, I will have more take-away meals and can only afford to whip up some really easy cooking with minimal preparation and washing up. The kids will have to alter their taste buds and get used to eating steamed food on most days. I have been hammering into their heads for the past few months, telling them that they have to prepare for a major change in their lifestyle and not be so reliant on kakak. It’s not easy to go cold-turkey on something since they have all been lucky to have a kakak to help them since birth. I guess the actual situation when the time comes will propel them to change and be more independent.  Last night, Alycia asked kakak to teach her how to iron clothes. While Alycia is a pretty good home-maker, the same cannot be said on rascal #2 and #3. Well, they have to learn to be one very soon.
My helper has in the past done and said all kinds of things to boil my blood and caused tempers flying everywhere in the home from everyone. Just last night, she was trying to kill a cockroach that was running everywhere. And guess how she killed the cockroach? She took the burning iron and pressed it on the roach and then continued ironing on rascal #2’s dress – the rascal whom she cannot get along well with! I was even hotter than the burning iron, I tell you and just could not believe her gross action!!  Well, having said all these, I think I will definitely miss having the helper around. Despite all that she had done to boil my blood, rupture my blood vessels and at times made me so enraged that I was on the verge on raising my hands to hit her, she has nevertheless been a great help to me.
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I’m sure you will be fine Shireen. Could you tapau food from your hub’s place? If not just cook more 1 pot dishes 😛 Perhaps mopping and washing the toilet bowls can be done on alternate day? I can’t believe your helper did that with the cockroach and then continue ironing. Arrgghh!
Oh my God, what a crazy way to kill a cockroach!
I like Mommy to Chumsy’s suggestions for toilet cleaning 😀
I will be starting on my own adventures of cooking for and handling 2 kiddos too although I’d probably get a part-time cleaner to help.
All the best!
Shireen, u will be fine. Always always remember, you will have to go through the “adjustment period” and it would take a while for you, for the kids to be stable again, physically and most importantly mentally (my boys esp Didi who used to be so closed to kakak is still very unstable at this moment). Just remember not to judge yourself or your kids during that period. Time flies and in no time, you will love living without one maid at home who would kill a cockroach that way!
Hub now appreciates the idea of not having a live-in maid now when he sees the boys helping me to fill water, qiqi pack baju, carry bags whenever we go outing. Just place everything within reach for the kids so they can access and do it themselves. If the Mat Salleh living in BIG house overseas can do it, SO WE CAN!
It can be done! Have to make adjustments though and enlist the girls to help. They can help with tidying, dusting, putting dishes away etc. You mop the floors daily??!! Yikes! Vacuuming and mopping are meant to be done weekly! Lunch will be a no-cook…so sandwiches/ canned soup/ salads/ leftovers. Bathrooms, maybe 2X a week since there are 3 kids. My own ensuite I clean once a week. Laundry 2-3X per week. No maid service here and we all manage, even with a garden. Oh yes, also hubby will have to participate.
Shireen, I am sure you can do it n your 3 princesses will be great helpers…
No worry Shireen I agreed with Chanel. I am sure you can do it mummy! Take care 🙂
It may be messy and hectic in the beginning. But I’m sure you and your family will adapt to it.
It will be tough in the beginning. Once, you get into routine, then you will be alright.
I’ve done it before thus it can be done! It’s a matter of shifting the mind set. As long as you don’t have great expectations of yourself and accept that there will be bad days and days you just want to GIVE UP, they will come, but you’ll get over them just as fast as they come. And move on to the next work day. It’s all in a days work. You will SHOUT more, CRY more, SWEAT more, be more EXHAUSTED, blablablablbalbla………BUT you will also be really happy. Check and balance. And when you do have those overwhelming crazy moments, please don’t forget us who are just a phone call away to give you a lift or even just a breather, or a phrase to remind you what your purpose is. All the best, Girl! Go show them!
Thanks all for the encouragement!
Hey Shireen, I have only been maidless during the 3 months before my current one arrived, and it was tough, so I guess it’s the adjustment period where you have to find a routine that is manageable and also realign your expectations. I know easier said than done as I sense you and I are somewhat the same in the hygiene area.
But maybe a temp maid on a weekly basis can help you do the bathrooms and ironing and high dusting on top of the routine mop/vacuum.
Cook stews that can be freezed up. On other days, your MIL will be with you? Well, take care…