All About Life Without Maids
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puff:
Hi, It is recommended by the manufacturer to leave the battery constantly charged at the docking base when not in use and fully charged, this would help extend the lifespan. Consumes very little electricity (5W rating) during docking. Do check out the Roomba 770 (S$749) and Roomba 780 (S$888) at http://www.autovacstore.com. They come with the new Extended-Life Power Management technology, which allows the Roomba clean for >2.5hrs on the same battery as the older 500series(last ard 1.5hrs) and is able to last more charging cycles too!! Hope this helps.
Hi mamemo,mamemo:
Hi puff,
Just got a roomba recently and I wonder whether I should leave the charger on 24/7 even when roomba is fully charged? Eg, can I off the charging unit during night time then on again when we leave the house in the morning? Will that help to lengthen the life span of the battery?
Thanks!
I am not too sure if it helps to lengthen the battery life span coz I leave it on 24/7. -
Hi everyone! I’m a FTWM…ve 3 kids just bcame maidless will be sending my kids to after school care…my kids prefer home cook food thus have to wake up early to prepare their meals n they prefer to have soup everyday thus will make in the am n put into the warmer boiler…intend to make full use of the washingmachine to wash the clothing n sweeping n mopping depends on my schedule…have been having maid for 11 yrs after my 1st assistance went off, i could not get a good assistant… finally decided to depend on my own hands…
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I have 3 boys. Never had a maid. But have strong family support. So grandparents will come over to play with kids or cook. Plus, i have a part-time cleaner (and a roomba). When I was overseas, I managed without any help. Hubby understands. He won’t insist on home cooked meals. In fact, he prefers me not to cook…not that my cooking is bad…but because he doesn’t wanna do the washing up!
When I have to cook, or do chores etc., I get the boys to help. Even if they can’t do the chores, they can look after each other so that I can get my chores done. -
Hi,
My kids are already past 10yo....so a different scenario all-together for me already. However, I just wanted to say that.....if budget permits, look at gadgets that can help you save some precious time, also some change in habit can also help. Previously I was very frustrated and time was always not enough.....so I was losing temper a lot, now i realised how silly I was to try to be so hands-on and ineffective
1. Ironing - Used to hate ironing.
Previously :-- ~2hours x 2-3 times weekly. Back then was using those normal iron..the heavy type cos' heard will do a better job. But somehow, it's not that fantastic for me....still required a long time to iron well, gotta spray starch too. But after spraying, the floor end up slippery and had to do a mop.
Now :-- Changed to a steam iron....helped to reduce my ironing time by ~40%. Also, I no longer need to use starch ie. mop after ironing is eliminated too. In addition, got hubby to slowly changed his wardrobe to wrinkle-free as much as possible....
2. Vacuuming & Mopping -
Previously :-- Broom daily, vacuum 1x /week. Later tried magic wipes. Mop 2-3 times per week.
Now :-- Roomba daily. Mop 1x per week.
To me, broom is the most ineffective. Magic wipes are ok. However, after using Roomba (automatic vacuum cleaner), the floor is generally cleaner and what I liked most is these days I only mop 1x per week. Dunno the actual reason and had only started using Roomba ~ 1+week ago, but it's making me happy enough. However, for those of you with younger kids, maybe you may need to mop more often since kids tend to spill/dirty etc.
Think there are those spin mop etc, but I have yet to try....so cannot comment. As for auto vacuum cleaner, besides Roomba there are other models, but Roomba is my first....so again I can't comment on others.
3. Fans - used to have standing/box fans....so the 'grilles' can get really dirty and to clean internal blades need some dismantling. Have changed to ceiling fans....cleaning is a breeze now. :rahrah:
4. Laundry
OK, I have never been good in chores and I learnt this from hubby.
Previously :-- Will simply transfer from washing machine to bamboo, won't bother to really spread it out neatly. When dried, will tend to just gather all and put the pile aside until I have time to fold them at night.
Now :-- 'Shake' the clothes fully and put properly on bamboo....when placed neatly, the clothes will dry nicely...less wrinkled. MIL and DH are damn good at that loh. When dried, for those that will need to be iron later, quickly transfer to hanger to hang, dun heap it as it'll wrinkle even more.....ironing time can hence be reduced.
5. Washing school shoes
Used to scrub and scrub the side (the plastic/rubber part) with brush, still seem dirty. Realised it's more effective to just use those 3M sponge to scrub.
Just sharing my 'learning' process when I become a SAHM & maidless since 5 yrs ago. Hope the above is useful.
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My daughter is 6 but I have been coping without a maid for over 2 years. I’m a SAHM but I also work part time. Learnt a lot about time management over these two years. Thought I would share what I felt worked for me :
1) Set a routine that work for you and stick to it. For example, I like to spend 1 hour every morning to do all laundry related activities and so I set aside that 1 hour every morning and I make sure I stick to it. Like if I decided that I will mop floor every Tue and Fri, I will stick to it. Having a fixed schedule helps to reduce time just fretting over "what do I need to do? So many things, which should I do first?"
2) For cooking, I set aside a particular day for ingredients preparation and for that morning, I will try to do all the washing, cutting up of ingredients, marinate, etc for the whole week and pack them up in ziplock bags. So when I cook, it’s like having pre-packed ingredients and it saves a lot of time. And because I focus on doing that thing for one morning per week, you can do volume processing.
3) For some activities, I like doing it piecemeal, eg. ironing. Find it very time consuming so I just set aside 30 min a day and iron as many as I can within that time. Otherwise, I also find my speed slowing after the first hour and I tend to drag me feet. Because I know that I’m only spending 30 min ironing a day, I can maintain a high speed for that whole 30 min.
4) Invest in machines, like food processing machine, vacume cleaner, washing machine, etc. Nothing like modern technology to help save your time.
Just a few tips I find work for me. Hope this helps. -
ThinkingLoft:
Agree on this too. I also try to do volume processing for one particular day. So that I dun have to do repeated cleaning up. I'll pack into small packs and take out only what i need.....
2) For cooking, I set aside a particular day for ingredients preparation and for that morning, I will try to do all the washing, cutting up of ingredients, marinate, etc for the whole week and pack them up in ziplock bags. So when I cook, it's like having pre-packed ingredients and it saves a lot of time. And because I focus on doing that thing for one morning per week, you can do volume processing. -
ThinkingLoft:
Hi Thinkingloft,
2) For cooking, I set aside a particular day for ingredients preparation and for that morning, I will try to do all the washing, cutting up of ingredients, marinate, etc for the whole week and pack them up in ziplock bags. So when I cook, it's like having pre-packed ingredients and it saves a lot of time. And because I focus on doing that thing for one morning per week, you can do volume processing.
Can you explain in detail how do you go about preparing the ingredient for that particular day? Do you mean the preparation of 1 week ingredients are to be done on 1 particular day? Can share your secret? -
Hello!
I've got 3 boys and I've never had a maid. Wouldn't know what to do with one in my flat. No regrets!!!
I think getting the right equipment helps:
1) thermomix or Happy Call Pan! I don't own the thermomix, which is apparently the best machine in the kitchen around (it dices, minces, stir-fries on its own, cooks according to your pre-set temperature, and CLEANS itself!!!), but I have read glowing reviews about it. the HCP is a god-send. Makes cooking veggies a breeze. And the kids are less resistant to munching their greens cos they're cooked till soft.
2) Try marinating a lot of chicken wings and throwing them in the oven for around 25 min. No-fuss, easy food which tastes good.
3) The thermal pot helps with soups.
I vacuum everyday cos my flat gets dusty easily. It takes around 15 min. The baby just entertains himself in the meantime. I call it independent play. Ha! Mopping twice a week. Toilets alternate days.
I've got part-time help to do the ironing, so if you can afford it, you may want to consider that. It makes life that much easier.
Ultimately, the most important thing you need to have is a mindset change. Know that your flat won't be superlatively clean all the time. Know that gourmet meals are probably not coming out of your kitchen till your kids all hit secondary school. Know that there's a difference between being house-proud and a cleaning Nazi. Know that the most important things are that you spend time with your kids when they get back from school and that you are a HAPPY mum. Few things are more painful than a grumpy mum who resents the sacrifices made for the kids and complains about it all the time.
And... make use of your child labour!!! See it as training them to be independent useful beings next time. (I think many men have been too pampered by their mums, so they can't do nuts at home cos they haven't been TRAINED. Sorry, guys.)
Last words: Can one! Go for it! :rahrah: -
laughingcat:
First you have to know what you are going to cook for the whole week. I literally have a menu for the week. Then you look across and see what are the common ingredients you need, eg. garlic, chop enough garlic for the whole week; or carrots, cut enough pieces for the whole week & dun be so particular. No need some cubes, some slices, etc. Just try to make all the same. And so on and so forth. So each time you cook, you just use part of the ingredients and then put back into fridge.
Hi Thinkingloft,ThinkingLoft:
2) For cooking, I set aside a particular day for ingredients preparation and for that morning, I will try to do all the washing, cutting up of ingredients, marinate, etc for the whole week and pack them up in ziplock bags. So when I cook, it's like having pre-packed ingredients and it saves a lot of time. And because I focus on doing that thing for one morning per week, you can do volume processing.
Can you explain in detail how do you go about preparing the ingredient for that particular day? Do you mean the preparation of 1 week ingredients are to be done on 1 particular day? Can share your secret?
Ingredients might not be the most fresh but it sure beats having to do preparation before cooking. It also gives you a lot more time flexibility. -
BeContented:
This is interesting. When you said 3M sponge, is it the yellow or green sponge?
5. Washing school shoes
Used to scrub and scrub the side (the plastic/rubber part) with brush, still seem dirty. Realised it's more effective to just use those 3M sponge to scrub.
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