All About Life Without Maids

[1amber]

:celebrate: you said it!


I got my roomba and a part time help immediately after my last maid went off. After that the scooba.

I got a:
dryer,
washing machine of course (and plenty of nets to put delicates so no need hand wash)
slow cooker,
thermal cooker,
rice cooker,
korean frying pan.
For stir fry veg local style I use a big pot (no longer use a big wok coz oil splash everywhere and hard to wash in a small sink).

Nowadays, eating out is so justifiable. We go everywhere looking for nice food without feeling guilty for under utilizing the maid. Going maidless is tough at first but it can be done.

btw what is a cooking robot? :?

2ppaamm:

Start by getting a part time help to come in and also get technology to help! Scooba roomba whatever u can get! Come in frequently and get support from the experts here!
Let me see... yes, that's how I started:
1. Buy a roomba, and then become 7, and have a Dyson to vacuum the corners.
2. Had a scooba but mine did not work well after just 2 months or so. So I reverse to mopping just once or twice a week. Kitchen area every day.
3. Washing machine with big, big load. Mine's 8.5 kg. I should have bought a 10kg one.
4. Dryer is very useful on days I don't even want to try hanging clothes out.
5. Dishwasher is a must for me to retain my hands (that are already old, anyway).
6. I have a cooking robot, but have not used it for a few months, next week will use again.
7. Also have a pressure cooker which is a fantastic helper - cook really fast on days I forget to thaw.
8. Thermal pot which are like miracles cookpot, which I carry around while it cooks.
9. This other handheld vacuum cleaner I bought recently... picks up everything I need and bigger capacity.
10. A very sharp knife - to cut everything very quickly, so I don't have to keep sawing.
11. That useful punch chopper from Ikea (that's only like $5 or so), that makes chopping garlic a breeze, something I use everyday for almost every dish. Garlic is good for health!
12. A wonderful Kitchenaid that I have recently bought to replace the old Kenwood. Whips up wonderful cakes everyday with the kids!
13. Ice-cream maker, heh heh... explains my expanding waistline and..
14. That old 20 year old bread machine that I have retired. I am using that Kitchenaid to spin the breads now.
15. O, one more, induction hobs. They make boiling like half the time!

Thank God for technology! They never fail, try to hide from us, or go on strike, never look for boy friends, and never give me the :roll: . And, I'll never worry about them ill treating my children.

[2ppaamm]

I was trying to type fast and couldn't recall the name but it's the thermomix. I had it imported from UK, but quite a white elephant since I have not used it for a while now. I am getting it shipped to me again, since I no longer reside in Singapore, and start using it here.


Yes, the big pot is so useful, that I have retired my wok. Now the wok is a white elephant. I use a non-stick big pot, and it is great for fried rice, fried noodles and fried everything. But I still use a pan for eggs and fish and fried chicken. I think I'll never use a wok again.

Another important gadget I left out is an oven. I have two. Every time I am about to start cooking, I turn on the stove to heat up all the pans, and the oven. Then I cook in 45 minutes (faster than driving out, queue up and buy), including the desserts. I also keep an oven warm at about 60 to 80 degrees and put stuff that I want to keep warm in there. I don't like food cold. Sometimes, I bake pizza or pies and I put them in there for the children to go grab one the whole day. Better than keeping biscuits or snacks in the house. Some people invest in a warming drawer, I didn't and it worked well. I might consider one in future, though.

[Melodies]

Hi 1amber,


Care to share where did you buy korean frying pan? heard that it is an oil free cooking pan!

My maid is taking extended long leave and I'll be maid-less for a couple of months. Not sure coming back or not! Someone told me when they asked for long leave and will most likely not be back. :yikes:

We are in very good term and hence I'm willing to give it a try and wait for her to come back. :xedfingers:

1amber:

:celebrate: you said it!

I got my roomba and a part time help immediately after my last maid went off. After that the scooba.

I got a:
dryer,
washing machine of course (and plenty of nets to put delicates so no need hand wash)
slow cooker,
thermal cooker,
rice cooker,
korean frying pan.
For stir fry veg local style I use a big pot (no longer use a big wok coz oil splash everywhere and hard to wash in a small sink).

Nowadays, eating out is so justifiable. We go everywhere looking for nice food without feeling guilty for under utilizing the maid. Going maidless is tough at first but it can be done.

btw what is a cooking robot? :?

2ppaamm:

Start by getting a part time help to come in and also get technology to help! Scooba roomba whatever u can get! Come in frequently and get support from the experts here!
Let me see... yes, that's how I started:
1. Buy a roomba, and then become 7, and have a Dyson to vacuum the corners.
2. Had a scooba but mine did not work well after just 2 months or so. So I reverse to mopping just once or twice a week. Kitchen area every day.
3. Washing machine with big, big load. Mine's 8.5 kg. I should have bought a 10kg one.
4. Dryer is very useful on days I don't even want to try hanging clothes out.
5. Dishwasher is a must for me to retain my hands (that are already old, anyway).
6. I have a cooking robot, but have not used it for a few months, next week will use again.
7. Also have a pressure cooker which is a fantastic helper - cook really fast on days I forget to thaw.
8. Thermal pot which are like miracles cookpot, which I carry around while it cooks.
9. This other handheld vacuum cleaner I bought recently... picks up everything I need and bigger capacity.
10. A very sharp knife - to cut everything very quickly, so I don't have to keep sawing.
11. That useful punch chopper from Ikea (that's only like $5 or so), that makes chopping garlic a breeze, something I use everyday for almost every dish. Garlic is good for health!
12. A wonderful Kitchenaid that I have recently bought to replace the old Kenwood. Whips up wonderful cakes everyday with the kids!
13. Ice-cream maker, heh heh... explains my expanding waistline and..
14. That old 20 year old bread machine that I have retired. I am using that Kitchenaid to spin the breads now.
15. O, one more, induction hobs. They make boiling like half the time!

Thank God for technology! They never fail, try to hide from us, or go on strike, never look for boy friends, and never give me the :roll: . And, I'll never worry about them ill treating my children.

[Melodies]

yo Pam, as usual, you have good sharing! :rahrah:

2ppaamm:

I was trying to type fast and couldn't recall the name but it's the thermomix. I had it imported from UK, but quite a white elephant since I have not used it for a while now. I am getting it shipped to me again, since I no longer reside in Singapore, and start using it here.

Yes, the big pot is so useful, that I have retired my wok. Now the wok is a white elephant. I use a non-stick big pot, and it is great for fried rice, fried noodles and fried everything. But I still use a pan for eggs and fish and fried chicken. I think I'll never use a wok again.

Another important gadget I left out is an oven. I have two. Every time I am about to start cooking, I turn on the stove to heat up all the pans, and the oven. Then I cook in 45 minutes (faster than driving out, queue up and buy), including the desserts. I also keep an oven warm at about 60 to 80 degrees and put stuff that I want to keep warm in there. I don't like food cold. Sometimes, I bake pizza or pies and I put them in there for the children to go grab one the whole day. Better than keeping biscuits or snacks in the house. Some people invest in a warming drawer, I didn't and it worked well. I might consider one in future, though.

[Autovacstore]

Dekora:

MizzNAH:

After having a maid for more than 16 years, its really madness going maidless.

Start by getting a part time help to come in and also get technology to help! Scooba roomba whatever u can get! Come in frequently and get support from the experts here!

Yup! Roomba Scooba can Robotic Cleaner would definitely be of great help in keeping your homes clean and dust free.

For videos and specifications of a range of robotic cleaners, Do checkout http://www.Autovacstore.com

[2ppaamm]

Autovacstore:

Dekora:

Yup! Roomba Scooba can Robotic Cleaner would definitely be of great help in keeping your homes clean and dust free.

For videos and specifications of a range of robotic cleaners, Do checkout http://www.Autovacstore.com

Parallel importer?

[Imami]

You ladies use washing machine cleaners? I think mine needs a good cleaning up but I am hesitating as it is a front load one.

[ksme]

2ppaamm:

Yes, the big pot is so useful, that I have retired my wok. Now the wok is a white elephant. I use a non-stick big pot, and it is great for fried rice, fried noodles and fried everything. But I still use a pan for eggs and fish and fried chicken. I think I'll never use a wok again.

Another important gadget I left out is an oven. I have two. Every time I am about to start cooking, I turn on the stove to heat up all the pans, and the oven. Then I cook in 45 minutes (faster than driving out, queue up and buy), including the desserts. I also keep an oven warm at about 60 to 80 degrees and put stuff that I want to keep warm in there. I don't like food cold. Sometimes, I bake pizza or pies and I put them in there for the children to go grab one the whole day. Better than keeping biscuits or snacks in the house. Some people invest in a warming drawer, I didn't and it worked well. I might consider one in future, though.

Hi, can I check what is the brand of the non-stick big pot you use? Also, if you keep the oven on all the time, won't it increase your electricity bill?

Thanks for your sharing.

[Angelight]

Hi Mummy 2ppaamm,


You are an encouragement to me cos i'm going maidless soon. Was it tough in the beginning without a maid? Does your hubby help with housework?

2ppaamm:

MizzNAH:

After having a maid for more than 16 years, its really madness going maidless.

Hehe... I know, I had two maids for 14 years and maids since a child, but now I have no maid for almost 3 years already. Can do it!

[2ppaamm]

Angelight:

Hi Mummy 2ppaamm,


You are an encouragement to me cos i'm going maidless soon. Was it tough in the beginning without a maid? Does your hubby help with housework?

Hi,

I cannot really remember if it was tough or not anymore, because it has been a while and I am so used to having no maid, I can no longer imagine having to live with one again...

It was difficult living with maids towards the end. I had a good maid one time, for seven years, and every time another maid comes to assist her, she will take good care of things, teach the other maid and get things organized, so things were good. However, after she left, I could never find good maids. I had two maids who quarreled, I decided to try and live with one. When I had one, she refused to work because she said the work load was too much. When two maids were good friends, they talked the whole day and not work. In the end, I planned to be maidless.

I started by introducing the technologies even when the maids were still around. Making them see that the robot can do just as much. They still didn't get the hint. Then, I started to pack the house, still didn't get the hint. Started to cook more often, they eat more. I started to bring the kids everywhere I went, they happy, happy just chatted more. Then one day, I got the agent over and said goodbye. By then, I had already taken over much of the work and was confident enough.

My mother, sister, mother-in-law, sis-in-law, my neighbours, my neighbours' maids (most of my neighbours have multiple maids), all thought that I was very brave and probably could not survive. My mom moved in to live with me for 3 months thinking I would crumble. My sis asked my mum if it was even possible. But hey... three years later, nobody can doubt that it is! And, my house is sparkling clean and my kids are well-fed, and my kids still do well in school without tuition, and I still keep my full-time job.

My husband helps! Of course. He mops the floor whenever I cannot. He will make sure the garden is taken care of. When I saw that he had to water the plants till late, I ordered the DIY irrigation system and installed it myself. Heh heh... I turned into a handy woman! Even my mom was suitably impressed. Now, even when I am overseas, the garden gets irrigated everyday on a timer, so it is green. My husband trims once a month or so.

There is so much joy in being self-reliant. The maids did help when the kids were very small, and I had 5 all very close in age. But, it is time I teach my children rather than maids. It is time to take back the household and put things in order. Time to bring up the kids up with my own values. Taking back the household is the best thing I think I have done.

It is difficult, perhaps. But I have forgotten how difficult it was. I can only now appreciate how fun it is to cook, bake, clean, polish, decorate and still be able to hold down a job. And then tell those younger or those starting out that they can. If only I had known it is not so hard, I would not have been held ransom by maids and their agents for so many years, and over about 15 maids? Enough was certainly enough.

So :rahrah: go for it, it is not easy, but certainly worth the while! If it cannot work out, look for a maid or look for part-time help. Heh heh.... you won't be worse off.