Why Didn't You Answer Me?

We had this conversation at bedtime tonight.

Chloe: Mom, I was calling you so many times from upstairs just now. Why didn't you answer me huh?
Me: I was busy eating my dinner. Why did you call me so many times?
Chloe: I wanted to watch Peppa Pig but kor kor won't let me watch. He wants to watch his Ninja Warrior. Why didn't you answer me when I was calling you huh?
Me: I was busy.
Lucas: Chloe, it is very rude to say huh
Chloe: No, it is not rude.
Me: Huh is not a proper English word.
Lucas: Chloe, you are not speaking proper English.

My kids....
Tomorrow is the last day of school for term 2. They will have 2 weeks Easter break. We will be going to Hard Rock Hotel in Penang (where else) next weekend. Next week onwards is going to be challenging. My maid of 2 year is leaving us next weekend. I will be getting a temporary maid until the new maid arrives, hopefully end of April. With the maid(s), I have to train her all over again and hopefully things work out well. Keeping my fingers and toes crossed. That will also mean, we will not leave the kids alone with the maid for the coming few months. I have to work from home more, Dominic has to travel less and no more 'me' time. Ah...juggling work and kids.

To work or not to work??

My maid's contract is ending April 2013 and she is not extending. Her reason was her husband has found a job and she need to take care of her daughter while the husband is working. She helps me take care of my kids when I am not at home or while I work from home. With her, I can have a job. Now that she is going to be gone, I'm not sure what should I do. My dilemma - should I get another maid and continue working fulltime or just quit working and take care of the kids myself?

My kids only have 6 waking hours at home on weekdays. Lucas gets home at 2.30pm and sleeps at 8.30pm. I don't really want to waste their growing up years busy myself with work. I want to be able to spend some time with them. They grow fast.

On the other hand, I want to have some adult intellectual talk and use my brain a bit differently. And having 2 incomes does help - hopefully Dominic and I don't have to slave until we are in our 60s.

What should I do? Not get a maid replacement and see what kind of part time job I can find?

New Maid

Last Friday was the last day of our maid. She has been with us since Jan 2010. So, on Thursday, I tried to tell Lucas that the maid will not be with us when we return from Singapore. I took the opportunity to talk to him while I was putting on his pyjamas.

Me: Lucas, tomorrow is Aunty C last day with us. She is not be coming back anymore.
Lucas: WHY?
Me: Because her daughter is coming to visit her. She need to spend some time with her daughter. We are getting a new aunty on Thursday.
Lucas: I don't want a new 'kakak' (eldest sister in Indonesia language).
Me: The new aunty is call M. Maybe you will like her.
Lucas: How many 'kakak' have we have?
Me: How many?
Lucas: Three (which is correct since we moved to this place).
Me: Who you do like best?
Lucas: Aunty C. Can I see the new 'kakak'?
Me: Ok. (boot up the PC and show him the new maid photo)
Lucas: I don't like her!
Me: Give her a try.
Lucas: (sobbing) I don't want a new 'kakak'!
Me: If you don't want a new 'kakak', then you have to take care of yourself. You have to feed yourself, shower yourself and go toilet on your own.
Lucas: I can't do all my myself. I'm not tall enough to reach the shower!
Me: Then you have to eat more and grow fast. Then we don't need a new 'kakak'.
Lucas: (sobbing and walking away) I don't want a new 'kakak'!
Me to Dom: Go and talk to him.


The comes Friday, when the taxi came to pick up the maid, he did not cry. Thank goodness.

Life Without Maid

This is my third day without maid (helper). It is not exactly relaxing but manageable...so far. That is with me and Dominic at home fulltime. Daily chores we have to do are:
1. open and close the windows - which are quite alot. If it rains suddenly, we both scramble to close them before the rooms get wet. And we have already stop bothering open/close the windows on the rooms that we do not use.
2. Clean the floor. I only sweep them. Forget about mopping. I leave the vacuuming and mopping to the cleaning lady that comes once a week. We are thinking about getting the iRobot initially but decided against it. iRobot can't clean bathroom and windows and these robots are not cheap either.
3. Do my own laundry, folding and ironing. Forget about ironing bedsheet. At one time, I was thinking of getting a dryer but Dominic is not game for it. He said why add more carbon the atmosphere, pay higher electricity when we get plenty of sunshine everyday. I was thinking of saving some time on hanging the laundry under the sun and clothes are generally less wrinkly after dryer.
4. Clean up after each meal. I put everything I can into the dishwasher. The rest have to be hand washed. We are also making sure Lucas is not making a mess after each meal. We used to be lenient on his mess cause we know we don't have to clean the mess but not anymore.
5. Boil drinking water. Haha...I just bought a water filter that comes with both room temperature and hot water. So, no need to boil drinking water and the water is also much cleaner.
6. Surface outside the house like the patio, garage and backyard don't get cleaned. If anyone wants to go out, just wear slippers. I make sure I put the slippers on all exit points.
7. Water the plant and clear the dried leaves from the garden.
8. Take the rubbish out.

Sometimes, I think it would be a lot simpler if we have a smaller place :) But Lucas enjoyed the space here.
My fingers are quite sore from all the cleaning after 7 months break. Need some really heavy duty hand cream to salvage those hands.

We have a conversation with Lucas preparing him for days without kakak. We told him he has to clean up his own mess like his playroom, bedroom and after each meal to take the plates to the kitchen sink. To our pleasant surprise, he knows how to clean up his own mess. He just need encouragement and persuasion to do the tasks. That's the blessing in disguise.

In Singapore for a week...part 2

We have finally arrived home after a week in Singapore. There were a few things which Lucas enjoyed such as :
- taking a cab - each time I say, let's take a cab to see Daddy, he will excitedly wear his shoes and ready to go.
- go shopping - his favourites are asking to buy gummy bears, donuts, candy, red and green socks.
- use the access card to use the lift and open the room door. When the indicator light turns green, he will tell himself 'so clever'.
- likes to be carried and not walk on his own. When we asked him what's wrong with his leg, he will reply 'Cannot walk'.

However, it is a juggle for me to take care of him and work at the same time. I have to engage the hotel babysitter and my in-laws came for 2 days to entertain him.

While we were there, we also interviewed a potential maid, This agency recommended by my friend happened to have a maid available immediately. It was the first time we interviewed a maid and have no clue what to ask or to look for. Of course, anything we ask, she will reply she knows or she can do it. But, we don't have a good feeling about her. She was very hesitant when we asked if we can call her current employer to ask for reference. This is not a good sign.