two maids

[SAE]

What a friend of mine did in South Africa when she had 3 small children to look after was employ one full time maid who had off every Thursday afternoon, Saturday afternoon and Sunday plus a part timer who came in when the other was off.  She found that it worked out well until the kids were a bit older and able to fend for themselves more. 

In my opinion, I do not see the need for two maids at all.  Surely the fact that your husband is away does not warrant two people to take his place.  In the Western world a lot of women work, have children and do all their own housework - whilst its not easy it is doable.  I just cant think of enough work to keep two people fully occupied 24/7 in a house no matter how many kids you have. 

[Give me a break]

Some people have totaly lost touch with reality. They need 2 maids and a driver plus a gardener and what not. Get a grip people, you are nothing special. Manage your life and house and kids on your own.

How incredibly pathetic you are!

[Not Fair!]

In case you hadn't noticed, this is not the 'western world' as the PPP put it.  I don't often battle Cobras and Hand, Foot & Mouth disease at home in the western world.

And to the PP.  Watch who you are calling pathetic.  If someone has the means to employ all that help and they treat them fairly, who are you to judge?  I find your envious, snarky remark pathetic.

[Predictable!]

Oh so predictable!  Here is a woman, re-entering the work force (so you can't label her a fat lazy parasite) and she is trying to be responsible and make sure that all bases are covered in terms of her responsibilities to her family and employer.  A working mother needs adequate child care and being prepared to employ two maids (twice the cost and twice the headaches) is a sensible way of approaching the problem.  Much as the usual Trolls will use the thread as yet another platform for their rants, she should actually be commended.

[Fair enuf]

In case you hadn't noticed, this is not the 'western world' as the PPP put it.  I don't often battle Cobras and Hand, Foot & Mouth disease at home in the western world.

And to the PP.  Watch who you are calling pathetic.  If someone has the means to employ all that help and they treat them fairly, who are you to judge?  I find your envious, snarky remark pathetic.

In that case, you should not get a second maid. Instead employ a man servant. Together they will act as surrogate parents and fulfil the entire spectrum of your daughters' needs.

[one maid per household]

While it would be good to have two maids to back each other up, I am wondering whether it is enough work for 2 helpers, in particular, your kids would be at school for at least half of the day.  At 4, and 6, I would think your kid can play by themselves quite happily when they are home, while your helper attend to other things.   

Also, I got the impression that to employ more than one maid per household, you needs approval from MOM. 

[Let\'s be clear]

Oh so predictable!  Here is a woman, re-entering the work force (so you can't label her a fat lazy parasite) and she is trying to be responsible and make sure that all bases are covered in terms of her responsibilities to her family and employer.  A working mother needs adequate child care and being prepared to employ two maids (twice the cost and twice the headaches) is a sensible way of approaching the problem.  Much as the usual Trolls will use the thread as yet another platform for their rants, she should actually be commended.

Come on, you know women can't win, don't you? If they stay home with their kids they're fat, lazy parasites with no brains or abilities and/or are 'wasting their education' and if they go back to work and leave their kids with someone else they are abandoning their children and selfish for wanting to work instead of staying home and raising their children. And do you know the sad irony of all this is? It's generally NOT the men who are saying these things - it's women having a go at other women and for what? For choosing to do something one side or the other doesn't agree with or isn't doing. Grow up, ladies, and let people - women or men - make the choices for their own families just as you made your own choice. Damn, you'd think the whole idea of live and let live was rocket science  

[SAE]

Oh so predictable!  Here is a woman, re-entering the work force (so you can't label her a fat lazy parasite) and she is trying to be responsible and make sure that all bases are covered in terms of her responsibilities to her family and employer.  A working mother needs adequate child care and being prepared to employ two maids (twice the cost and twice the headaches) is a sensible way of approaching the problem.  Much as the usual Trolls will use the thread as yet another platform for their rants, she should actually be commended.

Come on, you know women can't win, don't you? If they stay home with their kids they're fat, lazy parasites with no brains or abilities and/or are 'wasting their education' and if they go back to work and leave their kids with someone else they are abandoning their children and selfish for wanting to work instead of staying home and raising their children. And do you know the sad irony of all this is? It's generally NOT the men who are saying these things - it's women having a go at other women and for what? For choosing to do something one side or the other doesn't agree with or isn't doing. Grow up, ladies, and let people - women or men - make the choices for their own families just as you made your own choice. Damn, you'd think the whole idea of live and let live was rocket science  

Actually, I think its you who has got the wrong end of the stick.  The consensus seems to be that whilst its great she is going out to work it is hard to see that this warrants two maids thats all - no working mummy vs SAHM bashing going on here at all - well not as far as I could tell anyways

[Me too]

And to the PP.  Watch who you are calling pathetic.  If someone has the means to employ all that help and they treat them fairly, who are you to judge?  I find your envious, snarky remark pathetic.

I find it pathetic also and I'm not going to watch what I'm saying so get over it princess.

No wonder there are so many useless fatties on the island.

[Well done OP]

I cannot advise from first hand experience because I don't work, therefore do not have 2 helpers (get over it if you hate that term, we moved from HK with our 'helper' and she hates the term 'maid').  Those friends who do, however, do as the first few constructive posters suggested and make sure that the first has some say in employing the second, usually a relative.  The hierarchy and duties are clear.  They are then covered for illness etc. 

Sure, parents survive in other parts of the world without 2 employees to help them with childcare while they work, but I'm guessing that most of them would rather have this option if they could afford it.  At the end of the day, these are employees, not the children's parents, so they cannot be expected to run themselves ragged in the same way as would for your own offspring.  I've heard plenty of backstabbing when I was working over people who kept calling out of work when the nanny was ill etc., fair play to the OP for trying to cover all bases.  If both helpers are not worked off their feet while the children are at school - so what?  At least they will not be too exhausted to try to care for them properly when they get home.

[Why oh why?]

Are some people so judgemental on this board.  You can bet your bottom dollar that if i was back full time at work and juggling children's homework, the multitude of school activities etc,  i would not be lifting a finger to clean or cook in the house.  Not if I could afford not to.  

I definitely wouldn't have a maid around on Sundays but that's more because i enjoy the privacy of just family time in the weekend.  

When i had my first baby in the UK and was at home for the first six months, i employed a cleaner.  Why?  Because I could afford to and thought i had better things to do with my time.  So effin what?  

I'm sure the OP wants a maid on Sundays so they don't have to cook and clean up after everyone rather than to look after the children.  What's the problem?  As a former working mum i know how precious those hours you are at home with your children, you do not want to waste it on housework.  Sure, one day most of us are going back to the west where this kind of help is not financially feasible, but while we're here, it's an opportunity to get a bit more out of our ever shortening days.  

[To Why oh why]

To answer your question - Because some people are just not happy in their own lives and they get their only kicks from trying to knock the choices of others.  They are to be pitied rather than disliked really.

[musings]

Some people have totaly lost touch with reality. They need 2 maids and a driver plus a gardener and what not. Get a grip people, you are nothing special. Manage your life and house and kids on your own.

How incredibly pathetic you are!

hmmm, well quite a few of my Indian friends had many servants/maids/helpers (whatever you want to call it) back home.  One of them said they had a maid who did the kitchen work and then they had a cook too, then a maid who washed the cars (that's with an S - they had about 6 cars from what I could work out!) and one who did housework and then they had a gardener too - maybe even a driver, I'm not sure.  They do live with the whole family though, so there could be about 10 people living in a house and I assume that most of these maids etc aren't full time, but perhaps they are, I'm pretty sure they didn't all live in though.

Family who lived in Africa had a few people too - the 'houseboy' (as he was called!), the gardener, the cook etc.  It's just what people are used to.

However, if they don't live-in it's different, people still get their lives to themselves in the evenings.  I only know one woman with 2 maids in Singapore - she's Singaporean and a businesswoman and both her and the husband travel for work plus they live in a big house and have about 4 kids so it would be a big job for one person.

I don't think the average family in an average sized apartment or house would need 2 maids though because I just don't believe there would be enough for them to do.  I don't have a maid or a cleaner and I have plenty of free time so I don't think the OP really needs two of them - they'd get bored.

[musings]

Oh, and they might also get jealous of each other - you know if one got all the child care and the other got the cleaning or one didn't seem to be pulling her weight and the other thought she was the only one doing the work.  Especially if one has been with you a while - she might resent a new face.  I don't know though, it might work out really well, you'd just have to give it a try and see.

[SAE]

And then there is the possibility that they might both get pregnant / sick and OP will be faced with huge medical expenses either that or the husband might enjoy a threesome when she is busy traveling for work