Theres so much to do to maintain and run a home. Inspite of being at home full-time, its still such a demanding work. Now...how do working women manage to do both ...have a job and run a house ?? Is it possible to do justice to both without neglecting anyone ?? I really need to know. Or do you need in-laws to handle your home and kids when you go for work ?? How does this work ??
Good questions! Women are so taken for granted that it drives me nuts! All my DH has to do is get up and go to work whereas I am expected to work, take care of my kid, cook and keep the house clean ... and oh yes, let us not forget, be nice to everyone including IL's no matter how much they abuse you! I think as working women and moms we need to set our priorities and delegate. We are human and we cannot do everything 100% when so many things need to be done. So prioritize and delegation is the name of the game! My priorities are my son and my work. I am lucky that I get to work from home and I have the means to afford a full time nanny to take care of him while I am working. rest of the stuff, I delegate so that I don't spend too much time on doing things not related to my son after my office work is done. I ask the nanny to chop vegetables/do the laundry while he is sleeping in the afternoon so that I can finish the cooking relatively fast. I cook once every 2-3 days and plan the menu every weekend. I have cleaners coming in every 3 weeks to clean the house and the nanny helps with day-2-day light cleaning. I do have to do a lot of planning in advance and it is not 100% perfect all the time but then, when I have 10 things to do, I am happy if I can finish 8 of them satisfactorily. there is only so much 1 person can do!
In my opinion...being a stay at home mom is so much more harder than being a working mom.....JMO While at home you are watching the kid and also taking care of the house...where as at work it is not the same...some else is watching your baby which is the Big task.....my personal experience..... it is easier to go out and work.....so i always say it is hats off to SAH moms..... The only hard part is the guilt ....about not being with ur child...coz ur running behind ur career...which sah moms r free from!!!
sheetz try be a work from home mom ... that to me is the most difficult job ever! you are working that means you are at manager's beck and call at all times, who is himself extra vigilant on you because you are working from home. then add to the mix, the duties of running a household and keeping an eye on your kid .. even though i have a nanny .. my ears are peeled out for every word my kid utters. then because you work from home, you cannot differentiate between work hours and non-work hours ... you end up working when it's time to sleep because of a deadline and the office is conviniently located next to your bedroom. people think work from home is a dream... it really isn't!
pmahensa, Totally i agree!! I meant for the moms that go out and work...I work in a industry where i need to be out and about...but yes there are days i have had to work from home and i know it is really really hard!
I hear ya! And I am no longer as active as I was in early 20's! And I can already see the signs of aging in late 20's :hide:. I am not yet a parent, so I cannot comment on how my life would change when kids come into picture. I am a working woman and been married for 3 years now. I travel 1.5 hours each day to work, which means 3 hours in a day is written off in travel. I need to wake up at least at 4:45 to be at work on time. Its only after 6 that I reach home. I love gardening too, so that takes good 1 hour after 6 PM to water and take care of weeds/pests/mowing the lawn etc. In winter, 30 mins to clear the snow...only after that is when I cook, clean and shower. By the time everything is done its 9 PM..give or take. I am half dead by then... What i do to make my working days easier is this: 1. Chop the vegetables during weekends. I also marinate meat during weekend and freeze which comes in handy during weekdays. 2. I do not wait till the weekend to do laundry. I make small loads spread though out the week. While cooking is when I put them to wash...by the time i am done, the washing is done and I load them into a dryer. This means I have less work during weekends. 3. Delegate work: usually my husband offers to clean the bathrooms/car/sorting mail etc. If he doesn't do it, I gently remind him. 4. take multi vitamin tablets every morning and eat right like at least 2 servings of fruit and veggies in a day apart from regular lunch. Even though its extremely challenging to do this on a daily basis, I cannot see myself doing anything else. It is difficult but it is possible to maintain this. The above tips come in handy. If anyone has any more time saving tips, I would greatly appreciate.
Good tips here. These are some which I follow. 1. Cook 2 portions of dal and freeze the 2nd portion of dhal for next time's sambhar. 2. Plan meal ahead atleast a day or two. 3. Make a to-do-list of everything and keep it in bag 4. Grind dosa/idli batter and keep in fridge all the time. 5.Clean coriander/cut veggies if possible over the weekend and put in ziplock bags. 6.Fold laundry while watching TV 7.Clean the kitchen ,do the dishes night before going to bed so i wake up to a fresh and clean kitchen which makes my day brighter. 8.Keep the school bags/water bottle ready by the night itself near the door,so morning we are ready to go. One less task in the morning. 9. Take out the clothes to wear for the next day in the night itself for both dd and me and keep it on the ironing stand. Sometimes iron it the night before too. 10. Try to make one pot meals like Pulaov,pasta, mixed rices rather than rice, curry,veggies.. One pot meals are less work and you get everything in one meal. 11. Try to combine the outside chores together. Like if i have to go to library, grocery shopping,drop dd off for a lesson. I combine everything into one chore.Drop dd off, go grocery shopping, go to library and come back pick up dd.so all 3 chores done. 12. Make a shopping list before going to grocery shopping. I have a list in my bag so whever I run out of somehting I keep note of it in the list. So that way when I go to shopping I stick to my list and finish the job quickly. I try to make it tension free in the mornings so i can relax and have start of the day.For me if the day starts good, everything goes smoothly. I try to listen to some soft music while I drive to office in the morning which relaxes me.
These tips are really helpful. I want to understand more about cutting vegetables and keeping them in ziplock. Do you cut onions and keep them in fridge as well? Do you sprinkle water while keeping them in ziplock or as is? Pmahensa, please can you let me know about the cleaners that come to clean. I know it will be different in each city, but can you guide me on how to find them. I sometimes think a deep cleaning of house is required so that we are can start fresh again.
Mevitha- I dont cut onions. I only cut carrots,beans,broccoli,cauliflower and put it in freezer-ziplock bags -if I am storing in freezer. Mostly I store in fridge itself as I will be using them in 1 or 2 days. so store them in the regular ziplock bags without any water.
hello all thanks for the tips. do you cook food and refrigerate them? Can some one tell me which all kinds of dishes be cooked and stored? also the shelf life of cooked food?
