Extras by Women!!!

@hrastro …… simply super you are so talented :bowdown
@laks09 ………. Hats off for being a wonderful parent and a great soul:clap
After reading your posts, to be honest I have to admit that I am nothing but a lazy chap ove:coffeerdoing silly things in life. I am always planning my financial budgets and trying to save for rainy days. For me, this is an integral part of my life and since we are planning to buy a new house half of my time I am constructing my money to accomplish this. So let me go on……..
1. My DH has given me the full freedom to make investment decisions and this comes with a heavy responsibility. In the beginning of 2016 we are planning to buy our new flat and currently I am managing all my expenses and planning in such a way that we can well buy this flat without seeking any loan from banks.
2. I rewrite and rewrite my monthly budgets; I cmoneysmileyontrol my shopping desires and make small sacrifices to save little money. Of course some heavy purchases will give a sudden blow to my plans but I have learned to accept this.
3. I take good care of my parents, in laws and (TOUCHWOOD) I am a good daughter for both of them.:2thumbsup:
4. Since my DD is most of the time with my mother, I spend only few hours with her and am doing my best to load her with gifts, happiness and love.
5. I am working for 5 days a week and in between I write assignments and projects as paid part time jobs.
6. I regularly do the rahukala pooja on Fridays from 10.30 to 12.00 and am interested to learn new slokas and mantras.
7. I look cooking though my family members are not keen on trying new dishes.
8. I avoid outside food as much as possible.
9. I try to do half an hr walking on all possible days and am not so keen in watching movies or TV.
10. I am the one who plans for all surprises, outings, parties, travelling, payment of bills, budgets and needless to say my DH does not shop anything other than milk and bread.

P.S. My DH and in laws are loving and this makes me do all the above things for my family. By God’s grace I am blessed with the opportunity to take care of my parents and help them both financially and physically being a daughter.

 

@Laks09,

I am in tears after reading your daily routine....
Hats off to you for your patience and Definitely God will help you in all possible ways....

 

@hrastro another useful post by you. You are a super woman full of energy and something to learn for all of us how to be healthy , active and happy.

I worked for 38 years and took VRS when I had one and half year to retire. Got married when I was nearing 30 yrs and got my first child at the age of 33yrs and in a gap of one year nine months had a son and daughter . Bringing them up as a working woman was very difficult but I had the support of my husband who helped me in the kitchen and also taking care of the children. He had Wednesday's off and I had Saturday and Sunday off so children did not have the opportunity to see both of us on holidays except on public holidays. Enjoyed as a working woman attending picnics , going to temples whenever we got time with friends. Twice during lunch time and evening went to my colleague's house to teach them how to make mysore pak. I joined as a Typist, then promoted as Steno , then it was a surprise when I was promoted as Senior Assistant looking after Bank Reconciliation of the whole company.There were friends who had cars so got a lift whenever we attended any marriages of any functions.

After retirement was thinking how I will spend my time. Till 2004 was busy with children and after they got married was feeling bored. In 2007 joined IL which kept me busy. After I got my eye operated for cataract the world seemed bright and started keeping myself busy making jewellery , creative crafts etc. Since last year active in facebook so don't know how the time passes. Attend marriages, Narayaneeyam, musical programme, any religious programme in the temple etc. whenever we get opportunity

I feel this thread should be in the Finest post , so going there tonominate

 

Dear @hrastro ,

A very useful and informative thread you have started.

I was a working woman and SAHM till last year. Now I am at home having resigned my job as I and my DH decided that there was no need to work any further. When I was working, I was very busy both at office and at home.

Nowadays, I and my DH spend four months each with our two sons settled abroad and four months for me and DH exclusively in India. I support my DILs when I am with them and support my parents when my and my husband are all for ourselves in India.
I enjoy gardening.

I try to be of some comfort to some of my DDs and Sisters in IL who may be going through difficult period in their lives sharing my experiences in life and spiritual pursuit.

Whenever I visit my sons and DILs they heavily depend on me and I support them by taking care that they have some relief from the routine monotonous life. Of course we enjoy most of the weekends together ,many time going out, despite my insisting that they go out and enjoy by themselves when we are there to take care.

You are a many skilled star and doing great as a SAHM...Excellent! Keep it up, well done.

Thanks for sharing your ideas.

 

@hrastro thanks for the invite. buddy you should have alloted a box next to each chore of yours and my life would have been easy. you see i could have ticked some of them as i do them too..hi5 and leave it at that. now you want me to write it, i need to write a long story from the reason of being a sahm to my latest struggle..will definitely do it if it is going to help somebody.

@LAks09 tu jaah reh jitne marathons, jitney spas, jitney girls night out jaana hai.. you deserve every one of them. i know what you are going through..hang in there girl, there is a silver lining out there, your boy is like the dark horse that is waiting for that spark..he will do good..hang in there..(you know i am saying the same for myself too..and loads of hugs..)

@vanivyas no effort is small,in the bigger picture. remember small drops maketh a big ocean..and my experiences definitly prove it..will definitely share it..to state that i mean what i am saying..

Writing this standing in front of the post office queue..danke to the smartphones and 3g..

 

Hi,
Nice thread. Reading thro' your post i can sense the sincerity in your actions. Your family is lucky to get a woman like you.
I have been through the roles of a working woman and after taking VRS some 10 years back, a housewife. As i had taken VRS, with the specific need to avoid the incessant running against time managing home and office work. So, i have had time over these years to engage in :
1. stitching my own saree blouses/ dresses etc.
2. taking tuitions for my neighbourhood children who wanted my help.
3. visiting my old mother at native more frequently.
4. keeping in tough with all our extended families.
5. Catching up on my hobbies of reading books to heart's content.
Many more which may not have come to mind immediately. Happy to say, I'm enjoying my days now, just like i found satisfaction during my working life also
- with the satisfaction that i had financial independence and could what i wanted for my family.

 

@ Hrastro, yet another wonderful thread... Glad to read your works both at home and outside, specially the charitable intention behind it.

@ Laks09, I had tears while reading your post. You are amazing, and a wonderful mom. Just one word that I can share with you now.. "God is watching everything there.. He gives struggles to those who can handle it, but he will surely help you once you feel you can no longer handle it. Wait for a miracle, and all your efforts will be paid that moment."

I always had tough time both at home and work place due to frequent travel needs, and shipments. But somehow I managed to get a transfer to my home town; thus enjoying the work-life balance at last.

Hiring nannies or maids is not easy in Sri Lanka. It is not expensive, but very hard to get a maid or trust them. Lot of social reasons associated with this.
As long as I was working outstations, we somehow completely depended on 2-3 maids and a gardener on rotation basis. Now a days, we have come out of that dilemma; thus managing the house and work happily alone.

Both myself and I wake up at 5 am, we both pray our respective Gods for the next 15 mins. Then we start doing the chores as it comes. I, mainly cook and dominate the kitchen, whereas my H would take care of the cleaning and laundry part. As kids wake up, I would engage with them (bathing, feeding, dressing them up for nursery etc..etc..) and my husband would be busy at the garden - which is big in our house.

My mom would soon join us and do the remaining works while we will be busy in grooming ourselves for the office.

We start to work at 8.am as the work place is very close by.

Apart from regular work at office, I socialize a lot with my colleagues. I take time to meet my team, and peers and bosses too. We speak a lot about family issues, social issues,politics, religion and dressing style at our "other than office talks'. I also take use of free office time to update my resume at the international professional roster.

I take up lot of office related courses, attend workshops and sometimes it requires frequent international trips too.

I leave office at 4.30pm. i am supposed to take my son for his evening classes such as piano and elocution. While waiting outside, i made use of joining a new language course near his tuition centre. Apart from English and French now I am learning German and Arabic. This is in addition to the 2 local language that I am fluent with.

I maintain a healthy diet at home. i cook 3 meals and some snacks too. in addition to that, I go for yoga classes thrice a week. i do Yoga in the evening at 6.00 with kids joining me. I also supervise my mom's physiotherapy exercise in the mean time.
I take good care of her health, and take her for frequent chek-ups mostly in the evenings.

As for learning, I am interested in learning a new thing in life... It continues... I learnt cookery, swimming (learnt this only when my son joint his swimming class only), home gardening, sawing, beauty culture (basic such as facials, manicure, nail art etc..etc..) and I am planing to learn meditation and hair styling.

Mostly I take up on-line courses, or evening classes as per my kid's class schedules.

After 6 pm, I spent quality time with my kids. Encourage them to study, do their home work and also play together. I sit and talk with them in their room for nearly 1 hr. Then they will come to pray room, so that we pray as a family.

Apart from Sundays, we go to church on tuesdays and thursdays for prayer meetings. This is mainly for my mom to be social active with her peers. Either I participate in such meetings or just drop mom and do something else i desire during that time.

After cooking and feeding kids at night, I will spend a few hrs in TV room with my mom to give her company. My husband and kids will have their bonding time then.

Meanwhile, I will be on-line and socializing with my folks on FB or whatsapp.

In the mean time, while casually interacting with each other, me and H would do the remaining chores like dishes, ironing the cloths, bedding etc..etc...

In addition to our daily life, there are times we host parties or entertain visitors at home. This happens regularly like at least 1 party per week, and 2-3 families visiting/staying with us per month. So, planing something special everytime is a challenge, but both happily take this up.

We too take time to visit our friends and families on weekends.


Both I and husband go to grocerry shoping together, fish and meat market together in addition to our office rides back and forth.

We are also hoping for a morning jogging as some of our friends are joining us soon.

We do all this in addition to managing our own family business.... We visit the office (not our work place) on and off... give guidance to the manager, and go through all the procedures like audit, profit, tax etc..etc...

Also, we try out new business such as real estate or travel agency... and I am also planning of a small scaled home business on cloths.

And finally for charity, we are regularly donating for elders' home in our dad's name (who is no more), and casual helps to the church on every weekends or on demand basis.
In addition to that, we assist our maids and their families on their demand.

Now that we have no maids, but it seems it is better without a maid.

Not that I am physically busy all the time, but I am somehow handling a lot at a time it seems.