tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post4347297902467635533..comments2024-02-05T05:15:04.759-08:00Comments on Wandering Scientist: Something Lost, Something GainedCloudhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09317847285050447789noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-45352738797641279432008-08-27T17:00:00.000-07:002008-08-27T17:00:00.000-07:00I forgot to mention that she does not clean the en...I forgot to mention that she does not clean the entire house each week. She hits all the common areas, the kitchen, the baths, MBR and kid's room. She rotates the other areas. She blows in and out in 5-5.5 hrs a visit. She determines when she comes and when she thinks she is done. <BR/><BR/>She is easily 2x as effective as a 'civilian' at housecleaning. Factor that into your cost-benefit analysis.badmomgoodmomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11569728075698885020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-39796968900837595012008-08-27T16:58:00.000-07:002008-08-27T16:58:00.000-07:00We pay $95 biweekly to an independent contractor. ...We pay $95 biweekly to an independent contractor. She keeps the entire amount, unlike most agencies that pay workers ~25% of revenue.<BR/><BR/>She brings her own cleaners and mops (which she leaves at our house) and uses our rags.<BR/><BR/>I have zero guilt about hiring her. She is replacing the work that a disabled woman cannot perform and what a healthy man refuses to perform. The guilt should be his, not mine.<BR/><BR/>I have heard that line before about how "we should be able to handle it ourselves". In practice, it meant "you can do it yourself while I watch TV or read or do whatever the hell I want to do while pretending to not notice all the work you do."<BR/><BR/>Just hire the cleaning lady and lose the guilt. Biweekly seems to be ideal for most families for cost and cleaning effectiveness. <BR/><BR/>That still leaves a light DIY cleaning for "off" weeks. It is good for you to stay in practice and show your kids how it is done. Yet, things won't be a total disaster if you miss the DIY cleaning session.badmomgoodmomhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11569728075698885020noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-9856089354057305922008-08-26T07:52:00.000-07:002008-08-26T07:52:00.000-07:00We went through the same conversation and decided ...We went through the same conversation and decided to forgo gifts/celebration/trip for our tenth wedding anniversary and get the year of cleaning service instead. I don't know if we will continue past the one year, but so far we are very happy with our decision.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29235839.post-68599291460617055122008-08-26T06:43:00.000-07:002008-08-26T06:43:00.000-07:00I actually have a suggestion for that. In the same...I actually have a suggestion for that. In the same way that your hubby added up the dollars it would take to have a cleaning service come biweekly or monthly a year, I suggest you add up all the hours it will take to clean using the schedule you developed and see how much that comes to a year. The next thing to do is figure out how much your time is worth per hour (this was easy for my hubby and I because we are consultants, so our rates can be broken down hourly). If that's not enough to show the cost/benefit of a cleaning service, try adding in all the intangibles that don't directly relate to money that you are missing by spending that time cleaning, or by not cleaning well enough. That would include time with Pumpkin, time spent on hobbies and your health.<BR/><BR/>Can you tell that my hubby and I went through this? For me, it was after I got diagnosed with all my allergies and when I got a raise one year. I started the conversation by saying that what I wanted to do with my raise that year was hire a cleaning service. Then we charted out the money versus time. Now that we have the baby/toddler, it's even more worth our money.<BR/><BR/>It's easy to see dollars on cleaning versus dollars on other things. But to me, time is worth so much more than just money. And it's been worth every penny.<BR/><BR/>I hope that helps. And good luck!caramamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02327695885346537321noreply@blogger.com