Do you have a houskeeper?

[Anonymous]

To some people, having a house cleaner is just how it is done. I don't think we need to criticize one way or the other. That could get really nasty.

I grew up in a household that always had either a housekeeper or a "maid" (as it was called back then). But, the summer I was 16, our wonderful "maid" had to have surgery and was out of commission for the duration. My mother promised her job would still be there when she ws ready to return (Sadly, really noone did health care and paid leave back then for help but I think my parents did give her some extra cash to carry her through). My mother then proceeded to use that summer to teach me how to clean the house. It was my summer "job". Once I got it down, I got paid what our maid did. My mother did not stint in her criticism of my work. My mother explained that, in order to run a proper household, one needed to know how everything was done and learn it hands on. It was a great experience. I used it well in the years between college and owning my own house. As soon as we were expecting our first child I got a cleaning lady of my own. Yes, I could do it if I wanted to, I certainly know how, but I don't want to. To each his own.

[Anonymous]

For us, having a weekly cleaning lady who does laundry saves about 4-5 hours of time on the weekend, and yes, that is time we spend with our child - the difference between making it to the park or museum or zoo on a Saturday morning vs. staying home to clean. And yes, my child is leaning to clean after himself and will be taught how to clean in detail when he gets older (he is only 2). Who do you think does the cleaning when our cleaning lady is on vacation?

[Anonymous]

To answer OP's question -- our cleaning lady comes every 2 weeks. We pay her $90 to clean our approx 2200 sq ft house.
No tidying (we are already very tidy), just cleaning -- vacuuming, mopping, changing bed linens. She does not do laundry either.
We are in Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just think it's sad. My DH came from a family where his mom was never taught how to clean. He was a mess in college. I had to show him how to properly do laundry, clean a bathroom, etc. Now, he can do all household chores and does split them. It just seems really lazy and so like this area. What a waste of money (good for those making the money) to wipe you toilets down and dust your cabinets (all of which take minimal level of effort and almost no time).

I just get tired of people using their kids as excuses for not cleaning after themselves. It's not because of their kids and time (I don't get that for most people).

What's sad about wanting to spend more time with your children? Just because someone has a cleaning person isn't an indication that the children are going to be adult slobs. If you have someone come in twice a month-there will be chores in between.

Your man isn't any different than most men! My exhusband and now current husband both had their laundry done for them by their mothers. My mother did my brother's laundry-he carries his weight around the house today.

It sounds like you're slightly envious.

[Anonymous]

To the poster who doesn't understand the concept of having someone clean your house--
Our kids certainly still see plenty of in between "cleaning." We still sweep and swiffer the kitchen floor after they eat, wipe down counters, wash dishes, do laundry, use the dustbuster, etc. My 2-year old is obsessed with his mini vacuum, broom, and dustpan and will help mommy sweep whenever given the chance. I hardly think he is going to grow up not knowing how to clean. Plus, my feeling is that when the kids are old enough to take on real chores, we will perhaps drop the house cleaner and have the kids clean instead. This is how it was in my house growing up. I remember (not so fondly) vacuuming and cleaning our tubs and toilets weekly. But my parents did have someone clean when we were young and had to be watched all the time.

[Anonymous]

I also beg to differ that it takes little time to clean. We didn't used to have a cleaning lady and I spent my Saturday mornings cleaning the house (that's what I learned from my mom). Then we had a baby and I just could not do it anymore. You can't vacum when the baby is sleeping and baby will not let me clean and just watch contently. My husband helps but he is not one to scrub the toilet etc. So we got a cleaning lady and I am so happy! I fail to see how my kids will not learn how to clean, it is not rocket science. It is more important to me to teach my kids respect and not think 'Oh, I don't have to be careful about spilling food etc because someone else will have to clean it up." The cleaning lady only complements the tasks that we have in our home. BUt it is not "i am too good to clean attitude" that I want to create.

[Anonymous]

We have once a week help for our 3200 sf 4 BR, 1 den, 3 bathroom house. She gets paid $125 and she cleans and does the laundry. We think it's a good deal b/c she does an awsome job.

[Anonymous]

To the posters who cannot understand the concept of a cleaning person:

I come from a country where it is completely common place and "normal" for middle and upper class to have a cleaning person 24x7 living on your property. Growing up we had a domestic (what its called where I'm from) who did all of the cleaning and cooking. My mom did not even work! For me having someone clean is the way to go. My home country is not full of a bunch of overindulged slobs. I would say here in America is where that behavior begins for many other reasons and one of them not being having a domestic. Having a live-in or having a cleaning person that comes frequently is VERY common in other areas in the world. I have lived in Spain and worked in South & Central America and in both of these regions it is extremely common place and it is not service exclusively reserved for the wealthy either.

I lived years without a cleaning person and I am a complete neat freak, I grew up in a sparking clean house and am accoustomed to living in neat and orderly spaces. My cleaning person does the deep clean and all laundry (thank heavens!), we still keep things tidy. As a result my house is always sparking, you would have to look really hard to find a spec of dust on the basebords and I like it that way. I too work as a consultant part-time and I would be spending precious time I don't have scrubbing the house to keep it at the level of clean that it is at now. I simply don't want to make the time to do it. I exercise daily, garden, paint, and play with the children.

BTW, I also have a lady that comes every 2 weeks that prepares freezer meals, so I only find myself cooking 2xs a week (my DH is in charge of 1 weekday evening meal as well!). Are my kids going to be unable to nourish themselves as well when they get older?

[Anonymous]

We both work full time and have an infant. The last thing I want to do on a weekend is clean. The $100 I pay every other week is absolutely worth it. It's 4-5 hours of my time that I can spend with my baby.

[Anonymous]

We have a cleaning lady who comes every two weeks, we pay $80, and I don't know what "deep clean" means, but she dusts, sweeps, tidys, vacuums, does all kitchens and bathrooms, and launders/changes sheets and towels. I kept a good house before becoming pregnant, but she is by far more thorough--you know, gets the tops of cabinets, inside fridge and closets, baseboards, door handles, etc. We still do light cleanings in between. I grew up in a house where every one had a cleaning task to do, though my mother hated cleaning and never did a great job. That is probably why when my husband suggested getting some help I didn't hesitate!

[Anonymous]

9:57 here -
Yup, I agree with 10:14. I work full-time and we have two kids under 2-1/2 who require nearly constant supervision. Between weekend activities and other errands, plus naps and meals, we are already maxed out time-wise. I honestly don't know when we would clean, other than 10:00 at night after the kids are asleep, lunches are made for the next day, and my husband and I have eaten dinner. And that is just not going to happen.

[Anonymous]

i pay $100 once a month for a cleaning. small row house in dc. i work full-time and this makes a huge difference. i still clean every day and require my son to pick up toys, etc but i don't have to deep clean the bathroom, kitchen stove, floors, etc. would love to do it twice a month but i can't really afford it!

[Anonymous]

I'm trying to decide if we should get a cleaning person to come in 1 or 2 times a month. Both of us work fulltime with two kids under 4 so life is hectic, but I'm cheap. I also don't try to do everything each week- we have a sat. morning ritual where husband goes to the grocer store with the oldest and I stay home and clean with the youngest who is still nursing and napping alot. We try and be done with our household cleaning and shopping errands by noon on Sat so that we can spend the rest of the weekend just hanging out with the kids.

$100 every two weeks is $2500 a year. Maybe my house isn't the cleanest, but this isn't chump change to me. So sad that there are two of us working and $2500 is a lot! Then again, maybe my house is gross and I don't know it!

[Anonymous]

Just fyi.. it will be more per visit if you only do once a month. So you might pay $80 every other week, but $120 for once a month (based on the assumption that your house will be that much dirtier and more labor-intensive to clean). So think about whether the $40 more each month is worth having them come twice versus just once.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To answer OP's question -- our cleaning lady comes every 2 weeks. We pay her $90 to clean our approx 2200 sq ft house.
No tidying (we are already very tidy), just cleaning -- vacuuming, mopping, changing bed linens. She does not do laundry either.
We are in Bethesda.

Can you recommend her/provide contact info? By the way, I am the OP and I keep our house clean. I am looking for someone to come in to do a deep clean, something that I have done in the past and has taken me the whole day. I didn't mind it at first, but now with an infant, it is hard to find the large block of time to do this. I also feel strange about hiring someone to do this, but housecleaners need the money too (that is how I justify it) and they are providing a service that we pay for. Not too different then a waiter serving your food, or the person doing your yardwork.