Anonymous
09/21/2018 06:56
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Housecleaning. We do biweekly but I’d do weekly if DH agreed to it.
Sending out laundry. I really want to pay for that.
Interior decorator. We moved at the end of May and still have only decorated the main floor because we have no time or energy. We have furniture but nothing on the walls except for the main floor.
Sending out laundry. I really want to pay for that.
Interior decorator. We moved at the end of May and still have only decorated the main floor because we have no time or energy. We have furniture but nothing on the walls except for the main floor.
Anonymous
09/21/2018 04:49
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
How do you take pressure off the 5:30-7:30 window. As a fellow 2 working parent household that time frame is literally our only family time each day. Cook dinner, talk to your kids, enjoy being together. That chunk of time is the last place you want to outsource or bring other people into.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 22:44
Subject: Re:Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
We can’t afford most the suggestions here (or choose to spend money elsewhere) and just have two kids, but we find hiring our high school neighbor is great a weekend or two a month for a few hours. She plays with the girls, or does dishes, or folds and puts away laundry, or organizes their room, packs up off season clothes etc.
She’s friendly, hard working, the girls adore her, and she costs a lot less than a nanny. Now and then (it’s been over two years) I hire a professional organizer to help declutter and institute new organizational systems.
She’s friendly, hard working, the girls adore her, and she costs a lot less than a nanny. Now and then (it’s been over two years) I hire a professional organizer to help declutter and institute new organizational systems.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 21:20
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Baby nurse. Sleep is priceless.
We have a sitter who comes 5-8 pm, 3-4 times a week. Helps with the kids while I prepare dinner or take older kids to activities. Bed and bathtime routine as needed. Cleans kitchen after dinner, folds laundry, vacuums. I pay up the nose for help during those hours but it's incredibly helpful.
We have a sitter who comes 5-8 pm, 3-4 times a week. Helps with the kids while I prepare dinner or take older kids to activities. Bed and bathtime routine as needed. Cleans kitchen after dinner, folds laundry, vacuums. I pay up the nose for help during those hours but it's incredibly helpful.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 20:55
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Housecleaning. We do biweekly but I’d do weekly if DH agreed to it.
Sending out laundry. I really want to pay for that.
Interior decorator. We moved at the end of May and still have only decorated the main floor because we have no time or energy. We have furniture but nothing on the walls except for the main floor.
Sending out laundry. I really want to pay for that.
Interior decorator. We moved at the end of May and still have only decorated the main floor because we have no time or energy. We have furniture but nothing on the walls except for the main floor.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 20:13
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Night nanny, because everything is easier with sleep.
For the housekeeping, you can definitely find people who will do it PT and people who cook (check other services on care. com or similar).
The 5-7 hour -- post in your neighborhood listserves, and see if anyone has a preteen or teenager looking for odd jobs. Even if they come from 6-7 a few nights a week and help load the dishwasher it helps so much.
If you can afford it get weekend help. Is the child going to be with a nanny?
For the housekeeping, you can definitely find people who will do it PT and people who cook (check other services on care. com or similar).
The 5-7 hour -- post in your neighborhood listserves, and see if anyone has a preteen or teenager looking for odd jobs. Even if they come from 6-7 a few nights a week and help load the dishwasher it helps so much.
If you can afford it get weekend help. Is the child going to be with a nanny?
Anonymous
09/20/2018 17:58
Subject: Re:Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:If you find the right nanny they are priceless.
+1 We got a "temporary nanny" while waiting for our first to get off a daycare wait list and 6 years later she's still with us. They make life so much easier if you can swing it (and when the baby sleeps/as the kids age, they can do housekeeping chores).
+1000
We did it for the first year, then the second year, etc., etc., now we still have a nanny even though the kids are in school. It's amazing how much stuff she helps with like errands and groceries and laundry so that we don't have to think about that.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 17:49
Subject: Re:Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
The best money we spend is paying our sitter to pick up DDs from daycare at 4 and stay through 6:30. We have dinner together around 5:45 and she tidies up during that time, washes my pumping bottles, etc. We also get home from work with everyone home and happy as opposed to a stressful pick up and drive home at 5.
She’s a college girl we found on care.com who has worked for us for two years. A law student or grad student would also be good for this.
Also, weekly house cleaning is a must for us.
She’s a college girl we found on care.com who has worked for us for two years. A law student or grad student would also be good for this.
Also, weekly house cleaning is a must for us.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 17:47
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Just curious what’s the hhi of you PPs with all this help? You must be loaded....
Anonymous
09/20/2018 17:41
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
For monthly expenses, have a good financial cushion so you don't resent each other for the occasional and inevitable stupid screw-up (which might happen with more stress generally)
Anonymous
09/20/2018 16:02
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Anonymous wrote:friends of ours had a morning nanny to get kids ready for daycare and do drop off. I thought this was brilliant; she said they could get workouts in, and the kids were more calm. it sounded delightful.
Also, housekeeper and order everything you can for delivery. Worth it
Also have a friend who did this. Excellent idea.
Anonymous
09/20/2018 15:18
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Anonymous wrote:We recently found out we're expecting our third. (Yay! Yikes!). My partner and I work full time, with busy but semi-flexible jobs. Our commutes are very manageable. The kids are in daycare / pre-K near home or on the way to work. I've been trying to brainstorm the most effective ways to spend a little money to make life smoother with the new baby. What has worked for you??
Ideas so far:
Increase housecleaning to weekly (from bi-weekly), include laundry.
Hire mother's helper --- if so when? To do what?
Hire assistance with dinner prep --- is this even possible? I'd love to take some pressure off the 5:30-7:30 pm window.
More meal delivery? (Are there any services people love?)
More grocery delivery or other outsourcing of chores? What services are good?
What works for you? What doesn't work for you? Thanks in advance!!
Housecleaning and mother's helper would be the best quick wins, imo.
Are you guys bad/good cooks? If you don't like cooking, sure, a meal delivery option could be an option but I suspect that can get $$. If you don't mind cooking and want to take the pressure off from figuring out what to have for dinner every night, go ahead and give Blue Apron/Sun Basket a shot! We love them and while it does not reduce cooking by a ton of time, it does save from the mental stress of figuring out what to make every night,
Anonymous
09/20/2018 15:13
Subject: Re:Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Instacart groceries
Mother's helper
Door dash
Mother's helper
Door dash
Anonymous
09/20/2018 15:08
Subject: Re:Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
Anonymous wrote:If you find the right nanny they are priceless.
+1 We got a "temporary nanny" while waiting for our first to get off a daycare wait list and 6 years later she's still with us. They make life so much easier if you can swing it (and when the baby sleeps/as the kids age, they can do housekeeping chores).
Anonymous
09/20/2018 15:04
Subject: Best use of money to make life / parenting easier?
friends of ours had a morning nanny to get kids ready for daycare and do drop off. I thought this was brilliant; she said they could get workouts in, and the kids were more calm. it sounded delightful.
Also, housekeeper and order everything you can for delivery. Worth it
Also, housekeeper and order everything you can for delivery. Worth it