al dente

Ha, I wanted 4 but no more allowed on Dr's orders. I'm also back working now and am strugling with the time management, especially as my son keeps getting bloody poorly.

Ethos83

My grandmother grew up in a country vicarage. Her pop was the quintessential CoE vicar poor as churchmice. Still managed to employ a cook and a maid right up till WWII.

The last maid left in 1942 to work in a factory.

Really wasn't that long ago when servants were common in the West. Well within living memory.

co durham boy

You disappoint me Ethos , i thought you would have given us an account of heady days plucking game with 'cook' and helping young Alice to polish the Pewter......

the_red_sheep

What I don't understand is why people have children when they seemingly don't have the time or inclination to bring them up, and would rather defer the task to an often poorly paid and poorly trained maid-cum-nanny.

Few things irk me more than when in the company of people who have kids and have brought the nanny along to a BBQ or whatever, and seeing the kids refer to the nanny firstly when they need something. If I was a parent that would break my heart. Equally it irks me to see parents bring the nanny along at the weekend so they can sit around with a few drinks and relax after a busy week of not looking after their own children, rather than spending quality time with the fruit of their loins.

I think its the epitome of the attitude of many in Dubai of "I can afford it, so I will", rather than there actually being a fundamentally good reason for doing so.

auzdafluff

True, but it's important to ask how many people in the UK would do the same if they could afford it. The vast majority I bet.

britexpat76

Spot on. I don't have children for those reasons. I am too selfish and want to get stuck in at the weekends and do as I wish, I dont have the time (I am out the house 12 hours a day) should I have little rascals I would want to spend time with them. Financially I could have one and a maid but my childhood was spent with my parents I would hate the thought of spending it with a nanny.............

Meow

It's a personal choice. I have known people who were brought up with domestic staff who are lovely, caring and considerate and still very close to their parents, but we all know people who spent most of their time with parents who are nasty, selfish and not close to them.

Parenting seems to be competitive sport these days, especially amongst non-working mothers.

Patsy Stoned

A thread 3 pages long about to have or not to have bloody housemaids.......

Is this BritishExpats or Expatwomen????

commander

Don't be so daft. It was a question. Don't bother answering it.you don't need to.

britexpat76

And no mention of beating or shagging them.

Ethos83

Yes...the British expats who sneer at people for having maids, yet who have no qualms driving fancy cars or wearing expensive clothes and watches/jewelry or spending a thousand AED on a single night out. A maid can be a status symbol but so can lots of other things. It's just easier to pick on maids.

Patsy Stoned

I used to get mine to break in my new shoes for me..I am a size 37 and she is size 38 so they were comfortable when I wore them ..she hobbled a bit afterwards, but if she wore them on Thursdays she was off Friday so her feet were better by the time she had to come back to work

britexpat76

I think the point is not about a maid as a status symbol but people using them to quite frankly do the work they should do with their children.

Lets pop a few rugrats out, the maid will look after them whilst we head off to saffron for brunch, sit by the pool etc etc.....

britexpat76

You gave her a day off

Patsy Stoned

I know, I know..far too generous by half