In a growing family where both parents are working full-time, can we survive without hiring a domestic helper?

NO

It varies from case to case

Yes I have a Filipino maid and she is good and trustworthy so far and my kids like and get along well with her. I can’t live without her as I hate to do housework and my husband is very neat and tidy and expects the house to be that way at all times. – Joanne Ho

Mums with maid don’t make them lazy, mums without maid don’t mean they’re hardworking either. We just choose a solution that works fine. I dislike having a stranger in my house but weighing the pros and cons, having a maid is the best solution for me. – Samantha Ong

I don’t encourage having a maid at home but let’s put it this way, getting help is the best solution if 1. you’re in a demanding job and can’t afford to take time off often if your child who’s going to a daycare centre falls sick regularly, 2. if your parents or in-laws are too old to help look after kids and 3. if your husband isn’t hands-on. – Joanne Wye

I don’t think I can live without my nanny – she goes back every alternate weekends and in those weekends, I am exhausted by the end of the day looking after my two girls. I literally worked non-stop the entire day. It is really up to you and hubs to decide which life you want – no maid means both of you will have to care for kids full time whenever they are home. Having a maid/help means you will be able to have some time on your own. – Theresa Elizabeth Lim

YES

When there’s a will, there’s a way

Why not? Most of us grew up without maids anyway. My parents always made sure we helped around with the chores. I honestly feel Asians are getting too dependent on maids hence we are a bunch of pampered people. And not to mention maids these days are getting more expensive! – Alesia Sim-Yong

We grew up without maids. Three siblings, two full-time working parents. We all had chores at a young age. Everyone helped out. It makes me cringe when I come across adults who don’t even know how to wash their own underwear because they have been pampered all their lives, mostly men (thank goodness my hubby cooks, cleans and helps!). And, it’s truly sad to see a child run to their nanny/maid rather than parents for comfort. – Julie Zulueta

I have two kids without maid, and without a husband around (who works overseas). Challenging but hey I love it. My elder learns to be more responsible for her own stuff. She will be five in November and is already washing her own panties, shoes, lunch box; tidy up her room and fold her own laundry. And she needs to babysit her two-year old sister and she is doing a great job! Love it without a maid. – Vivian Foo

I grew up being quite a spoilt brat ordering my parents’ local Chinese maid around and behaved like I deserved to be served. I left home at 20 and moved to KL to learn to be more independent; I didn’t even know how to cook an egg or wash my clothes. Through much hardship, I managed to learn all the necessary skills to survive by myself and became very good at it. Now that I’m a mother, I hate the idea of having a maid in the house. I think I’m very capable of handling the house and my baby by myself and am determined to bring up my children to be well-behaved and helpful children, unlike me. – Amy Loh

It’s possible even if you have 10 kids and don’t mind everything in a mess at home, let the elder take care of the younger ones, ok to leave them alone at home, cook simple meals, and skip sterilising etc. But if you are a very neat person, have very fussy baby, can’t take the stress from house chores, your kids are young and close in age gap, full-time working mum who works until after 9pm everyday without parents’ help and husband is always away, I think maid/nanny is the only choice. – Emily Chew