Confessions
The other day I was talking with my friend Nadia and she mentioned that I should be more open about my life on this blog. In some ways I feel like I am…after all, you’ve already had the pleasure of seeing Ali’s hamper and my closet, and you know more about my bizarre eating habits then my own mother does. Still I have to admit there are things I don’t share because I worry about how some of you will perceive me. But what kind friend would I be if I didn’t take Nadia’s constructive criticism to heart?
So it is with Nadia’s advice in mind that I make the following confession: I have a housekeeper.
Okay, so you are probably thinking:
1. Is Ameena so busy that she has to pay someone to clean her house?
2. How much mess can three people really make?
3. Is Ameena so lazy that she has to pay someone to clean her house?
To answer your questions…yes, way too much, and yes.
The thing is that I cannot function unless each and every single thing in my house is in its designated space. I hate mess. I detest clutter. I don’t like stuff. I get this wonderful minimalist quality from my mother who used to gasp in fear if I so much as suggested taping a MacGyver poster up on a wall in my room. She ran a tight ship for sure. She had us kids on our hands and knees polishing the marble floor and washing the cars weekly. We also had to clean the kitchen after dinner each night, shine my dad’s shoes, and vacuum the entire house bi-weekly. You can just call me Cinderella. And considering my harsh upbringing, I’m sure we can all agree that I’ve earned the right to have a housekeeper.
Mrs. Maria – as Maya calls her – came to us 8 years ago. Since then she has not only made our house a cleaner place but she’s organized things that I didn’t even know needed organizing. Our Tupperware drawer, our laundry room, Ali’s sock drawer(s), and more. Mrs. Maria has also saved the Din household from countless fights and arguments over dirty dishes and displaced laundry. Seriously, how ironic is it that a super anal person like myself lives with two of the messiest slobs to have ever walked the earth?
In my opinion, I’d rather eat in every night and spend money to have a clean house then to stress about my dirty house while I eat a fancy dinner at a restaurant. Call me crazy but there is nothing better than coming home to a spotless place every Monday. It makes my entire day.
What do you splurge on that you think is worth every penny?
While I'm not going to win Mother/Wife of the Year Award anytime soon, I haven't killed anyone yet or shot myself in the head. And that, my friends, is how I calculate success these days. 
FANCY THAT FANCY THIS 
i’m super jealous that you have a housekeeper! i think it’s so true that housekeepers prevent many fights. money well spent in my books.
the one thing gary and i definitely don’t mind splurging on is food. quality over quantity for us, especially now that we have kids. have an awesome thursday!
HA meena, i love it!! my fav was the macgyver poster since i literally had 3 of them(identical) hanging on my walls when i was 10! i didn’t realize u weren’t allowed to hang up posters, i’m sorry:( my entire room was posters and friends, all thru high school! really glad you felt inspired to open up, i think it’s great to reveal a lil here, a lil there;) back to ur question, i think beautiful bed linens and cashmere are the biggest splurges;) of course massages don’t hurt either, but nothing like a clean house!
XOXOXOXOXO
and sweety, you have more than deserved a wonderful housekeeper!
I have to agree with having a housekeeper and being able to save one’s marriage and health. It’s worth it to not get my neck, hands and back in worse shape than they already are. I could drive a more economical car and do not shop for expensive clothes. I splurge on my daughter though. Then I have to teach her about value of work and chores she needs to do around the house. I hope she gets it.
Growing up in the South, I never knew that people DIDN’T have housekeepers! It’s just kind of a normal thing there. I totally understand that splurge.
I splurge on food/groceries, especially now that I have the blog.
If I didn’t stay at home, I would definitely hire a housekeeper with part of my earnings. Heck, I wish I could have one anyways. I think its great you have one.
I want a housekeeper! Both of us have school and work all week…it’s a miracle that I can keep the dishes clean.
Nothing wrong with having a housekeeper. I think my biggest worry with that would be that she wouldn’t do things how I like them done, which is very specific and borderline OCD but it works for me. As for splurges, I think vacations/travel are the most worthy of all splurges hands down.
I wish more than anything that we had a housekeeper. I absolutely hate clutter, but my parents are the kind of people who save everything “just in case we might need it later”. Needless to say, we have a whole lot of useless junk lying around and it drives me insane. Besides my room and the kitchen, I try to avoid the other parts of the house as much as possible.
My biggest splurge is probably food. Between coconut butter and Greek yogurt, my grocery bills get way up there…
I don’t think anyone would ever judge you for this. We all have something that we spend money on just to make us happy, and if have a cleaning lady gives you peace of mind, she’s worth all of the cash in the world. And like Anna says, almost every single person down here has a housekeeper, even if they live in a trailer. It’s normal.
My biggest splurge is probably books. We spend a lot of money on reading material in this house, whether it is newspapers, magazines, or novels. The sad part is that not all of them actually get read. There’s just too many!
Ameena, there’s no shame in paying someone to clean your house. I would do it if I could!
I splurge on magazines (Cosmo in particular 😉 )
There’s absolutely NOTHING wrong with having a housekeeper!
I would love one, but my husband puts his foot down with a solid “NO!”
I will get a housekeeper one day. When: 1. I get a teaching job. 2. We have a house and 3. When we have kids.
I think it’s a worthwhile splurge and will help me keep some sanity! I cannot wait till we can afford it.
My splurge: Travel. Andy and I are determined to travel at least once a year. Over the summer when we don’t have to work. It’s always worth it!
Having a housekeeper would solve some Mommy guilt and time issues in my house! It’s just the 2 of us, and we’re not home much because I work 50+ hours a week. I try to cram as much stuff into our schedule as humanly possible. That means I’m up until 2am cleaning the house many, many nights since I’m really OCD about it. Three to four hours of sleep isn’t healthy, I feel like I’m always cleaning, and sometimes, I institute the “cleaning game” out of desperation to get it done. My son, however, is too smart for his own good, and he knows that the game is nothing more than boring old chores. Smart little guy… 🙂
Good advice from Nadia, and good for you! only you know what works best for you and your family! I would love a house keeper occassionally because I hate doing the behind the scenes things. and it irks me to let other people do my laundry and pick up my things. IRKS me I say. HANDS OFF! its mine!
haha
We live pretty simply too though and clutter makes Hubs and i both pretty kooky. ( I am the messier one though I think)
I would love a weekly car wash. I hate my car always being dusty and i just don’t have room in my life to do it myself . that and water restrictions make it crazy.
I also would love a facial now and than and more pampering. but don’t have room in my budget for it. So its a real treat.
Good for you Ameena!
I don’t blame you one bit for having a housekeeper. I’d be ALL over that if I (er, my parents) could afford it. Unless I marry well, I’m not seeing that happening anytime soon. And the whole marriage thing, not seeing THAT happening anytime soon either, seeing as how I’d need a man for that.
Anywho, I hate clutter too. I hate mess. I hate hate hate it. Drives me nuts.
I splurge on food, it’s worth it to me.
hey absolutely no shame in having a housekeeper. if it makes your life easier and less stressful then i say GO FOR IT. your sanity is what counts here 🙂
Oh I would TOTALLY have a housekeeper if I could. Maybe then I wouldnt have gotten ANTS!! lol
I love everything to be clean, but I never actually want to do the work required.
I splurge on groceries. The amount I spend is a little ridiculous for one person, but I want to put REAL food in my body. The more organic I can get the better. I think thats totally worth the extra money.
I have a house keeper too because honestly i do not want to spend my free time cleaning-life is tooooooo short! glad you shared 🙂
love you still 😉
Thank you for sharing — you shouldn’t feel bad at all! My Mom used to have a lady come in sometimes to help her…a house of 4 and 3 jobs, you lose time to clean! Everyone has their thing, and I only wish I was as neat at your are! I would splurge on someone to do my hair EVERY DAY. I hate doing hair 🙂
It’s definitely money well spent–very wise choice! I’d go without quite a few things to have one.
After seeing how crazy the last few months of work have been, the Mr. and I will be looking for someone to come and clean twice a month or so. Neither of us is very anal about house stuff (I’ve learned to stifle the mania of an upbringing by my mom) but our house is big and gets really dusty, and I’m tired of cohabiting with the very enterprising spiders. Now it’s just a matter of finding the right person…
You just reminded me that I need to kick start in getting my spring cleaning done with. Eek!! hahaha… It’s time to get all the clutter out and start fresh. Luckily my cousin volunteered to help me with a little redecorating of my bedroom. It would be nice to start fresh. But If only I can be like that throughout the rest of the year…now that would be a miracle
Crazy story. For 1 year my husband and I had a housekeeper who came every other week. It was fantastic and I was in sheer heaven. One time she actually stole my birth control pills…yes she admitted it…but trust was broken and we no longer felt comfortable having her in our home. We had to sever that relationship. 3 years later we have not replaced her!!! HAD I KNOWN THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN I WOULD HAVE GLADLY GIVEN HER EVERY SINGLE BIRTH CONTROL PILL!!! haha…now the husband just doesn’t see it as a necessity. Oh how I beg to differ….:(
Hi Kelly. My suggestion is if your husband doesn’t see it as a necessity, then let him do the cleaning! That happened with me years ago. It didn’t take long for my husband to realize that I meant what I said about him doing the cleaning and he got on board with a housekeeper!
Best,
Bonnie
I would love to have a housekeeper!! With 2 dogs and a messy husband, it is a constant neverending cleaning spree in my house!! Just wait til I have kids, oh goodness……. 😉
I splurge on FOOD, haha! 😉 We spend way more money on food than anything else. I wear clothes from 5 years ago, but you better believe I have the latest and greatest food products in my house!! 😉
There is NOTHING shameful about having a housekeeper, especially when you’re working and managing a family and a life! Sure, women in the 50s were able to do it all… but many often took speed to do it (a trend I hear is returning…?). We have someone come once a month or so, and the first few days are SO NICE.
I splurge on specialty food products and meals out.
I splurge on shoes- sort of. Not crazy amounts, but I have a huge thing for Guess. I’m aware that Payless or Target have similar styles, but my feet cry bloody murder in Target shoes… and I can go out dancing in a brand new pair of Guess and not even get a blister. That to me is worth every penny…
Hey Ameena!!
I am 100% behind you with the cleaning. I love eating out while someone cleans my house. The funny thing is – I hate other people in my house….I am germ freak 😉
Tell us more about you 😉 We all love you for You!
XXOO
PS – Did you get the drops I sent you?? I hope so!
Hi Kris – I posted in a comment on your blog ages ago that I received the drops. Sorry you didn’t see it?? I am using the drops diligently, lets see if anything improves. I have my fingers crossed!
Thanks for the sweet comment!
Have a great night,
Amenea
Although I like the idea of a maid, I’m not sure it would work with my micro-managing everything. I have to get things done MY way. I am very OC about it.
The thing that I splurge upon is purses(although not sure it is worth every penny)…I just can’t resist alfani bags!
i recently splurged on coconut butter…its so freaking good…but so expensive…so i figure i will buy it every 5 months (too bad its gone is 3 days 😦
I think the day I become a Mom, I am going to save myself and invest in a housekeeper. At this point in my life I cringe at the mess just the two of us are capable of making.I cannot even begin to imagine what will happen once I have kids.
Right now it is about good quality food, that is my idea of splurge.
i think if you can afford it, you enjoy it (i do not b/c i am anal and no one cleans my house as well as i do PLUS i hate!!!! having them in my hair and my space, basically they are up my ass for 4-6hrs and that’s not a reward to me, that’s irritation :))
But i splurge on…
nothing!
For reasons more than a comment field, life is alot diff the past 6-12mos than it ever has been before but i remember splurging on 5 figure pieces of jewelry and trips round the world in the not too distant past 🙂
i splurge on food – junk food…
girl – you should have a housekeeper – we all should…
i always said if i ever get a house 😦 – that I would definitely get a house keeper because i hate cleaning and can barely do my “box” (a.ka. 1-bedroom apt)…less stress and worry.
besides, all i really know is vacumning, the bathroom and sweeping…beyond that i’m useless.
I had a housekeeper for a year or so… and then I had to fire her.. she was ALWAYS late… and from time to time she would cancel on me and I had to always follow her and make sure things are done how I want them done.. it got to a point that I thought it would be better if I just clean the house myself.
i hired a cleaning service for the first time last week for a deep spring cleaning. i felt uber guilty the entire time but it was worth it. totally.
It sounds like you have to jump through more hoops than I did to send our two sons to public school. My husband and I felt that we were already paying for public school and that we could, and would, supplement their education. They not only went to public school, but to state univeresities (Indiana University and Purdue). They did very well with their education and are now quite successful young men. Best wishes to Maya on the beginning of her education.
Best,
Bonnie
And, as to the housekeeper question, I’ve almost always had someone come once a week to clean. This, by no means, is enough and I am the housekeeper the rest of the week. I’ve used cleaning services but prefer having an individual. When I first started, we lived in the south and I paid $25 a day. It’s almost that much per hour at present!
Best,
Bonnie
I love the design of your blog! And your cappuccino looks absolutely delicious 🙂
A year later for this comment, but better late than never, right? I splurge on many things, and apart from a live-in housekeeper, we have a chauffeur, a gardener, 2000 pair of shoes (mine), 10,000 techie gadgets, 3 kids in private school and of course, my food blog. I gave up my job in investment banking so my husband can pay for all these! Well, what can I say….my name is Maya too an my mother taught me well ;-).
Maya – I think you live my ultimate dream…2000 pairs of shoes? A chauffeur? A live-in? Tell me you have a cook too and I might drop dead right from envy. 🙂
Haha, I used to have a cook but the hubs reckoned that since I now run a food blog, it would be a good idea if I cook instead. So I got rid of her…ack!! (worst decision I ever made)
okay your childhood sounded like mine! and i am an OCD clean freak too. Ramadan has basically meant many guests coming over and countless hours of cleaning
I splurge on coffee.
I used to work upwards of 50, 60… sometimes even 70 hours a week. I was able to keep things “tidy” but that’s it. Laundry piled up – clutter makes me CRAZY. I can’t stand “stuff” either. I always wondered what would happen if I were home. I figured I’d have everything handled and be bored to tears within 2 weeks. But it really is a full time job. I could have used Mrs. Maria. Hurray for the housekeeper!
All of this is why cash-strapped Halle berry fake nudes renounced many colonies so easily (though a new wealthy ones were all too often forced
to fight about a person’s autonomy).
I will splurge on a house maid, totally!!!
Glad I’m not the only one. 🙂