Our Ayi Situation

The word ayi means "Auntie" and they are like a household helper. They can cook, clean, babysit, grocery shop, run errands like getting dry cleaning with the driver - whatever you contract them for. Lots of our friends have full time ayis - someone who comes from 8-5 daily during the week and just does whatever needs doing (you need to contract all the scope you want up front, then you can scale back, otherwise they will probably want more money if you add things in). I am not so keen on having someone here full time, though.

Our ayi started last Tuesday. She cleans for two other Intel families - one on MWF, and another on Thursdays, so she is free to come to my place on Tuesdays. The first time she was here, I did not want to be gone the whole time, so all we did was go for a 1.5 hour walk after she had been here for a little while. But our house is so open and echo-ey, that it was kind of awkward for us to be here, and we kept having to move (for vacuuming/mopping/cleaning purposes). So from now on, I plan to be out of the house when she is here - except for next Tuesday first thing as I'm getting someone from Jayland, the expat resource company that Intel contracted for their employees and their families, to help me with translation. She didn't really dust, though I had Jayland write out what I wanted her to do and she read the email (they couldn't come last Tuesday as it was the 2nd day of Tomb Cleaning holidays). So this next week I want them to come and help translate all the things I want her to do for certain, and to see what supplies I need to purchase to make her job easier. Unlike cleaners in the US, these ladies do not bring their own supplies.

I am also looking for another ayi to help with babysitting/cooking three afternoons a week. Jayland is helping me find someone for that. They interview and conduct background checks, and when it comes to having someone watch my kids, I want to be sure the woman is very trustworthy. My plan is to have this woman here MWF from around 2pm to 5 pm to watch the girls for an hour while I go for a run (have not been able to go much since there is no one to watch the girls except when Alex is home) - and then to cook dinner for us those nights. I figure that if we want to go out, we'll just stick whatever it is in the fridge and eat it the next night. It's not that I don't want to cook, or don't enjoy it, but between the girls not always napping simultaneously and then tending to their needs (as well as just playing with them) - I don't always have time to get dinner ready before Alex gets home. And he is tired and worn out from the day, and doesn't always want to cook either. So since it is cheap here, we're trying to hire some help. And we're helping the local economy by employing someone who wouldn't otherwise have this work, so that is good too. Not to mention that now that I have started Chinese lessons, I hope to practice with the ayis and our driver. :-)

I'll post more when we have more ayi help - especially on the food... can't WAIT to see what "authentic" home cooked Chinese food really tastes like!!!