Infant Care or Helper?

I recently gave birth end of dec and we (husband & i ) got ourselves a helper . We had a transfer maid of 3 years working with the same employer. However theres pros and cons having a stranger in your house especially after 3 years living together. You and spouse will have stupid fights together and u will get pissed at your helper because u dont like the way she does things . So at the end of the day - u have to tell her nice ly so she wont repeat the same thing. Transfer maid = think all employer the same. For me, i had to teach her what i want instead of she doing whats shes been doing at her previous workplace . For newer maid - u can teach them from scratch. Till today ive yet to let her touch my baby but i am slowly letting her - now that baby is turning 3 month but not fully. Random days let her bathe baby or let her carry awhile. Pros is - u get to spend time with ur baby without having to wash and clean. If you are lucky - thank god mine is good with babies and house work then you have nothing to worry. Overall cost is you have to pay monthly (mine $660 ) + $60 (Levy rebate )+ daily food intake + toilet essentials. Also every 6 months medical check. You do ur maths. 😬 for now shes the most expensive human in our house.

This is never an easy option. I was worried about all the things you’ve mentioned here. In the end, my husband and I decided that one of us would stay home to look after the kids. I was also privileged for both of us to stay home for a while when the 2nd one was born so that we could cope without external help. If I had no choice but to go with one of the above options, personally I would choose infant care.. because the staff are specifically trained to look after babies (helpers... it’s the luck of the draw, whether they’re good at it or not). Also, there’s the added consideration with helpers pertaining to the job scope. Some employers also want the maid to cook and clean, and that compromises baby care (my personal opinion) because she cannot have full attention on my baby. Hence, my preference would be infant care. With all the measures in place (mask, hand washing), the school infection rates have dropped quite a fair bit, so I am less worried about that now. At the end of the day, I think rather than arguing about whose idea is better, listen to what the other person is thinking, not just the concerns raised, but also back up plans if the chosen one doesn’t work out well, etc.

i was having the same dilemma too. my boy is now 8 months. At first, we wanted to engage helper but during covid period, it was tough finding one. I took care of him together with my dad as I WFH and my hubby whenever he WFH. It was not easy. Eventually we decided to enrol him to infant care when he was about 5 months+. He has fallen sick twice so far but as compared with him always looking forward to going school, playing and learning new things. His teachers will update us on the activities that he has done. It is also good to start letting your baby going to school early as he/she adapts to new environment better/easier than when older. You will be able to have more time for yourself which is also very important. Hence, personally I find the pros of letting him going to infant care outweigh engaging a helper.

I don't have good advice cos I'm still a pregnant first-time mum, but here's my moral support! ♡ My parents/in-laws' help are non-existent so they are out of the picture like yours. And that's pretty rare, I think? Cos everyone I know has at least one parent who can help/can be trusted to help. Oh well. Thinking of this (IFC v. Helper) stresses me out too. I'm more inclined towards a reputable infant care than putting all my trust in one stranger.

My daughter is currently 18 months. She started infant care since 4 months when I go back to work. She learnt a lot from school and growing well under their care. Infant care helps to fill up her daily log (feed, diaper change, activities, shower and etc). They make it easy for working parents to follow through after work.

As an early childhood educarer, do send your baby to ifc. Yes exposure to sickness is high but that is how your baby build their immune system. Teachers will keep track on your bb’s growth and development holistically mummy! And you don’t have to worry, anything happen there will always be ECDA.

it depends on what is important to you. for me, i rather sleep more than do cleaning. thus helper is my choice which is good because without helper, i have to sacrifice my sleep to do cleaning. very tiring when husband is not helping much or cleaning is not up to my standard

I've tried both and personally getting a helper was my final decision, but it could be because I was lucky to find a dependable helper who took good care of my baby. Finding the right person whom you can trust is very important I think.

There is no perfect solution.. I myself put my baby in the infant care and it work well for me .. exposed to sickness is gd at least it built a immune system for them .. so not to worry too much ..

I would go for IFC. I have problematic mil and she like to ply victim and make the maid look very bad. Tried and tested with my sil. Family is not gonna support and give me problem. So Ifc.