Maria has been with us for almost 2 months now. She has been GREAT help around the house (from cleaning, mopping, cooking, washing, ironing, folding, dusting and very much everything in between for the sole purpose of keeping our home in order).  As the days pass, I get to know her a little bit more–some I can live with and some I just kinda scratch my head and go “WHAT?”

So here’s what I like about her:

1. She’s quite clean and hygiene conscious when she’s around Muffin. She also makes sure her hands are sanitized between the endless number of nappy changes.
2. She works like a bullet train on the loose – everything gets done like in a jiffy and it’s not shabby at all
3. She’s very neat and tidy; David’s clothes are kept almost colour and collar coordinated AND she rolled up all of my panties (which I told her to un-roll cos I can’t identify my undies in that manner)
4. She loves being around Muffin and loves playing with him, we even caught her singing Jingle Bells to him once (probably ran out of ideas liao!)
5. She’s initiated and tries to problem-solve on her own. For the longest time we had this horrible stain on our toilet floor, and God knows what she did it’s gone now. Amazing.

Here’s what drives me crazy:

1. She doesn’t listen attentively when new instructions are given, especially when it comes to preparing vegetables and meats for cooking. Once I caught her stabbing a sengkuang, and another time I saw her cutting a good inch off the top of a capsicum and chucking it into the bin. My heart was beating really fast. I guess she’s never had a sengkuang, or a capsicum.
2. She’s a hoarder. She keeps our trash. Everything that we try to dispose off, she somehow skims through first and keeps the stuff she deems “worthy” to be kept. Her feet are not even my size and she’s keeping a pair of my really worn out slippers. AND, my mom caught her keeping 2 of her worn out bras. We’ve resorted to throwing away stuff directly into the big bin at my mom’s shop or at my apartment. This one really drives me crazy.
3. She simplifies problem-solving the Pinoy way (which is not the right/safe way). I caught her stabbing a can instead of using the can opener TWO TIMES. I almost went mental. As you may already notice she likes stabbing things. In the kitchen.
4. She occasionally has bad memory. She keeps forgetting that we use chopsticks with bowls. Sometimes you see a fork and spoon set at the table with Chinese rice bowls seated in between. AND, our kitchen utensils always gets misplaced into different drawers. She just can’t remember where she took them from. I have problems looking for my baking utensils too!
5. She’s always asking me to pass Muffin to her. Even when I’m like free, and have nothing to do, and she’s looking for something to do, she wants me to pass Muffin to her. I’m his mother ok! I will take care of him full time everyday when I’m back from work and on the weekends. Don’t push me! Don’t try to take over!

So God please grant me to patience to teach and guide and mould Maria for the rest of the time she will be working for us. Amen.