Wife Swap

[magicfarawaytree]

Anybody else gobsmacked by the bitch who said of the sahm during the swop thats her first days work in 15 years. ARRRRGGGGH!

[spidermama]

Grrrrr! Didn't see it. Was that tonight?

[magicfarawaytree]

yes just finished - there is a special programme where they have the two couple and a psychologist over on e4 at the moment. One couple sahm - modern hippies, the other control feak. the psychologist I think is just about to give them a going over.

[buffytheharpsichordcarrier]

I liked how the "control freak" family went on and on and on about how hard they worked, and how they had to work - and had a servant...
I liked to see her freak out about playdough on the carpet too

[jessicaandbumpsmummy]

cant believe the SAHM....... GRRRRRRRRRR

[QueenOfQuotes]

but it wasn't a sodding servant - it was a maid (nanny's, au pairs or cleaners anyone???).

And actually I agreed with him at the end saying how hard it was for them atm having just arrived in the country. DH was in the same position, and had to work bloody long and hard - if we hadn't been living with my parents for the 1st year I would have had to work too.

[magicfarawaytree]

should have been the spineless family meets the iron rods!!!

[buffytheharpsichordcarrier]

a maid??? she was looking after the children! I just hated the way she talked to the other children. told that little girl she was a "horrible little girl" and "a spolit brat"
witch

[magicfarawaytree]

Who pays the 'not a servant'? Sounded more like a feudal system than mutually beneficial relationship - four generation blah blah blah!

[QueenOfQuotes]

yes - in whatever country it was they came from (missed that bit) that's what a maid would do.

Our maid in Zim did the housework, but if we'd still been living there when we had the boys she'd have helped look after the children too

[edam]

The SAHM did look shocked about her dh allowing her 13 yo to storm out and stay out all night - got the idea she doesn't normally allow that kind of behaviour.

They could have learnt from each other - uptight family should be allowng the kids to play a bit more and make a mess (although I wonder if the maid does when the parents are out?). And hippy family ought to have some rules.

I suspect uptight family don't pay their maid minimum wage, or pay her tax and NI.

[buffytheharpsichordcarrier]

brought in from Pakistan to live with them
I should def not watch these programmes, very bad for my bp.

[QueenOfQuotes]

Oh I'm sure they don't.

SIL had a someone over from Zim to help look after their children while they were both forced to work. Don't think they paid her anything at all. But she got board, food and I think a small amount of "pocket money" to spend each week. She stayed for her 6 month visa and then went home again - apparently she's now got a job looking after children out there - because of her experience.

She probably wouldn't have got a job at all (unemployment rate currenlyt around 70%) if she hadn't come over for a while.

[QueenOfQuotes]

ahh but lockets - I don't know about your children - but for DS1, every other day is "the best day" of his life

[edam]

Uptight family soooo concerned about teaching their children right from wrong and the value of work; if they are exploiting their maid and breaking the law, what kind of example is that, exactly?

[hunkerpumpkin]

The maid thing could be a bit of a red herring IMO (and IMlimitedE) - I know one family who have this kind of set-up - their "maid" is one of the family - kind of a live-in favourite aunt.

Do agree that the mum and dad weren't the warmest people mind you. And to think what I'd have been like at 13 in that situation...!

[QueenOfQuotes]

edam - are Au Pairs also being exploited then??

(not that I'm defending the family - thought they were rather uptight too)

[hunkerpumpkin]

Lockets, just what I was saying. Came on here to start a thread about it too. Might still!

[edam]

My sister was a bit like that 13 yo except a bit later - went v. wrong when she was 15 and my mother was desperate to sort it out but you can't physically drag someone of that age to school, can you? Would have liked to have seen uptight woman's strategy for getting 13yo back to the house from her friends.

My sister grew up OK after her rebellious adolescence - has been a very responsible, competent adult, looking after children and vulnerable adults and finishing her education.

She wouldn't stand for this sort of behaviour herself (in someone who could control themselves), but she'd have better ways of sorting it out by actually engaging the teenager and making them want to co-operate.

[buffytheharpsichordcarrier]

I rather warmed to the 13 yo. seemed extremely normal to me, though her accent came from where exactly?? liked the "looser" dad too...
I must say that the word "exploitation" was on the tip of my tongue - not necessarily v-a-v this family (editting etc) but it did SEEM a little that way.
just rather hard to take their chippiness when they had full time live in help.

[edam]

Au pairs are a different matter. If you've got an au pair arrangement everyone knows where they stand. Unless you've got a family who expect an au pair to do a full-time job for them, of course...