I've been blogging as a "new" homeowner now for over 7 years, so I probably should remove the "new" from the moniker. But there is never really a stage where any homeowner feels like they know it all and don't need help or are *done* and don't need to continue to work on things. It just doesn't happen. I think that what starts to remove the newness of the thing (besides having lived somewhere along enough that the things you upgraded or replaced need upgrading or replacing again...) is that you build a team of people you can call when things get rough or when you need a little extra help. The plumber, the electrician, the roofer - these folks come and fix things that we can't, no matter how "experienced" we are. The chimneysweep and the energy company that comes to service our boiler annually - they keep everything running. We are grateful that in many cases, we know who we can call. Or, if we don't, our neighbors do. And don't even get me started on how incredibly grateful we are for our amazing neighbors.
This year we needed a little extra help, with a new baby and a messy toddler that takes up all our free time (because of course we'd much rather spend time with her than spend it cleaning, raking, etc.). So we hired regular help to clean our house and keep our yard looking good (ok, maybe not good, maybe just not embarrassing). And we are grateful they are there and we are grateful that, for the moment anyway, we can afford it.
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| So many leaves - where would we be without help?! |
So tell us your tipping/giving ideas. What has worked for you and what hasn't? What would you want to receive?
1 comment:
I always consider whom I'm tipping when deciding the amount. If it's someone painfully close to the poverty line, as is often the case with people doing yardwork and odd jobs around the house, and we have a good relationship and I can afford it, I treat the holiday tip as an extra paycheck (that was for housecleaning). But if it's someone I tip as part of regular service provided (like hairdresser), I might bump the tip an extra 5% at the holidays, but I might not - I tend to tip generously as a rule. We always leave something for our mail carrier, but it's not extravagant - usually a gift card for a drink and a snack. Of course, I'm tying this all into holiday tipping and that may not even be what you mean. For the rest of the year, I try to negotiate a wage that's fair so tipping is moot. I like that you're giving it such careful consideration. A lot of folks are just squeaking by out there.
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