RUBbette Wives & Housework, si man

[Used to be broken 147]

How often do you guys change lightbulbs? Gosh, is that really a "chore" around your houses?

Yes, anything that involves climbing, ladders etc is a "chore" in my opinion.

[elya 17]

Alla chooses colors, I paint.

I waited with painting for 2 years so we could chose them "together" -- but choosing took him longer than painting!!

My dad does all the "men work", cooks, does the ironing (he thinks that men do the ironing better than women... my husband does not agree with him ) and helps my mom to clean.

How often do you guys change lightbulbs? Gosh, is that really a "chore" around your houses?

My fiance irons much better than me, also. Sadly we both passionately hate ironing.... I think we iron things less often than change lightbulbs :-)

Good to hear I am not the only one in this forum who married a RUB man.

We are kind of rare in this forum!

overall in comparison to my friends reports married to American men it seems I have a much more equal distribution of labor here in our home than they do in theirs.

My (Russian) ex-husband did nothing except grill meat (not even the "man" work). But among my RUB friends, there are those who do very little and those who do help a lot. So I guess I take back my earlier statement... just depends on the guy. Although those who do help out a lot typically don't like to talk about what they do around the house in my experience ;-)

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

I've actually never had a problem with getting RUB men to do housework. I've even had guys that I am Just Friends with come over and tidy up my room and cook for me, but this may just be indicative of my own lack of domestic skills more than anything else. I can cook now, but only because a RUB ex of mine taught me how.

Oral sex. It works!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

How often do you guys change lightbulbs? Gosh, is that really a "chore" around your houses?

Since I put in CFLs, almost never. What's your point?

Hey I paint, did ceramic tile, new cabinets and fixtures and appliances, ripped out ALL the carpet (Alla would have a plywood floor before she would have carpet) and put in hardwood floors everywhere (except ceramic in bathroom and kitchen) No to mention ceiling fans, light fixtures, mirrors (I built her a "dressing area" in the hallway to her closet) All man work!

Alla leaves the house when I do this stuff. She chooses everything and then leaves.

We also have a teenage son that helps

[baron555 934]

My Alla and I have been together two years now, two winters and two summers. In the beginning I helped with the housework, about a 50/50 split, cooking, laundry, ironing, vacuuming, cleaning the toilets, made my own lunches, etc.

The first summer she discovered gardening and landscaping, she took over almost all those chores except shoveling and reeling in the water hoses.

She offered to help cut the grass but based on her driving of the car there was no way I'd let her onto the John Deere......have to draw the line sometimes!!!

Now this second time around, she does virtually all the housework, including making my lunches for work.

Obviously I do all the fixing....we both shared in painting the three bedrooms last winter and she didn't mind the ladder work.....I"m still a better edger than her but she's real good with the roller!

I do all the grilling and barbequing but she has done some herself and was taught well!!

This past summer, after she became proficient in driving, she's always planting or replanting and lugs the dirt around in the wagon or buckets.

I still won't let her onto the John Deere !!! .........maybe next year, but only out in the open grass with no trees around !!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

My Alla and I have been together two years now, two winters and two summers. In the beginning I helped with the housework, about a 50/50 split, cooking, laundry, ironing, vacuuming, cleaning the toilets, made my own lunches, etc.

The first summer she discovered gardening and landscaping, she took over almost all those chores except shoveling and reeling in the water hoses.

She offered to help cut the grass but based on her driving of the car there was no way I'd let her onto the John Deere......have to draw the line sometimes!!!

Now this second time around, she does virtually all the housework, including making my lunches for work.

Obviously I do all the fixing....we both shared in painting the three bedrooms last winter and she didn't mind the ladder work.....I"m still a better edger than her but she's real good with the roller!

I do all the grilling and barbequing but she has done some herself and was taught well!!

This past summer, after she became proficient in driving, she's always planting or replanting and lugs the dirt around in the wagon or buckets.

I still won't let her onto the John Deere !!! .........maybe next year, but only out in the open grass with no trees around !!

I thought I would teach Alla to "drive" with my tractor. No. "Stinky, dirty machine...no way!" She only goes in a car if it is clean! She likes gardening, growing flowers, and she will plant flowers if I bring the flats of plants where she needs them, the bags of dirt, etc and dig any "big holes" (size is relative and decided by her) She then cleans the flowers, pulls weeds, etc. I or the boys water them if needed (we get a pretty good amount of rain here so it is not a problem usually) plus I hang all the flower boxes under the wndows after she plants them...basically anything resembling "heavy lifting" In return she wears Daisy Duke shorts, open toed shoes with heels and a halter top! I miss summer!

[baron555 934]

I thought I would teach Alla to "drive" with my tractor. No. "Stinky, dirty machine...no way!" She only goes in a car if it is clean! She likes gardening, growing flowers, and she will plant flowers if I bring the flats of plants where she needs them, the bags of dirt, etc and dig any "big holes" (size is relative and decided by her) She then cleans the flowers, pulls weeds, etc. I or the boys water them if needed (we get a pretty good amount of rain here so it is not a problem usually) plus I hang all the flower boxes under the wndows after she plants them...basically anything resembling "heavy lifting" In return she wears Daisy Duke shorts, open toed shoes with heels and a halter top! I miss summer!

My Alla doesn't wear the heels while gardening but yes to the Daisy Dukes and tight fitting tops free from Walmart!!! I love the summer also !!

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

My Alla doesn't wear the heels while gardening but yes to the Daisy Dukes and tight fitting tops free from Walmart!!! I love the summer also !!

If I have to carry dirt and flats of plants, she is wearing heels!

[eekee 182]

Oral sex. It works!

Did you miss the "Just Friends" part???

[Brad and Vika 129]

She does about 75%. Like Gary said, I do all the "man stuff". Since we have a patio home, there is no yard work at all.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Did you miss the "Just Friends" part???

I guess so, what was I thinking?

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

She does about 75%. Like Gary said, I do all the "man stuff". Since we have a patio home, there is no yard work at all.

Alla is a very "busy" person and she likes everyone around her to be "busy"

she manages to break enough stuff to keep a list going of things that need fixing. I am not sure what she would do if we had a home like yours, Brad. No leaves to rake? No grass to mow, no weedwhacking! I am sure she would begin to get nervous and shake thinking "Oh no, what will Gary do?"

Speaking of weedwhacking and things, her general reaction to all this was "there is a MACHINE for everything!" My neighbor has one of those vacuum things to tow behind his tractor and he sucks up all our leaves with a few passes...I only have to rake them out of flower beds I know she is saying bad Russian words under her breath "&^*%* lazy Americans!"

[Pinenut 1]

My Russian husband does almost everything. He washes the dishes by hand, washes all our clothes by hand, and washes the floor on his hands and knees. I just clean the kitchen and bathroom. Once we get to America, I think it will even out since I have no problem throwing clothes in a washer, vacuuming, or putting away dishes. Growing up with machines to do everything and coming somewhere without them is a lot harder than the other way around as far as I can tell.

[Brad and Vika 129]

Alla is a very "busy" person and she likes everyone around her to be "busy"

she manages to break enough stuff to keep a list going of things that need fixing. I am not sure what she would do if we had a home like yours, Brad. No leaves to rake? No grass to mow, no weedwhacking! I am sure she would begin to get nervous and shake thinking "Oh no, what will Gary do?"

Speaking of weedwhacking and things, her general reaction to all this was "there is a MACHINE for everything!" My neighbor has one of those vacuum things to tow behind his tractor and he sucks up all our leaves with a few passes...I only have to rake them out of flower beds I know she is saying bad Russian words under her breath "&^*%* lazy Americans!"

I like the situation because I hate yard work. I am allergic to everything. Vika now tells me that I am washing the clothes wrong, and need to let her do it. Suits me

My Russian husband does almost everything. He washes the dishes by hand, washes all our clothes by hand, and washes the floor on his hands and knees. I just clean the kitchen and bathroom. Once we get to America, I think it will even out since I have no problem throwing clothes in a washer, vacuuming, or putting away dishes. Growing up with machines to do everything and coming somewhere without them is a lot harder than the other way around as far as I can tell.

Depending on how often he has been in America or Western Europe, he may have issues with working the machines. I found patience a great virtue early on while Vika tried to figure out what HI and LO meant, and converted to and from metric temperature.

[baron555 934]

converted to and from metric temperature.

We still have post-it notes all over the kitchen and such, even by the door knob to the patio door so she knows which way to turn the knob lock tab for open or locked.....after she locked herself out a couple of times during the winter!!!!

Luckily for her, my sister and her husband live adjacent to us and it wasn't a far walk to their place for the spare key!!!