My outsourced life

While my kid starting in a school was a major event for our family in terms of integrating (assimilating?) into local society, another one is just lurking behind a corner. Finally we have decided to employ a Foreign Domestic Worker (FDW) -- a full time helper living in our home.

This seems to be a very big issue for me personally. I am not even sure, why am I reacting so strongly about this and thus as a form of self examination and hopefully as some kind of a catharsis (this word I didn't have to google up), I am documenting some of my initial feelings related to employing a maid.

There are number of obvious benefits in having someone available to help out with everyday chores:
1+) The primary reason for us to employ a FDW is to have someone to cook healthy food for the kids. I admit it, just yesterday I was in charge of conjuring a healthy dinner for them and I took the easy way out by ordering a delivery from McDonalds (by the way, that's actually one of the only ways to eat ice cream at home -- it's way too hot outside to carry a package from a grocery store without ice cream melting during the journey).
2+) Having someone to help out with home cleaning, washing and ironing clothes and washing dishes (basically none of the apartments I viewed when selecting our new home has a dish washer, because everybody (?) employes a maid!) translates into having more time for things which are important, like playing board games with my 7-year old (in a sudden moment of nostalgic urge, I bought Talisman, which I played last time sometime in the mid 80s).
3+) Most cost efficient way to buy groceries around here is at so called wet markets, where they sell fresh veggies, meat and so forth in a market setting, but only in the morning hours. Both of us essentially working, we basically have no possibility in doing any of our shopping there.
4+) Finally as a main driver for the decision is that it enables basic everyday life to work out. While we are at work and having no family around to rely upon, there is someone for example to pick up my son from school at 3:15 PM every day.

However, I have observed following cons as well:
1-) We will have to sacrifice some of our privacy, when inviting someone living with us 24/7. This is probably the number one concern which I have right now, although I cannot really articulate what about privacy I am specifically worried about loosing. There are stories of helpers exchanging every single little dirty detail about their employers, but I don't think my details are that particularly dirty to be shared.
2-) I am also concerned that my kids will get used to an environment where you don't have to clean up after yourself as there is always someone to do it for them. This is something for me to really be mindful about and make sure they understand that they still have to do their part (and me as well!).
 3-) Apparently there is some inherent Finnish value of everybody being equal and Lutheran morale code embedded deep within even an devote atheist like me, which makes me not comfortable with having someone doing things for you which you could do perfectly well yourself.
4-) There are costs involved: in addition to salary and upkeep fees, there is agency fees, government levy and medical and other insurance to be paid .
5-) Then there is a nagging fear of exploitation, which I have tried to explain to myself by
5+) Giving a possibility for someone to have a clean, nice indoor job with relatively good pay compared to jobs available where they are from and also as opposed to some other horrible means to make ends meet for girls from countries like Myanmar and Philippines.

Lately I have been reading a book called 4-Hour Work Week. One of the basic concepts of the book is to outsource all things you can in order to to have time for more meaningful things in your life -- provided that you can pinpoint what is it that you want to have more time for. I guess this is one step in that path while living in an environment where employing helpers is made easy and possible.