Canadian Moms & Moms to be!

[Sarahkka]

Trinity - I believe your EI payments depend somewhat on how much you made beforehand. Also, they should be more than enough for your 50 weeks. I believe I was getting ~1100 bi-weekly in 2010? But I got screwed because they are supposed to take off about 10% tax and they didn't and I didn't notice, so I had a nice fat tax bill at the end of 2010.
After your 16 weeks maternity leave, you switch over to parental leave, which either parent can take. You can earn some income during parental leave. Check out what you are eligible for. Just really watch your potential tax bill from this.
I have had really great luck just calling Service Canada. They are usually great about walking you through the whole thing. And I think you are very smart to be planning it now.

 

[tasha41]

I went off at 37+2 and got 2 weeks vacation pay, but had her at 38+4 so I lost 1 week of paid mat leave (all must be used before your baby turns 1). You can transfer it to your husband if that's the case though

 

[impatient1]

Hey ladies, Hope everyone is doing well!

NYE, I will be working so won't be much going on here and DF will be with B unless he has to work and then I'm not sure who I will be able to make miss any festivities to watch her.

 

[ryder]

EI in ontario is 55% of your gross pay... And the max amount was $400 last time I had checked.

Its also different if you work part time, if your only part time there is a different way its calculated.

Sara is right though that EI comes from the government. The best thing to do is to do your claim ahead of time online, and as soon as you actually go on matleave you should have your employer forward your ROE electronically. I never had to wait long for my maternity leave. I did go on sickleave this time and had to wait the full 6 weeks to get any money. It was horrendous because it was tax season and I owed several hundred... NOT FUN

 

[TRINITY25_99]

Thanks everyone ... got some homework to read up on

 

[Maggs]

No definite NYE plans yet, but we usually end up getting together with friends of ours, another couple, and we have a couple of drinks, some nibbles and stay up for the bells. I work all Christmas so it'll be a pretty quiet/crappy one I think.

We put up the tree last night in the hopes it would cheer us up and get us in the spirit a bit more and Jack's reaction this morning was 'OOoooooo....wow!' So guess it was worth it.

 

[Vickie]

Maggs sorry you have to work Christmas

 

[readynwilling]

EI in ontario is 55% of your gross pay... And the max amount was $400 last time I had checked.

Your right it is 55%, but it tops out at $454 not $400 i know cause thats how much i got.

 

[readynwilling]

Booo to working xmas Maggs

I booked us a cruise in March i hope J likes boats LOL. It goes out of NYC and then down to orlando (we'll do a day at disney world) then goes to Nassau, bahamas and we'll do a day at the Atlantis resort Im UBER excited!

 

[MommyKC]

That sounds like an awesome cruise!

I really want to go on a vacation - we were planning an all-inclusive this year but not sure that'll happen (too many other expenses and things I would like to buy with that money)... maybe next year.

 

[apple84]

Yay for a cruise! Shawn has to shoot on a luxury cruise that leaves from Florida next November and I'm lining up child care so just him and I can go! I love when work subsidies vacations.

 

[Vickie]

that's awesome Sara

 

[Tiff]

Yaaay Sara!!! That sounds awesome!

I had a friend stay at the Atlantis Bahamas resort, she said it was "opulent" ha ha ha.

 

[Maggs]

Ooooo Cruise!! Sounds lovely!! I'd love to do a hot holiday next year, but we can usually only manage one big one a year and we choose to go home to NS, for obvious reasons!!

Well yesterday was kind of a crap day. The night before, my car was away getting rear brakes on it so it'd pass MOT today (inspection) and went to work yesterday, 230-11pm and got nearly there and was going down a massive hill and foot nearly to the floor before brakes clicked on, warning light up...no brake fluid. Feck!! Was shitting. Pulled into the hospital and got it parked, another girl I work with picked me up to take me to part 1 of my shift, then picked me up 2 hrs later to take me to the head office for part 2. It was our clients Christmas party so my supervisor desperately needed me. DH picked me up on his way home from work, drove to my car and another feck...brake fluid was leaking everywhere. No way could I drive it back to work and no way to get home again. Supervisor was fantastic...she asked me what was the easiest thing for me and I said go home with DH and she let me. She was worried something would happen. So DH and I came home, went to SIL's and got Jack and I brought him home to bath/put him to bed and DH and his friend M went back into town to get my car and bring it home. DH just drove it in the manual gears (it's an automatic but has the standard gears you can shift to on the side) so he didn't need to touch the brakes. More money to fix I'm sure! Gotta get rid of this car, costing me a fortune Money has been very very hard the last few weeks. Like this weekend, we have £55 worth of points for a grocery store and that's gotta buy our Christmas food shopping cause we both have 0 money between my car needing done and forking out £1000 for my ILR visa. Could just cry! And all the extra dark lately around here is not doing good for my mood, been so tired, lethargic and headachey lately. Find myself getting quite blue. Dark here till past 8:30am and sun sets again just after 3pm. Rant over!!

 

[readynwilling]

Oh maggs that sounds very scary sorry about the "winter blahs" too. Im sure they dont help.

 

[Vickie]

Maggs. So glad you are okay though

 

[MommyKC]

Maggs - sorry to hear about the rough day. All the darkness sounds depressing too.

Hang in there.

 

[apple84]

Maggs

 

[Tiff]

Maggs! That would have freaked me out!

 

[ryder]

maggs!

Ohhh nice sara! I wish we could afford a trip!