Comments on: Why Being a Stay At Home Mom Can Make Economical Sense

By: Living Almost Large

Living Almost Large — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 01:31:00 +0000

Me too, I fully agree you shouldn’t say SAHM, because what would your response be if I said the woman makes more? Then obviously the man should stay at home right? But would that change your post that it’s better if one of the parents stay at home if it’s the man? I wonder if many people wouldn’t change their tunes/answers if it were the man who had to stay at home because financially he made less money?

For what it’s worth I probably will stay at home with kids for a bit, but I also work in a high earning field. More than a few women I know are in good/excellent paying positions, like my Sister. Makes more than 2x what her husband does, but he never wanted to stay at home unfortunately. And she was always the primary breadwinner so…daycare. But how do you force a man to stay at home? Is it more acceptable that both parents work because the woman brings home the real bacon in the relationship?

I also think that another considering is how much a of difference there is in earning power between the spouses. If you both make 50% of the income, it’s a lot harder to live on 50% of the income than say a couple making 75%/25% of the incomes. Losing 25% is not a big deal.

By: Flexo

Flexo — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 00:28:00 +0000

The decision to work at home (men or women) or pay for day care is not a purely financial decision.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 00:10:00 +0000

Hi – I like your site, and many of your postings are really useful. And I know that this (child care choices) is a firestorm of an issue, but I did want to say a few things in response.

First, it’s not just a stay at home mom issue, it is a stay at home parent issue. Sometimes the mother makes more than the father, or sometime the personalities involved indicate that the father may be the better caregiver. It’s not as common, but to ignore it as an option is unfair.

Second, the extreme feminists that are advocating that everyone should work… yeah, some of them are very vehement, and make things an either/or situation. But others point out, correctly, I think, that women that stop working put themselves in a precarious financial position should their relationship end. Our culture and laws do not currently support/award anyone, man or woman, who stops working to take care of their family. Not for child care, not for elder care. That’s a larger problem with no obvious solution.