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Working Moms: If you were to lose your job, could you....
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Anonymous
We go to Turkey Thicket on Michigan Ave. in NE. Their baby pool is really wonderful--it's a gradual slope in, so the child can decide how deep s/he wants to go. I know that Takoma on 5th near Tuckerman also has an indoor pool, but I don't know if there's a kiddie pool. |
Anonymous
From a financial aspect, when we purchased our home, we only considered DHs salary, so we had options/cushion. Our mortgage on a SFH is $2,200/mo. Second part, HELL yes I could SAH. I actually wistfully dream of getting laid off so I'd have an excuse. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE having the extra money, as we can save my entire salary of just shy of 100K. We have about 1.5years of cushion if we were both completely jobless. As it is, I only work about 30hrs a week and love the days I'm home with my child. I hope to have a 2nd child and then I'll definitly SAH. My child does not drive me crazy and I don't feel that staying home would be tedious, unfufilling, or boring. Also, I take a month vacation each year and would love to be able to take my child (children) one day and extend that to 2 months, which right now is completely out of the question with work. Its hard enough to swing the month off. |
Anonymous
On the financial side, we couldn't do it. I only work part time now, but my salary is still significantly larger than DH's. But if I get to live in fantasyland for a moment and set financial issues aside, HECK YEAH, I'd stay home for a couple of years if I could. Like I said, I'm already part time, so I know what it's like to have them alone all day. And I love it. If I were at home, my 3 year old would be in half day pre-school 3-5 days a week, and my 1 year old would finally get some of the "alone" time she never got (being a second child). There's a small part of me that is afraid it would be too isolating, and I do really love my job. But, if the job that I love isn't there anymore, then that isn't a factor. And really, I pretty much sit at a computer all day and meet up with my colleagues for lunch. I'm sure I could find other SAHMs to meet up with a couple times a week to make up for that. So yes, financial issues aside, if I got laid off, I'd absolutely stay home until my kids were both in school. |
Anonymous
| No. I work part time, but my salary is significantly larger than my husband's (his is around $150K). We don't have any debt except a mortgage, but we have two kids in private school (almost $60K), so that's a pretty big chunk of change right there. Plus, I don't want to stay home -- my kids are at school all day anyway. |
Anonymous
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On the financial side, it would be a disaster. We would have to sell our house and find something much cheaper. Our mortgage runs about $6750/month. We would also have to move to where the public schools are good, although the kids' tuition is already paid for this school year. We would lay off our nanny and housekeeper and get rid of the nanny car. The employee-related items and school probably account for about $150K of what I earn (gross, because what I pay them comes out of my net pay). I earn about $400K; my husband earns a little over $200K, so we are talking about a 2/3 reduction in income. The funny thing about earning a lot is that you can end up spending a lot. I give props to the PP who manages to save her whole salary despite its being equal to her husband's.
On the personal side, HECK YES. I would love to stay home. They are small for such a short time, and you can still be of use even when they are in school. If you bring the same focus and ethusiasm to your job as a SAHM as you do to your job outside the home, I think it would be very worthwhile. I don't agree with over-programming kids, but there is nothing wrong with having their favorite childhood memories be of you taking them to a bunch of really cool msueums, or showing them how to garden, or cooking together with them, or teaching them how to clean a house properly and with fun and family spirit, or whatever it is you can do with passion. I hear people worry about being bored. I personally think that would be a problem only if you let it. You can choose to turn on Oprah or read something for a book club that stimulates you. Just as time spent at your desk should be used wisely (ok, so that doesn't explain what I am doing on this forum!), time spent at home could be used wisely, too. |
Anonymous
Well-said. I applaud you for your outlook. |
Anonymous
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I used to think I could never SAH but now that my kids are older they're so much more interesting! I definitely would be more open to it now -- certainly if I could keep a little part-time work going. Maybe I'm just not a baby person...
I wrote two stories that are relevant to this thread. One on how to find a part-time job. http://workingmoms.about.com/od/workschedule/tp/parttimejobs.htm And the other on whether to quit your job, including the budget side of it: http://workingmoms.about.com/od/yourcareer/a/Quitmyjob.htm |
Anonymous
Good Lord, woman! what is it that you do for a living? and are you hiring?? |
Anonymous
This is a great resource. Thank you! Anyone who has used any of these part-time services with luck (e.g,. MomCorps, Fleperience, etc.)? |
Anonymous
In DC it's not that hard to figure out. Lawyer, lawyer or lawyer, right? I suppose there is the random doctor or journalist in the mix around here. I am not at the "top" of my profession. If I were, it would be $2m or more a year. But that is very, very uncommon and usually associated with the big New York firms, so please don't start hating on DC lawyers. In my next life I am going to marry a Wall Street investment banker or a hedge fund manager and retire at 35 to the house in the Hamptons and raise the kids while he slaves away in the City... 
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Anonymous
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From a financial point of view, we could definitely do it. DH makes around 130k, and my salary is about 240k. But we have a low mortgage payment and two luxury cars that are fully paid. If there is a need, I could make the following adjustments: (i) downgrade the cars; (ii) cut back on my spending on clothes, shoes, scarves, etc.; (iii) not have a nanny; (iv) not have a housekeeper.
But from any other point of view, I cannot see myself staying at home. I think DH would be much more willing to do it... |
Anonymous
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We could do it if Dh lost/stayed home, but not me (Mama's the bigger breadwinner!) In fact, in a way we do it already - I now work 60% and took a pay cut that almost equals DH's entire pay if you factor in that if he didn't work we wouldn't need our PT daycare or as much gas/dry cleaning/etc. DH would likely be great as a SAHD, but we felt for better job security it'd be better to have us both work (plus, I relish my part-time schedule).
Now if I lost my job, we'd be screwed. Can't do much here on $40k a year... |