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Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
to be a SAHM or not... that is the question
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Anonymous
| OP, I do NOT recommend the Feminine Mistake for you to base this decision on. That is crazy. The book is a very biased and out of touch view that women going to work saves feminism. Too simplistic and does not go into the complexities involved. The SAHMs that are represented in no way are purposefully shallow and dependent. Seriously, OP, if you do end up reading this book see it for what it is! |
oona.schmid@gmail.com
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You sound uncertain about whether your family will be happy living with $1K+ a month in discretionary spending. That's going to be hard for others to answer. People have different comfort levels. Can you try living on just your husband's salary now and see how you and your family finds it?
I think it's great that you have this choice and I think either can work for you, but it's going to be a matter of what trade-offs you and your family will be happiest making: will living financially closer to the edge be a worry for you or is money not something that worries you? will it bother you to pay someone else to do what you wish you could do (enjoy being home)? etc. |
Anonymous
Do you mean after the grocery "bill" is paid? Or would you be trying to pay for food, clothing, houshold good out of that $1,000? |
Anonymous
| Also -- if you do decide to SAH you should try to pay off one of the cars. Or sell it and buy a cheaper car for cash. Get rid of one of the car payments if you can. |
Anonymous
| I think the person who suggested trying to live on one income as a test offered an excellent idea. Bank your salary, live on your husband's and see if it is doable. |
Anonymous
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Is your job something you could pick back up in 5 years once they are both in school? Or in 3 years when your oldest goes back to school and you only will have to pay for childcare for one? After you take the taxes out of $60 that will probably be take-home that is $40ish. So then after childcare you're really only making $15,000 ish (don't flame me for my math but I think it would be around this). So technically you would be working for just over $1,000 a month after all is said and done.
I personally think staying at home and going to work BOTH have their pros and cons. For me it would be more about the bottom line financially if I didn't have a strong feeling about staying home or not. |
Anonymous
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OP even if you only bring home 1K a month after taxes this is pretty significant if you only will have 1K left over after mortgage/car on DH's salary. This doubles your monthly income for other expenses. Your tax burden may be even lower as you would be able to deduct 5K for each child from your childcare expense. If your job offers retirement that is another significant financial consideration. From a financial standpoint, it would make sense for you to work.
Financial considerations are not the only thing to consider. Two kids are more difficult to get out the door everyday and with sick days you will need flexibility in your job. |