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[quote=Anonymous]I am also a single mom by choice. My child is a bit older than your oldest now.

Do not move here on the salary you are being offered.

Your first post is correct.  11.5 to 12 hours is about the amount of time you can expect to spend on work plus school/daycare drop offs.

We live close in to reduce commute time and it still takes up to 45 minutes once I actually get in my car and make it to a major road that will take me out of the city.   Without traffic, I could leave my house and be sitting at my desk in my downtown office in 15 minutes.  Parking and getting to my office takes time.  And I am lucky because I have a parking garage close to my building and the cost per month isn't outrageous. (yet. It could always go up)

Living close in means we sacrifice space and have a very small townhouse.  I have about 800sq ft. But then again, if I had a SFH, I would then have to pay for yard work, maintenance, etc and that adds up quick.

There is no free all day preschool out of DC itself.  Alexandria, Arlington, Bethesda do not offer this. You will need to pay for full time daycare.  In addition, you will need to pay for before/after care for your older child and then camps all summer.  Camps start about $225 a week if you are lucky  and use country run camps and that will include before and after care which you will need because camp runs 9am - 3pm.   Go to a private camp and the cost goes up by a $100 per week at least.

Support networks - good luck. Other single parents aren't the best choice because they are constantly juggling their own schedule.  Other working parents are juggling schedules too so they might help you out in a real, real pinch.  And then you are juggling a schedule. By the time you figure out what kind of help you need and when, it's usually last minute and it's easier to just do it yourself.  Also, I need dependability so I prefer to hire someone for emergency and occasional child care.

Everything costs more. Everything.  From a loaf of bread to dance classes.  Here's an expense I had in the preschool years that I never accounted for - birthday parties.  I easily spent $400 and I got off cheap. Before I had a child, I never, ever would have considered spending that. But it happens. Everyone does it.

Everywhere takes longer to get too.  On the map, it's 2 miles away but guess what? There's traffic on that 2 mile stretch.

I have lived here for a long time and am used to the pace and way of life here but honestly, I think you might experience some culture shock just like I would if I moved to Boise.

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