One of the hardest decisions for new parents
is whether to have one parent stay at home full-time.
As much as we wish it wasn't the case, this decision
is often made based on financial considerations
rather than emotional and developmental considerations.
Here are some questions that might help guide
your decision:
Are both jobs paying off?
A job is more than just income - it also
includes expenses. There's gas and/or other
expenses related to transportation. You may eat out much
more when working.
You will need to pay for childcare while
you are at work as well. Add up all of these work-related
expenses to
figure out how much you would really lose
by staying home. It may not be as big a loss as you thought.
Can you afford not to work?
Subtract your income and work-related expenses
from your budget. If that produces a deficit,
see if you can cut any expenses but keep
your savings as high as possible.
If you need to start
scrimping, it's best
to start slowly. Reduce expenses while
you continue to work, thus boosting your
savings. Keep trimming expenses and eventually,
you may have cut enough to quit your
job. Even if you can't, you will have learned
to live more simply and have saved
up some money in the process.
What are
the emotional costs?
Some parents can't wait to get back to
work after maternity or paternity leave.
As beautiful and enjoyable
as the parent-child relationship is,
it can get stifling. Parents often
yearn for the company and conversation
of another adult, the satisfaction of
working and the structure of a regular
day at the office. If you
decide to be a stay-at-home
parent, make sure you receive the stimulation
you need by getting out of the house
once in a while, spending time
with friends, or arranging a trusted
babysitter so that you can spend some
time taking care of only yourself.
On the
other hand, many parents feel guilty leaving
their child at daycare
and have a hard time going back to
work. They fear that they aren't good parents.
But happy parents make the best parents.
So working and coming home to spend
happy, quality time with
your child may be
a better option than scrimping to
spend 24 stressed hours a day with your child.
