Lurker from June 2005 EC, need some info

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Registered: 01-04-2005
Lurker from June 2005 EC, need some info
1
Wed, 06-08-2005 - 3:33pm

Hi ladies,

I have a daughter who will be 3 in August and am expecting my son the 30th of this month. Currently I work 35 hours a week but a part of me is dying to stay home with my children. When dd was born she came to work with me for 5 months and then my mother kept her until she had to get a partime job herself. DD has stayed with relatives mostly until about 8 months ago, she now goes to daycare. It isn't that big of a deal since husband works there and can check on her often. She is old enough now to tell me what goes on there and I take comfort in that. However, with this new baby coming, I am terrified of sending him to daycare or to a stranger. I will have to return to work after he is 4 weeks and he can't go to daycare until he is 6 weeks. I have no one to keep him. So I have really been considering staying home with the children but then comes the real trouble. I am a young mother and we have low income with both of us working and I don't think it is possible for me to stay home. My dh and I bring in 50% of our income each. So if I stayed home, he would need to double his income for us to make it. So my questions are: Have any of you gone from 2 to 1 income who really couldn't afford to? Is it possible to do this or am I being crazy? I know that 50% is alot for him to make up. Are there things I could do from home to help earn money that won't take away from my children? I know there are alot of gimmick of work from home jobs and such and I don't want to be taken. I currently have experience in pharmacy, secretarial jobs, front end medical work and retail thus I feel so unskilled to do anything outside of that. I have considered keeping children but I have no experience other than with my own and don't know where to get customers. Could anyone help?

TIA
Michelle

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-02-2005
Wed, 06-08-2005 - 9:48pm
Well you need to take into consideration how much daycare will cost for an infant. So how much will you really be bringing in after you take into consideration the cost of working, daycare, nice clothes, dining out, etc. I have been a stay at home mom through getting my DH through school. We learned to sacrifice and had priorities with our money and somehow we made it through, knowing it would get better someday, and it has. I think you have to look at all the variables and make a choice, I think most people could make it work, its just a matter of it being what you want. Good luck!!!
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