“I blame the idea of daycare. Before the advent of daycare, the kids were around all the time and, if they were gone,the quiet would be noticeable. Now, it’s normal to not be in contact with kids for long periods of time.”
I blame society and indirectly our government. When I grew up, my dad made a living, and my mother made a home for us. Now, couples, thanks in no small measure to our taxation policies, both work. And we see these events as the payoff for not caring for the children we bring into the world. And I blame women who think more of their “careers” than they do of their children. Fine if you want a career, just don’t procreate and foist your offspring onto “daycare.” Like George Carlin once said: “It’s a child, not a toy, touch the little bastard once in awhile, he’ll thank you for it in the future!”
I’ve heard of people who did the math and realized that two working parents was not coming out ahead like they thought.
So the wife quit her job, was able to get rid of day care, do more meals at home, less prepared food, better money management and still lived at the same standard of living as before.
With a double income and all the extra expenses that come from that, the actual take home pay benefit is no more than 25% more than one income, and that 25% can be dealt with but good budgeting and money management.
Not entirely true. I grew up in an America where we kids would be gone all day in the summertime, goofing around and riding our bikes or playing baseball and stopping at the store for comics and not coming home until we were hungry, or it was getting dark.
I’ve read that younger men now want to marry women who will stay home with the children.
But not in my generation. Our men wanted us to work (at least all the men I knew). Many women wanted to stay home with the babies, but the husbands wanted that second paycheck coming in.
I didn’t want to hand my baby over to strangers, but my now-ex was worried about money. So, I did the math and showed him the numbers: Daycare would cost most of my paycheck. But, if I worked part-time, we would avoid daycare and I’d actually bring home more money. That’s what all parents should do - the math. Believe it or not, some moms are working to pay daycare expenses. A part-time gig while dad spends time with the kiddos sometimes brings in more money without the daycare expense.
Still, the best model is for mom to stay home with the babies while dad works. All this driving back and forth to daycare and work must be confusing. Otherwise, I can’t understand how anyone forgets a baby in the car.