When my kids came along, I started working part-time from 9 to 3 pm Monday to Friday.
My husband worked 2nd shift from 4 to midnight Tuesday to Saturday.
We had one day together a week.
It was a miracle we had 3 kids. On the flip side, we didn’t have time to fight.
When my kids were old enough to all be in school, we flipped. I dropped them off for my 9 to 5 and he did the 6 am to 3 pm shift to pick them up.
With the exception of a 3 month stint, my children were never in a daycare. We had private sitters occasionally but otherwise it was us.
It can be done.
I don’t live in a metro area, and I know costs are real, etc...
But I routinely see these types of stories and think they are just part of the militant cultural war against children and families. i.e. Meant to further discourage couples from having children.
I have 6. Doesn’t make me better. I wouldn’t trade a dollar for any moment with any of them. Much of what it “takes” financially to raise children can be managed with thrift, waiting, hard work, etc.
The idea that you have to achieve some elusive level of financial security to have & provide for them is, IMO, a lie.
To the broader point, though, children are more expensive to raise than they should otherwise be— metro area or elsewhere. All thanks to the ruinous policies of the federal and state governments.