Most young couples i know both work b/c they have to . They cannot afford kids.
>>Most young couples i know both work b/c they have to . They cannot afford kids.
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That is a myth.
It is they cannot have kids and continue to live the almost-single lifestyle they have become accustomed to.
Watch TV from the 70s through now — EVERY ONE starts with “In THIS economy???
No. They just think they both have to work.
I'm an E6 in the military, a college drop-out with four kids and a stay at home wife. Somehow we make it work.
With a wife at home, we have less wear and tear on her car, no childcare expenses, and we eat home-cooked food. It's doable.
Though I would be remiss if I didn't mention that being in the military, healthcare costs not a penny for my family other than the gas money it takes to go to appointments.
When we got married, I worked, she stayed home with the kids, and our standard of living was determined by what I made. She learned to be a good cook and we didn't eat out that much. We deferred buying a house until my career had advanced to the point of affording it, which happened to be after the birth of our second child.
The use of the word "afford" defines the speakers priority scale. Saying "I can't afford X" really means "I have other things that are more important to me than X, and those things consume all my available time and money".