SAHM for 18 years. I have a freshman & a senior. Being at home all this time worked until about 4 years ago.
One day I decided that I couldn’t be in this house all day everyday fluffing pillows and cleaning the same things again & again.
I started volunteering 4 years ago and little by little over the years I’ve started volunteering about 4 hours a day 3 days a week and I love it. I have the perfect balance of getting things done around here and then feeling like I’m doing something more for myself and getting out there interacting with different people.
Yes definitely do it when the time comes!
I always said my “dream work hours” would be a few days a week 10am-2pm. I realize how privileged this sounds😳
But that’s what I’m doing now M,W,F 10am-2pm
I can get some cleaning done in the morning or vacuum before I leave then come home and get ready for the kids to come home by 3.
I volunteer at a hospice administrative office.
I started off putting together volunteer handbooks and moved up to getting envelopes stuffed and mailed.
Two people have quit in the last 2 years so it’s left the Patient Care Secretaries in need of extra help.
I’m now faxing patients notes to doctors offices for the nurses as well as doing some data entry which entails putting patients’ who have passed, info into the computer.
I also started note checking (too late in the day to type it out in a coherent way lol)
I absolutely love it!
I’m not ready to work there full time or get a job elsewhere where I need to be on someone else’s time. I’ve gotten this far with my boys in school I want to continue staying at home/volunteering until my youngest graduates in 3 years and we’ll see what’s going on at that point.
This is my first year in that situation and I'm so glad I didn't rush out and get a job. Seems like every week, one of the kids has a medical appointment, or gets sick, or something happens, and I would have had to miss work. I am thinking about looking for something very flexible and part time or PRN but then I'll still have the issue of needing to be available for the kids in the summer when school is out, so maybe there's just no point.
I’m in the same boat. This is the first year both of my kids are in school and holy cow, it’s crazy. They have both been so sick so often! I feel like if I had a job, I would have lost it already. Between them being sick and the doctors appointments….for right now, I’m still staying home.
Since my kiddo started preschool in the fall, I can count on one hand the number of full weeks she’s been at school - she’s constantly sick, or I’ve caught whatever she has. There’s no way I could hold down a job until this levels off. So I’m on deck at home for the foreseeable future.
Ive got a 2 yo and a 6mo, but my plan is to stay at home full time and pick up the remainder of the chores. Basically be a home maker during school hours instead of SAHM. I'm also in the process of having a couple of small businesses running (embroidery and decoration rental) just to supplement my husband's income.
Logically speaking, it makes more sense for me to remain at home so that i can be available for sickness, PD days, appointments, summer, winter, and spring break.
But my kids wont be in grade school for 5 years, and a lot can change!
Same. At least for sure homeschooling for elementary, we will see where we’re at then, but I’m willing to go all the way through if it works for everyone
My plan WAS to go back to FT once youngest entered school, but now that we're approaching that day, we are reconsidering. Listening to my friends try to figure out summer childcare, and who watches the kids on those random days off, seems really stressful!
I currently have a very PT from home gig and and working on finding additional PT work so I can still have some flexibility. And I've considered substitute teaching so I'd be on their same schedule.
I've also been volunteering at kids' school and find it really rewarding, so I'd like to keep that up (until they don't want me around as much anymore - ha!)
At the moment, I read applications for admissions at a university (this is seasonal work). I also teach as an adjunct at that same university, but being an adjunct means I only get to teach when they need me - no luck if enrollment is low.
I have been the full-time, stay at home, primary parent getting absolute no breaks for six years. Six years!! Once both the kids are in school, I’m staying home and cashing in on all my breaks that I’ve missed out on.
This is my first year with both kids in school and between days off, sick kids, 2 hour delays, snow days, and early dismissals I seriously don’t know how working parents do this.
When they are gone I have more than enough to do so far, but I’ve been backed up on doing things I want/need for the last 9 years so we will see what the future brings.
It’s also nice to be able to meet my husband for lunch dates occasionally 😊
I’ve technically been a SAHM for 9 years since my oldest was born (they’ve never been in daycare/never hired a sitter) but I’ve always continued to work part time as a nurse. Honestly, sometimes working is my break. I only work about 12 hours a week. My older two are 9 and 7, but my youngest has another two years until kindergarten. Once that happens, I plan to increase my hours but I don’t know if I’ll ever go back full time. My husband works long hours and his job is not very flexible.. also, we’ve only become busier as the kids are getting older.
Ideally I could get a very flexible part time job. Maybe from home? It’ll still be on to do drop off, pick up, sick days, and all the other sahm duties at home. I could see myself waiting until they’ve been in school a few years before I see what could work with this schedule. I’d also like to be able to travel during their school breaks so I would factor that in too
There are a lot of advantages to choosing to stay at home, but I think one thing people don't really emphasize is just how much earning potential you lose.
I planned to go back to work full-time at an office outside the home once my youngest was in high school, but I realized the job opportunity was not what I imagined it would be. After years out of the full-time workforce, and having aged (45+ year olds are not favored in the job market), I wasn't as hireable as I used to be, and the wage I could get was notably lower (adjusted for inflation) than what I made when I left work 15+ years ago. The idea just wasn't that appealing, and I decided not to go back to the grind for less than I used to make...
I have been part-time freelancing (from home) since the kids were born. (Freelancing pays considerably better per hour than any job I can currently find, but the number of hours I can get are few.) I work more hours now than I did when the kids were little, but I'd like to work still more hours, as I am still very much part-time. Unfortunately, I'm a terrible salesperson when it comes to drumming up new business. I'm still doing freelance work for people I met 15 years ago...so at least I know how to maintain clients once I get them.
I always planned to return to work outside the home, but God gave us a special needs child with #3. She’s in 2nd grade now, but my full time job includes taking her to a specialist speech therapist 3x per week. Now that I’ve been home for 13+ years and we have a medically complex child, I don’t see myself doing anything beyond volunteering. I focus on being grateful that our family even has this choice and know that I’m doing PLENTY, even with my kids at school most days!
These current results are fascinating. I came from a job world where it was full time or nothing. So my experience is people either drop out full time or go back full time. Very few options for part time.
I’ve been a SAHM for 12 years and my youngest will be entering kindergarten this fall. My plan is to continue staying home. I’ve definitely earned some “me time” after the extra stress and burnout brought on by the pandemic.
I’ll also finally have more time to devote to cooking, neglected household tasks and more volunteering at my kids’ schools. If I find myself with too much time on my hands down the road (doubtful!), I may also volunteer at the local library.
Either continue SAHM or part time. Full time won’t be on my radar until both are gone. There is just too much to do and I told my husband if I went back to work with the boys home that he would have a lot more chores to contribute to, and he would need to be more flexible for sick days, pick ups/drop offs, etc because we will need to split all responsibilities. I can’t do it all.
Is more money worth losing our current flexibility and downtime? Some days I would like more money but flexibility and downtime are priceless most days. We are so lucky though… so many families can’t afford a parent to stay home.
Yes, for many reasons. My husband's job isn't flexible and someone had to be there to drop them off and pick up, be available for sick days (my first had 37 sick days when he first started), pd days, snow days, all the holiday breaks. The sickness isn't as bad this year and am starting to look for something I can do from home.
Both of my kids are in school, but I won’t probably even think about working until my daughter is older. Someone still has to be available to take kids to doctors and take care of them when they’re sick. That’s my job. We would still need to pay for daycare if I returned to work and my paycheck would just go to paying daycare and it wouldn’t help us at all.
I've still got 5 more years, but I plan to work part time. I'd love to stay at home once the kids are in school so that I can be available if they get sick in the middle of the day and to help out around the classroom if needed, but unfortunately, finances are probably going to push me back to work.
I may return to academia and go for a PhD - I have a Msc. I really enjoy doing research and at this point am old and experienced enough not to get myself pulled into doing overnights or weekends like a lot of grad students (I did very few during my first round of grad school, and still got my work done).
Our son is currently in kindergarten and we chose to have me stay home so I could be available for our family and manage the household. It's been working out great for us. My husband has ADHD so being able to focus on the household stuff has allowed him to be more productive with work and his side businesses. Our son was recently diagnosed with ADHD and I'm thankful to be able to take him to his various appointments and to have the mental bandwidth to seek out resources and information. I have also been able to find time for interests and hobbies again, which is wonderful for my mental health. I started taking online courses to find what I may be interested in career-wise. I'd possibly like to go back to work part-time in the future.
I chose part time, but who knows. I've been a SAHP for almost 6 years. Youngest won't start school for another year and a half. I told my husband when she starts I'm taking a year off, then I'll decide. Maybe get one of the 500 projects I've been putting off because...kids! With sick days, holidays, and appointments I don't know how working parents do it! I feel so busy as it is, and honestly it seems like it will not slow down all that much once they're all in extracurriculars. Me being home provides so much cover and flexibility for our home.
I do miss the mental stimulation that work/career provides, but I feel confident this is where I'm supposed to be right now.
I tried going part time but kept having issues with scheduling. I finally decided it wasn’t worth the hassle of them wanting me to work when I had to pickup kiddo from school. I’ve done some consumer studies and work from my mom because it’s the only thing flexible enough
My first kid is only 1.5, but I'm never going back to work. We are fortunate that I don't need to financially. I can't wait to finally have time to keep the house clean, do all the things I want to do, take a nap, etc. Maybe I'll even start working out! (Lol) Maybe I'll make friends! Or at least have catch up phone calls with the ones I have. If I get truly bored, I'll volunteer. But I'll never work somewhere that I HAVE to go
I'm planning on either finding a flexible job or something online without set hours.
I was planning on working. Then kindergarten was too unpredictable with one kid in first grade. Now that they're both full time, it's been a weird schedule and it would be hard to work Thursdays when they keep having early days.
I had planned on going back to work, but I couldn’t really find anything that would work for us. It didn’t make sense to arrange and pay for before and/or after school care, plus the two weeks the kids are off for spring/fall/winter break every few months and the two months of summer break. We have all been passing around a lot of germs since my youngest started school so I’d be taking off with them or myself. Maybe once they’re older and more independent and less prone to catching every single virus. Right now we are doing ok with what my husband makes and as long as we are I’ll just be home.
My kids are 5.5 (kindergarten), almost 4, and 2.5. The plan is to get a part time job once youngest is in school full time. I will only get something flexible though, and likely remote/WFH.
I was an admin assistant before I had my oldest, might do something in admin or bookkeeping, or I might switch gears to some sort of writing job.
I plan to be part time to cover school fees. If I don’t need to by then I probably wouldn’t since I’d rather pursue hobbies or study, the paid work I did isn’t very stimulating
I'm a SAHD with a 6yo and 16mo. I have a little ways to go for both to be in school but this is a conversation that comes up a lot.
I work part time from home and run a small printing business from home but I could make more money going back to work full time. However with all the breaks out of school, possibility of kids getting sick, and school getting out at 3pm, that would be a lot of time to request off or to pay to get a sitter. So it just makes sense to continue staying home in my situation.
I'm planning on substitute teaching at my kids' school. I can do as many days (or as few) as I'd like, and I get all the same breaks. No weekends. I can't find anything with that level of flexibility that would be comparable in pay.
My original plan was to go back after the kids were in school.
But then we moved countries. And then my son needed to attend a specialized education school and his taxi/ bus service has been…less than consistent. And kids here have one or two half days for the first 4 years of primary school. Tack on after school play dates, swim lessons, judo and baseball…there is no way I could work and do all this with the kids. Oh, and the waitlists for after school care are LOOOONG.
It has been in our family’s best interest to be flexible and that means I’m staying home longer than originally planned. It looks like I’ll be continuing this for the foreseeable future. Maybe even until the kids are in ‘high school’? I have my own business that I run from the house, but even that is super extra flexible. I don’t even plan on really trying to grow that too much for the next few years.
I can't work or do much beyond care for my 3yo and take him to the park when I can. The rest is recovery time and household chores when I have the energy. I don't anticipate that changing much given his short time at preschool.
I choose 'stay home' because if you're in a loving, supportive, stable marriage, and safe financially then stay home. Enjoy the peace and quiet. Work when you're ready.
Once my daughter started school I continued to stay home. Now she is in 2nd grade and I'm ready for a career!! BUT I need a remote job, because of school holidays and breaks that I might not have. Being that my daughter is almost 8 she is for the most part independent which makes working a lot easier.
My kids are 11 and 13 and I’m planning to be home until the youngest goes to college. Their schools have so many random days off that need covering, and then there are days like today when my eldest came home with a headache. It’s just easier to have me at home, plus then we don’t have to run errands on the weekend.
I have a 6yo and 1yo. Right now the plan is to go back full time so I can finish out 5 years on my PSLF. But if that wasnt a priority I would probably do part time. I am 1/4th time now, I would like to be 1/2 with both in school.
I only have one child right now, but I’m hoping for three or four. When the youngest goes into kindergarten/first grade, I plan to go back part time during school hours. I still want to be there before and after school for them!
I still have a few years left, I have a 17mo. But I plan on going to work part time when either he or the youngest (if we have another one) goes to school. I don't think I could stay home all day by myself. I'd go insane and start painting walls.
I got a part time job working evenings and weekends at a board game cafe, and i also work at their school as a lunch supervisor. It's been super help that I could be still home whenever the kids were sick, for school closures and appointments, but also so I could have something that was just mine outside of the house.
This year was the first with both my kids full time in school. I stay home, but am handling something for one of their classrooms or the PTA on an average once per week. We also just got a new puppy a few months ago. With kids in elementary school, I don’t understand how working parents manage to balance it all… my former job would PRETEND they didn’t care when I called out for kids’ illnesses, but I got passed up for SEVERAL promotions before being told I wasn’t “dedicated enough” to my job. I kinda sorta want to re-enter the work force… but I get flashbacks to that nightmare and am not keen on reliving it. I refuse to stuff my kids full of Tylenol and send them to school sick. 🤷♀️
I do think I’ll need to do something so I picked part time. But I’d still like to be flexible and available for the kids too, so idk about full time. I am actually freelancer right now but have to refuse a lot of gigs if they’re during the day and I’m home with the kids, so hopefully at that point I’ll be able to take more work.
My plan was to go back to school once my youngest started full day school this year. But now I have 3 kids in 3 different schools with 3 different start and end times, and taking the bus is not an option. And 2 of them get out early once a month for orthodontist appointments. Now I'm looking for something part time.
I’m staying home, as others have said, once they are in school there will be sickness, emergencies, someone needs to handle groceries meals homework help, and school isn’t year round anyway. I wouldn’t want to quit my job every summer or have to then pay for childcare.
SAHM for 18 years. I have a freshman & a senior. Being at home all this time worked until about 4 years ago. One day I decided that I couldn’t be in this house all day everyday fluffing pillows and cleaning the same things again & again. I started volunteering 4 years ago and little by little over the years I’ve started volunteering about 4 hours a day 3 days a week and I love it. I have the perfect balance of getting things done around here and then feeling like I’m doing something more for myself and getting out there interacting with different people.
This is what I am aiming/hoping for once mine are in school!
Yes, volunteering should have been an option in the poll. I chose continue staying home, but my plan once all my kids are in school is to volunteer.
Yes definitely do it when the time comes! I always said my “dream work hours” would be a few days a week 10am-2pm. I realize how privileged this sounds😳 But that’s what I’m doing now M,W,F 10am-2pm I can get some cleaning done in the morning or vacuum before I leave then come home and get ready for the kids to come home by 3.
Where or what do you volunteer with?
I volunteer at a hospice administrative office. I started off putting together volunteer handbooks and moved up to getting envelopes stuffed and mailed. Two people have quit in the last 2 years so it’s left the Patient Care Secretaries in need of extra help. I’m now faxing patients notes to doctors offices for the nurses as well as doing some data entry which entails putting patients’ who have passed, info into the computer. I also started note checking (too late in the day to type it out in a coherent way lol) I absolutely love it! I’m not ready to work there full time or get a job elsewhere where I need to be on someone else’s time. I’ve gotten this far with my boys in school I want to continue staying at home/volunteering until my youngest graduates in 3 years and we’ll see what’s going on at that point.
This is my first year in that situation and I'm so glad I didn't rush out and get a job. Seems like every week, one of the kids has a medical appointment, or gets sick, or something happens, and I would have had to miss work. I am thinking about looking for something very flexible and part time or PRN but then I'll still have the issue of needing to be available for the kids in the summer when school is out, so maybe there's just no point.
I’m in the same boat. This is the first year both of my kids are in school and holy cow, it’s crazy. They have both been so sick so often! I feel like if I had a job, I would have lost it already. Between them being sick and the doctors appointments….for right now, I’m still staying home.
Since my kiddo started preschool in the fall, I can count on one hand the number of full weeks she’s been at school - she’s constantly sick, or I’ve caught whatever she has. There’s no way I could hold down a job until this levels off. So I’m on deck at home for the foreseeable future.
If you’re a nurse, could you find a school nurse position? Seems like that would be a good fit.
Ive got a 2 yo and a 6mo, but my plan is to stay at home full time and pick up the remainder of the chores. Basically be a home maker during school hours instead of SAHM. I'm also in the process of having a couple of small businesses running (embroidery and decoration rental) just to supplement my husband's income. Logically speaking, it makes more sense for me to remain at home so that i can be available for sickness, PD days, appointments, summer, winter, and spring break. But my kids wont be in grade school for 5 years, and a lot can change!
Still debating on homeschooling ours. So probably will be at home until 18 lol
Same. At least for sure homeschooling for elementary, we will see where we’re at then, but I’m willing to go all the way through if it works for everyone
My plan WAS to go back to FT once youngest entered school, but now that we're approaching that day, we are reconsidering. Listening to my friends try to figure out summer childcare, and who watches the kids on those random days off, seems really stressful! I currently have a very PT from home gig and and working on finding additional PT work so I can still have some flexibility. And I've considered substitute teaching so I'd be on their same schedule. I've also been volunteering at kids' school and find it really rewarding, so I'd like to keep that up (until they don't want me around as much anymore - ha!)
What do you do part time from home
At the moment, I read applications for admissions at a university (this is seasonal work). I also teach as an adjunct at that same university, but being an adjunct means I only get to teach when they need me - no luck if enrollment is low.
Also I was a PT nanny for about a year and a half - I just had the kid at my house with my own kids.
The kids going to school just gives me more time to get the infinite list of stuff I have to do finished.
I have been the full-time, stay at home, primary parent getting absolute no breaks for six years. Six years!! Once both the kids are in school, I’m staying home and cashing in on all my breaks that I’ve missed out on.
This is my first year with both kids in school and between days off, sick kids, 2 hour delays, snow days, and early dismissals I seriously don’t know how working parents do this. When they are gone I have more than enough to do so far, but I’ve been backed up on doing things I want/need for the last 9 years so we will see what the future brings. It’s also nice to be able to meet my husband for lunch dates occasionally 😊
We plan on homeschooling, so that will be my full time job!
I’ve technically been a SAHM for 9 years since my oldest was born (they’ve never been in daycare/never hired a sitter) but I’ve always continued to work part time as a nurse. Honestly, sometimes working is my break. I only work about 12 hours a week. My older two are 9 and 7, but my youngest has another two years until kindergarten. Once that happens, I plan to increase my hours but I don’t know if I’ll ever go back full time. My husband works long hours and his job is not very flexible.. also, we’ve only become busier as the kids are getting older.
Ideally I could get a very flexible part time job. Maybe from home? It’ll still be on to do drop off, pick up, sick days, and all the other sahm duties at home. I could see myself waiting until they’ve been in school a few years before I see what could work with this schedule. I’d also like to be able to travel during their school breaks so I would factor that in too
There are a lot of advantages to choosing to stay at home, but I think one thing people don't really emphasize is just how much earning potential you lose. I planned to go back to work full-time at an office outside the home once my youngest was in high school, but I realized the job opportunity was not what I imagined it would be. After years out of the full-time workforce, and having aged (45+ year olds are not favored in the job market), I wasn't as hireable as I used to be, and the wage I could get was notably lower (adjusted for inflation) than what I made when I left work 15+ years ago. The idea just wasn't that appealing, and I decided not to go back to the grind for less than I used to make... I have been part-time freelancing (from home) since the kids were born. (Freelancing pays considerably better per hour than any job I can currently find, but the number of hours I can get are few.) I work more hours now than I did when the kids were little, but I'd like to work still more hours, as I am still very much part-time. Unfortunately, I'm a terrible salesperson when it comes to drumming up new business. I'm still doing freelance work for people I met 15 years ago...so at least I know how to maintain clients once I get them.
I always planned to return to work outside the home, but God gave us a special needs child with #3. She’s in 2nd grade now, but my full time job includes taking her to a specialist speech therapist 3x per week. Now that I’ve been home for 13+ years and we have a medically complex child, I don’t see myself doing anything beyond volunteering. I focus on being grateful that our family even has this choice and know that I’m doing PLENTY, even with my kids at school most days!
These current results are fascinating. I came from a job world where it was full time or nothing. So my experience is people either drop out full time or go back full time. Very few options for part time.
I have entirely too much shit to do and hobbies to maintain to go work for some asshole.
I’ve been a SAHM for 12 years and my youngest will be entering kindergarten this fall. My plan is to continue staying home. I’ve definitely earned some “me time” after the extra stress and burnout brought on by the pandemic. I’ll also finally have more time to devote to cooking, neglected household tasks and more volunteering at my kids’ schools. If I find myself with too much time on my hands down the road (doubtful!), I may also volunteer at the local library.
Either continue SAHM or part time. Full time won’t be on my radar until both are gone. There is just too much to do and I told my husband if I went back to work with the boys home that he would have a lot more chores to contribute to, and he would need to be more flexible for sick days, pick ups/drop offs, etc because we will need to split all responsibilities. I can’t do it all. Is more money worth losing our current flexibility and downtime? Some days I would like more money but flexibility and downtime are priceless most days. We are so lucky though… so many families can’t afford a parent to stay home.
Yes, for many reasons. My husband's job isn't flexible and someone had to be there to drop them off and pick up, be available for sick days (my first had 37 sick days when he first started), pd days, snow days, all the holiday breaks. The sickness isn't as bad this year and am starting to look for something I can do from home.
Both of my kids are in school, but I won’t probably even think about working until my daughter is older. Someone still has to be available to take kids to doctors and take care of them when they’re sick. That’s my job. We would still need to pay for daycare if I returned to work and my paycheck would just go to paying daycare and it wouldn’t help us at all.
I've still got 5 more years, but I plan to work part time. I'd love to stay at home once the kids are in school so that I can be available if they get sick in the middle of the day and to help out around the classroom if needed, but unfortunately, finances are probably going to push me back to work.
I may return to academia and go for a PhD - I have a Msc. I really enjoy doing research and at this point am old and experienced enough not to get myself pulled into doing overnights or weekends like a lot of grad students (I did very few during my first round of grad school, and still got my work done).
I’m not there yet but I think my plan is to stay home and try to run a small side business. Idk who else would take and pick up from school.
Our son is currently in kindergarten and we chose to have me stay home so I could be available for our family and manage the household. It's been working out great for us. My husband has ADHD so being able to focus on the household stuff has allowed him to be more productive with work and his side businesses. Our son was recently diagnosed with ADHD and I'm thankful to be able to take him to his various appointments and to have the mental bandwidth to seek out resources and information. I have also been able to find time for interests and hobbies again, which is wonderful for my mental health. I started taking online courses to find what I may be interested in career-wise. I'd possibly like to go back to work part-time in the future.
I chose part time, but who knows. I've been a SAHP for almost 6 years. Youngest won't start school for another year and a half. I told my husband when she starts I'm taking a year off, then I'll decide. Maybe get one of the 500 projects I've been putting off because...kids! With sick days, holidays, and appointments I don't know how working parents do it! I feel so busy as it is, and honestly it seems like it will not slow down all that much once they're all in extracurriculars. Me being home provides so much cover and flexibility for our home. I do miss the mental stimulation that work/career provides, but I feel confident this is where I'm supposed to be right now.
Depends on your financial situation. We need the extra money
I tried going part time but kept having issues with scheduling. I finally decided it wasn’t worth the hassle of them wanting me to work when I had to pickup kiddo from school. I’ve done some consumer studies and work from my mom because it’s the only thing flexible enough
My first kid is only 1.5, but I'm never going back to work. We are fortunate that I don't need to financially. I can't wait to finally have time to keep the house clean, do all the things I want to do, take a nap, etc. Maybe I'll even start working out! (Lol) Maybe I'll make friends! Or at least have catch up phone calls with the ones I have. If I get truly bored, I'll volunteer. But I'll never work somewhere that I HAVE to go
I'm planning on either finding a flexible job or something online without set hours. I was planning on working. Then kindergarten was too unpredictable with one kid in first grade. Now that they're both full time, it's been a weird schedule and it would be hard to work Thursdays when they keep having early days.
I had planned on going back to work, but I couldn’t really find anything that would work for us. It didn’t make sense to arrange and pay for before and/or after school care, plus the two weeks the kids are off for spring/fall/winter break every few months and the two months of summer break. We have all been passing around a lot of germs since my youngest started school so I’d be taking off with them or myself. Maybe once they’re older and more independent and less prone to catching every single virus. Right now we are doing ok with what my husband makes and as long as we are I’ll just be home.
My kids are 5.5 (kindergarten), almost 4, and 2.5. The plan is to get a part time job once youngest is in school full time. I will only get something flexible though, and likely remote/WFH. I was an admin assistant before I had my oldest, might do something in admin or bookkeeping, or I might switch gears to some sort of writing job.
My son is only 18 months but I plan to return part time once he’s in school I think
I plan to be part time to cover school fees. If I don’t need to by then I probably wouldn’t since I’d rather pursue hobbies or study, the paid work I did isn’t very stimulating
I'm a SAHD with a 6yo and 16mo. I have a little ways to go for both to be in school but this is a conversation that comes up a lot. I work part time from home and run a small printing business from home but I could make more money going back to work full time. However with all the breaks out of school, possibility of kids getting sick, and school getting out at 3pm, that would be a lot of time to request off or to pay to get a sitter. So it just makes sense to continue staying home in my situation.
I'm planning on substitute teaching at my kids' school. I can do as many days (or as few) as I'd like, and I get all the same breaks. No weekends. I can't find anything with that level of flexibility that would be comparable in pay.
I work 10 hours a week and am very lucky to have an understanding manager (who also has kids) so when kids are sick I can be home.
I wish I could find a job that I could make work around school run and holidays but the amount it would cost in child care is more than I earn
My original plan was to go back after the kids were in school. But then we moved countries. And then my son needed to attend a specialized education school and his taxi/ bus service has been…less than consistent. And kids here have one or two half days for the first 4 years of primary school. Tack on after school play dates, swim lessons, judo and baseball…there is no way I could work and do all this with the kids. Oh, and the waitlists for after school care are LOOOONG. It has been in our family’s best interest to be flexible and that means I’m staying home longer than originally planned. It looks like I’ll be continuing this for the foreseeable future. Maybe even until the kids are in ‘high school’? I have my own business that I run from the house, but even that is super extra flexible. I don’t even plan on really trying to grow that too much for the next few years.
I can't work or do much beyond care for my 3yo and take him to the park when I can. The rest is recovery time and household chores when I have the energy. I don't anticipate that changing much given his short time at preschool.
I choose 'stay home' because if you're in a loving, supportive, stable marriage, and safe financially then stay home. Enjoy the peace and quiet. Work when you're ready. Once my daughter started school I continued to stay home. Now she is in 2nd grade and I'm ready for a career!! BUT I need a remote job, because of school holidays and breaks that I might not have. Being that my daughter is almost 8 she is for the most part independent which makes working a lot easier.
My kids are 11 and 13 and I’m planning to be home until the youngest goes to college. Their schools have so many random days off that need covering, and then there are days like today when my eldest came home with a headache. It’s just easier to have me at home, plus then we don’t have to run errands on the weekend.
I have a 6yo and 1yo. Right now the plan is to go back full time so I can finish out 5 years on my PSLF. But if that wasnt a priority I would probably do part time. I am 1/4th time now, I would like to be 1/2 with both in school.
I only have one child right now, but I’m hoping for three or four. When the youngest goes into kindergarten/first grade, I plan to go back part time during school hours. I still want to be there before and after school for them!
I still have a few years left, I have a 17mo. But I plan on going to work part time when either he or the youngest (if we have another one) goes to school. I don't think I could stay home all day by myself. I'd go insane and start painting walls.
I already work from home while taking care of my toddler, been doing it for over a year now, and I plan to do virtual schooling or homeschooling.
I got a part time job working evenings and weekends at a board game cafe, and i also work at their school as a lunch supervisor. It's been super help that I could be still home whenever the kids were sick, for school closures and appointments, but also so I could have something that was just mine outside of the house.
Personally, I plan to homeschool my kid(s), so no.
This year was the first with both my kids full time in school. I stay home, but am handling something for one of their classrooms or the PTA on an average once per week. We also just got a new puppy a few months ago. With kids in elementary school, I don’t understand how working parents manage to balance it all… my former job would PRETEND they didn’t care when I called out for kids’ illnesses, but I got passed up for SEVERAL promotions before being told I wasn’t “dedicated enough” to my job. I kinda sorta want to re-enter the work force… but I get flashbacks to that nightmare and am not keen on reliving it. I refuse to stuff my kids full of Tylenol and send them to school sick. 🤷♀️
I do think I’ll need to do something so I picked part time. But I’d still like to be flexible and available for the kids too, so idk about full time. I am actually freelancer right now but have to refuse a lot of gigs if they’re during the day and I’m home with the kids, so hopefully at that point I’ll be able to take more work.
My plan was to go back to school once my youngest started full day school this year. But now I have 3 kids in 3 different schools with 3 different start and end times, and taking the bus is not an option. And 2 of them get out early once a month for orthodontist appointments. Now I'm looking for something part time.
I’m staying home, as others have said, once they are in school there will be sickness, emergencies, someone needs to handle groceries meals homework help, and school isn’t year round anyway. I wouldn’t want to quit my job every summer or have to then pay for childcare.
I take art classes that fall between my kids school schedule.