I'm wondering how many twin mom's work outside of the home by choice? What benefits do you think it provides for you and your family...other than the extra money? For those who decided to work inside the home...what are your reasons why? I'm basically looking to get the pro's and con's of working? I think I want to go back to work, but I'm afraid that I will regret my decision....
I am just now really trying to return to work and here are the pros and cons I have found so far weighing returning to work in the office full time versus not working and staying at home: PROS: 1) Twins cost a lot and I make more than I spend in daycare. 2) I like the work I do and I feel a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day when my projects come together. CONS: 1) Good child care is hard to come by. We still have not found the perfect nanny (Mary Poppins really is a fairy tale)... and we've been looking for 4+ months. 2) With the girls sleeping about 12 hours per day and work and commute taking 9, there isn't a lot of time to play with the girls. End result: I have tried to find a middle ground. I work part time in the office, and part time at home. Working at home is hard when you have kids because there are 2 cute little distractions. It is very easy to tell yourself "the babies need me." To work at home you really have to keep your focus. I have someone come in to care for the girls while I work.
I work part-time for myself at home. The kids LOVE LOVE LOVE preschool....but I did not start them until they were crawling cause I think a younger infant wouldn't have fun the way a crawler would. A nanny ended up not being a good choice since we have a small house and it would have been too distracting for me to have the kids here. It gives me a chance to continue my career while being mostly a SAHM, which I love but is utterly exhausting.
I have been blessed with a full year mat leave. I wasn't going to go back to work because I didn't see it fit to make what I earn on day care. My DP works 3-11, so my working 7-12 will allow us to BOTH have full income while not having to spend a dime on daycare = more fun stuff for us to do because we will have more money! lol I think that I'm going to enjoy going back to work for a little bit of a "break". I know I will miss them terribly, but knowing that they are at home with my better half, well, I don't mind her getting some quality time with the kids and then when I come home and she goes to work, I will get my quality time with the kids. I think its a win-win situation and if all else fails, I will quit. Easy. I look at it this way: its short term pain for long term gain. They will be in full time school sooner that I know it and then I will be looking for things to do, or returning to work. Good luck with your decision. Regardless of what you decide, it all works out in the end.
My twins are almost 9 months and I'm a sahm. While it's been hard, I feel incredibly blessed to have the option to stay home without it being a huge financial sacrifice. I would like to work PT, but it just doesn't work for my company right now. My FT job required far too much travel to do after having our little guys. I liked my job and found it fulfilling in many ways, but I wouldn't say it was my passion. I might feel differently about staying home if I had really LOVED my job. At 9 months, I've found a good routine and balance to my day. Do I miss the gratification of a completed project, positive feedback, & constant adult interaction? YES! But...I feel like these early months/years are so fleeting. It took me so long to carry a pregnancy to term and have these precious babies; I want to savor every second. Good luck with your decision. I'm sure no matter what you decide, it will work out. Go with your gut!
I returned to work when they were 3 months. If I didn't have to, I wouldn't have...if you can afford to stay home, I would vote for it. The first year is the most important year, you want to be with them every minute if you can. But its just my opinion.gl!!
Wow...I could have wrote this. I just went back to work three weeks ago and have the same feelings as above. I would add that I REALLY need the adult "me" time and I have put so much into my career and education that I feel like staying home pretty much makes all that work a waste of the last 10 years of my life (completed three degrees and gained so much experience). I put the girls in a nice new daycare down the road (cheaper than a nanny) but I am having a REALLY hard time getting them out of the house in the morning. They are so heavy now and trying to get them in and out of the vehicle first thing in the morning is so tiring!! I finally decided to pay my parents and in laws to split the week and watch the girls at my home. That starts in a week, so we shall see how that goes. If that doesn't work, then I will probably HAVE to find a nanny (probably another 500 a month than what I'm paying now, which to me is A LOT!!).
I went back to work 7 weeks PP. i had to. We cannot live off just DH's income, not to mention my job is the steady 40 hours guarantee type job which DH is not. Its good for me because I get a break from them and get to have adult coversation. Staying home is NOT for me. I stayed Monday because DS was sick and it drove me crazy. Now thats not to say it would be different if there were no sickness since we could get up and get out the house but I just wasnt cut out for SAHM
I work full time. I am faculty at a university, and my career would not be easy to leave and return to. In addition, I love my job. I get a lot of personal satisfaction from what I do each day, and enjoy interacting with my co-workers, students, and patients. I also enjoy the lifestyle that we have as the result of my income (my husband and I make about the same amount so our income would be havled if I did not work). The truth is, working is so much easier for me then staying at home. I find caring for my three kids to be VERY difficult, and work is like a vacation. I know that probably sounds horrible, but it's the truth for me. All of that being said, after working full time for five years since the birth of my son, I have decided to cut back to 80% time in August when my oldest starts kindergarten. This has always been a long-term plan as I want to be able to pick him up after school, do homework, take him to soccer etc. I can't wait!! ETA - The two big factors that allow me to work are 1) my husband is very active in caring for the kids and puts in equal time and energy; and 2) we have an amazing daycare that I trust 100%.
