I have actually had to really think about this issue lately. I would love to go to work fulltime but ds would have to be in daycare after school and vacations. Right now dh works days and I go to work 5-9 pm or later. I like working nights but really miss the time with my family so working days is preferable. The two main issues for us are having strangers watch our son and also the high cost ( even part time is outrageous). But that is the only thing keeping me from working days is the daycare issue.

When my twins were babies, a friend kept them. When they became toddlers, we switched to a church daycare. Actually, they took really good care of my kids (all three of them), and many of the "day" teachers/workers had been there for a while. There are pros and cons to each situation. If you have a private sitter, you need to make sure there's a backup in case the sitter is not available. With the daycare, that job fell to the director.
I chose to leave my full time job when the youngest was one, because I didn't have a chance to stay home with the twins when they were little. I wasn't dissatisfied with their daycare; it was just a personal choice.

It definitely affects whether or not I work. Don't get me wrong, there are days that I'd love to have a job and be out of this house more than two hours in a two week period. My MIL is available to watch DS a day or two of the week but she has her own job and then has to keep up on the church finances and administrative stuff, as well as her housework, so those days are limited even then. Right now the only job that I'll take outside of the house is a nanny position where I can take my son with me. (or if they brought their child to my house to be cared for) I was offered a position that would have brought an extra $1200 in per month, but they had financial difficulties and had to keep their son in daycare . Local daycares here cost near $40 a day for a 3 year old; if I worked at the nursing home (highest paying job I could easily get without schooling), that would eat up more than half my day's wages (once taxes are figured in). Then top that off with more doctor's bills, as I inevitably get sick working there, and well, it just isn't worth it. So, nanny job only for me right now.

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When I needed childcare I was fortunate to have family and a wonderful nanny who worked for us for 3 yrs. We aren't rich, finding a nanny was a fluke - she lived next door to us in (AF) base housing, our husbands worked together so we became good friends. She went to nanny school but got married so never pursued the career. She was great with my kids, cheap, and always available. If I had to leave them with strangers or at a day care I would have found some way to stay home.

Yes! I would work more if a family member was here. However, I would have a hard time leaving them all day. We were lucky. I was a WAHM when the kids were born and had a sitter come in for 20 hours/week. BUT I WAS HOME! That way, we found the perfect sitter and have had her for over 2 years. Now that I work Per Diem out side the home - it isn't scary because I know her. If she left us, I would probably find a day care setting as I couldn't have a stranger come in without knowing what was going on in the home.

It is a hard decision but I do know that the lack of money is worth it. As they get older - I work a little more. What did we do with 2 full time incomes before??

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HeatherMama to TWO lovely children
4 year old boy
2 year old girl

We discussed and planned this decision before we ever had our son. A few years ago, after we got married, we were both working and could qualify to buy a home (most likely a condo, it's so expensive here and out of control!). We chose to not buy, so that when we had a child, I could stay home.

Best decision we ever made! I am home full time with my 18 mo old son. In our area, it can cost 1200-1500/month for childcare, that's more than 50% of what I earned. If we had bought, our housing cost would be double our rent (over 3k!), so the other half of my earnings would pay the housing. We'd still have to drive 10+ year old cars and pinch pennies! We can buy a house in 5 years when I return to work *we're trying for #2 right now* while my kids will never be small again.

If you want to avoid day care, just get creative! I'm starting to watch a neighbor's infant daughter 2-3 days/week, $60/day. woo hoo, that's groceries and some bill money! Somehow these things work out. Try part time work if needed, soemtimes that little bit of extra makes all the difference.

***I have to give much respect to single working Mom's. You amaze me and are doing a great job for your children!***

The cost of daycare was definitely an issue for our family. After factoring in daycare for our second to be and before and after school care for DD I would be paying 60% of my paycheck just to go to work! We aren't able to make it with just DH's pay so I started a work at home business. It is going really well and we are patiently awaiting our new addition.

Jess

I might go back part time if I had family to watch ds, maybe not. I always knew I wanted to stay home with ds, it was a very important part of deciding to have ds. We are fortunate enough for me never having to work unless I want to go back (undecided about that) It would be great, however, to have relatives to help watch ds once a week even for a few hours, but we'll never have that and I've long since accepted that.