These are all true case studies / scenarios that I have come across or heard about through friends or family. These are to get you thinking.

What would you do in this situation?

What would you advise a friend to do if they were in the situation?

You've just been offered a dream job, something you've trained for and would love to do; something that gives you energy and satisfies you intellectually, emotionally, and financially. And the pay is fantastic. You've been hired on for a big oil company as a consultant. You will be paid $250,000 a year plus a generous travel allowance. The issue. You are married and you have two young kids at home (ages 1 & 3). It's a 5 year contract and it means having to live in the middle east for 2 months, home for a month, middle east for 2 months, home for a month, in a pattern for the next 5 years. You will be safe on a centre in the middle east, all of your expenses will be paid for there including food and lodging, but your family can't travel with you. They will remain back in North America. When you are home every 3rd month, that time will be entirely yours to spend with your family. You will have no work responsibilities for 4 months out of the year but for 8 months of the year you will not see your family at all.

Would you take the job?

What would you advise a friend if she was faced with this scenario?

(I'll let you know what the person decided once the thread has run it's course).

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If it was my dh I would tell him to go for it, we would manage. But for myself, I am not sure. I am not sure that dh would be able to manage, but if we only had 2 kids and they were both that young, I would probably go for it. Dh was a stay at home dad when we had 2 little ones (many moons ago!) and he did quite well. Older kids are much harder to manage. I would get myself a web cam.

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~Happiness is a large family~



Everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger. James 1:19

no...my kids and hubby come first and if they could not go then i would not go....not a dream if they are not there to share it with me.

I would not do it, nor would I encourage my DH to. Our kids are only young once, and in that scenario, we would miss far too much of their "little" years. I also would be really uncomfortable with one of us being in that far away from the rest of us. No amount of money or job satisfaction would ever replace that time lost with our family.

Michelle

We get offers for my dh to go overseas for great jobs all the time. However, no amount of money is worth his life and him missing that time in our children's lives.

However, I have a friend and her marriage is on the rocks b/c of her dh (not dear) and so I always tell her to send him over there, just make sure she maxes out his life insurance policy. I know that's horrible, but really with all she's been through with him it would solve their problems. So if your looking to get rid of your dh then maybe I'd say yes, but I do love mine so no way!

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A woman is like a teabag. You never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.-Eleanor Roosevelt

nope. Money isn't everything and family comes first.

I completely agree!! I wouldn't want my husband to do it either....a dad is equally important in raising children. Family comes first!!

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I don't know. I know a family that has done this and did very well. With the internet it would be very simple to do this. But for five years. I don't know. I don't know if my husband would even go for it. I guess a lot of this would depend on his feelings. For me? No, I couldn't do it personally.

I'm SO w/ most of you here! My husband, daughter, and I are really close-knit! We are a really great family and have a "system" for our day-to-day lives. It works really well and it's built our marriage and our relationship w/our little one. As our family grows, we want it to stay that way. Money is just money...it comes and goes! It's not worth not seeing my husband for 8 months out of the year! No way! My husband's current job and my part-time job are enough to meet our needs and then some. We live a pretty comfortable life as long as we are smart w/our money.

It could be a million dollars and I really wouldn't care! That's the value I put on our family as a unit together!

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Bekah
Co-founder and CEO of the NOVITZKE FAMILY INC.

I would Do It and I Know DH would encourage me to do it. As i Would encourage him to.

You said it is in a safe place, so I would imagine it as safe as anything around here.... Dh is on the road 80 percent of the time around here.... Anything can happen anytime. l don't think anyone is guarenteed a safe day anywhere they live. Thats just the way it is

I also Firmly believe in Quality time NOT Quanity time.

You said 4 months would Be spent at home with no work??
That sounds great!! I would be sure to make those 4 months Wonderful!!