Recession Papas?
By Katy
Sorry I haven’t been very consistent in writing. I am writing to you from the road. I’m traveling for a show I am working on, and I’m thinking about all of you. I hope you’re well, Recession Mamas and fans of RM!
I would like to report some economic news, but I am way out of the loop on that one. I haven’t picked up a newspaper or watched TV in a long while. I can only talk about what I’ve been thinking about lately, and that is…working parents.
I have several co-workers who are working parents, and I wonder about whether they’ve struggled with this decision. Some of them have very young children. I am sure that most of you know moms who work these days, and you probably even know a few dads who stay at home with the kid. But my feeling is…it’s definitely more prevalent in this economy.
Now, I used to have just one friend who is a stay-at-home dad. He’s done it for years. Way before it was chic. His wife seems fine with it, and she’s actually happy to be the breadwinner in the family. He sometimes takes an odd job or two, but most days, he’s home with their two children. And recently, I’ve seen more and more of my friends who have made the choice to stay home and take care of the kids because they’ve recently lost their jobs.
So how does it feel to reverse the roles? Do you fight more or less about money now that the woman makes more? Do you have power struggles when before you were more or less equals? Does it make the relationship easier or harder? These are the things I would like to know… I am getting married, and I’m really wondering if my relationship will be OK with such a shift?
Tags: breadwinner, economy, married, papas, recession, stay-at-home dad, working parents
October 28th, 2009 at 9:41 pm
Hi Katy! You are super busy, no joke. Hey, I love this post. I was just working on my next post and it deals with similar topics, like moving from being a working mom to being a stay at home mom because of my layoff, but you’re 100% right: because of the recession, there are more men staying home with their kids right now. In fact, on my street (and you know how small it is…it’s a small street!)…there were at least 3 new stay-at-home-DADS who had gotten that new title bc of their recent layoffs. I felt like the odd “man” out…lol. When I did work though, it was a struggle for us (as you know) …because I deeply wanted to stay home with my babies, and since I made more money, sometimes that came up and it got ugly, I’ll admit. Anyway, if a couple is strong and honest, no worries. Honesty, as the saying goes, is the best policy. If 2 people are on the same page, then things get worked out. But honesty has to be #1…in my humble opinion. Miss you! xoxox –c
October 29th, 2009 at 12:39 am
I miss you too! And I agree. It’s really important to be honest, even if it’s hard to say.
November 2nd, 2009 at 10:30 pm
Stay-at-home dads rock! I know it must be hard for them because staying home with the kids is a lot of thankless physical work. But I know the kids must enjoy dad throwing them around. Besides it doesn’t matter who’s taking care of the kiddos as long as they are happy and healthy. That’s the most important part.
November 3rd, 2009 at 7:22 pm
I just wonder if there are more of them these days because they were laid off, and how it affects the relationship between the adult partners.
February 10th, 2010 at 10:44 am
Well, I’m a fan now. I am very aware of the subject matter and congragulate you juggler moms who multitask in a way no one other than others in the same position can possibly understand. I’m an involved grandfather of 6 wonderful children. I’ve been helping out by baby sitting when the partents are at work. You can read some of our grandparenting experiences on my blog. I hope you will enjoy them. In the mean time, I will stop back here periodically and try to submit frequently. Have a wonderful day and keep up the good blog.
Poppy
February 10th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
Thanks so much Poppyl1 for reading and commenting! Congrats on being a grandfather of six! I will definitely check out your blog.