Hi everyone

This question is mostly directed towards mothers, but any advice is welcomed I wanted to know how soon did everyone go back to school/work after having a baby? I wanted to go back to working when Cadence was at least a year, maybe even older. My husband and I were talking about it the other day and he thinks a year is too long to for me to be away from work but I think it's kind of short. We're not exactly struggling financially right now, but that has a lot to do with how much overtime he has been working.

So how long did you wait or want to wait before going back to school/work? Did you feel guilty for leaving your kids so soon? And did you feel like you missed out any "big" moments of your child's life?


Leia

I'm not back at work yet and my son is 15 months old... My main reason is I didn't want to put him into childcare and miss out on his milestones! I don't think I will go back to full time work until my son is at school, but I will be hopefully starting part-time work when he is 2 or something.

I don't think a year is too long, only if you need the money! If you can stay at home then that's great!

Its different for every mother.

I was working when I had Zoe, so I spent the first 2 years of her life with her 24 hours of the day, 7 days a week. With Harper however, I only had 5 months with her before I had to go back to work because we couldn't 100% support ourselves on Nick's solo income.

I however didn't have the problem of needing to put Harper in daycare, my father and step-mother were excellent baby-sitters along with Nick's parents.

We had a good balance in the end with Harper and I now know I did what's right for her and the rest of our family.

With my oldest I was trying to go to school when she was born. I had been on bed rest for 2 weeks before she was born, though, and missed the first 2 weeks of classes, so I went back as soon as I could after she was born. Then when she was about 3 months old I had to find a job. I worked until she was about 18 months old because I had to so we could make ends meet, but I don't regret it or feel like I missed out on anything. I've been a stay-at-home-mom for almost 3 years, though, so I've been home for everything with our last 2 so far.

If you can afford it, and can stand to do it, I think staying home for as long as possible with your kids is really the best.

Not a mom, and not sure how flexible your work is, but maybe you could go in on some kind of part time basis (like maybe 1 day a week) before the 1 year mark. It would be great if you could manage that when hubby has the day off and can take the tyke. That way daddy gets some one on one time with the kiddo, mommy gets a little grown up time, there is a little extra cash, and work doesn't forget how essential you are.

In the United States, mother are treated like cows. You pop that calf out and 6 weeks later you are back on the milking line. The only consession they make for breastfeeding mom's is to allow you to pump on your breaks (and not even all of them do that). I have heard that some countries allow six months of maternity leave or more, some offer PAID maternity leave, and some allow you to bring your baby to work (there are a few companies in the states that have adopted these momcentric policies, but not many).

If they won't let you do a part time schedule, I would take what time they will allow you to take. You can't get the time back once it has passed, and if you are making it financially (would you be making it without hubbs overtime?) then take it while you can. No mommy ever looks back on this time and says "Gee, I wish I had spent MORE time AWAY from my baby".

Kaismommy wrote:

QUOTE:
Hi everyone :)

This question is mostly directed towards mothers, but any advice is welcomed :) I wanted to know how soon did everyone go back to school/work after having a baby? I wanted to go back to working when Cadence was at least a year, maybe even older. My husband and I were talking about it the other day and he thinks a year is too long to for me to be away from work but I think it's kind of short. We're not exactly struggling financially right now, but that has a lot to do with how much overtime he has been working.

So how long did you wait or want to wait before going back to school/work? Did you feel guilty for leaving your kids so soon? And did you feel like you missed out any "big" moments of your child's life?

I think it is so important for a mother to stay home with her children as much as possible. I wish I could be home full time with them. With my first, I went back only part time (not more than 2 days a week) after 8 weeks. With my second, I had been laid off, and was only able to work sporadically. With my third, I was only working one day a week anyway, and I think I went back after 8-12 weeks--I don't remember. Through the whole time, we had our parents helping us with babysitting, and I don't think I really missed any big milestones that happened. But, yeah, ideally, I wish all moms could stay home and the fathers all had good jobs to support their families.