Question:
In our household, my husband is the stay-at-home parent and I work full-time outside the home. Do you have any advice on how we can make this successful in our family and marriage?
Answer: One critical piece of information missing from your question is the age of your children. Research shows that young children need a great deal of time with mum during their formative years. If your children are young, the first thing we’d recommend is that you make every effort to spend as much time nurturing them as possible.
This is not to suggest that you should feel guilty for working outside the home. Since men are generally hard-wired to be financial providers, you’ll want to talk with your husband and make sure that he’s comfortable being a stay-at-home dad for the time being. Some men genuinely enjoy being “Mr. Mum.” They’re good at it, too. Not only do they love their children, but they have also been blessed with a nurturing temperament and actually enjoy being with them 24 hours a day. Regardless of who is staying at home and who is acting as the breadwinner, you and your husband need to agree that the most important thing is that your children aren’t being deprived of parental love and leadership.
When it comes to your marriage, our advice is similar to what we’d offer if your husband was the breadwinner: make sure you make time to connect every week without the distractions of children and career. Schedule a regular “date night” to invest in your relationship.
For more ideas, read Great Date Ideas.
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