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When DH says no more kids ... does he ever change his mind? ;) - Page 2

post #21 of 27

Quote:

Originally Posted by zinemama View Post

OP, I think you need to listen really, really carefully to what your dh is saying.

If you are home with the kids and he is working a job, you are both working, of course. But the pressure on him, as the breadwinner, is a whole different ball of wax than the pressure on you, with the luxury of staying home (and I say this as a sahm). Perhaps it would be different if your dh loved his job and felt fulfilled by it. But he doesn't. He hates working for money. He has a dream to do something different. If you were to have two more kids, what would that condemn him to? Working more for more money. Because, as pp have pointed out, it costs a whole heck of a lot more to raise four kids than two.

Think about that. Think about whether two theoretical kids - when you already have two - are worth in effect forcing your husband to keep doing something he doesn't want to do. How's that going to be for your marriage? I would forsee an awful lot of bitterness on his part and guilt on yours. Sometimes you have to give up something you want for the sake of something else - your marriage, in this case. I think this is one of those times.

My advice: drop the subject altogether. It's possible he will independently decide he'd like another couple of kids. But if I were you, I wouldn't count on it.


harsh, but thumb.gif.  And I say this as a mom of two, who would in a second quit my job and have a third (and maybe a fourth!) if we were independently wealthy :)

 

Do not minimize the costs of each additional child!  Going to three or more children would mean a totally different lifestyle for us (and I think it would for most people).  For us, having three children instead of two would add these costs:

  • Bigger house (unless we had all three share one bedroom and all five of us share one bathroom) - ???
  • Minivan (can't fit 3 carseats into our current car) - $20,000 +
  • Childcare/school expenses - additional $15,000/year for daycare, or extra $8,000/year for nanny (or just quitting my job, which is probably what I'd do with three)
  • Additional plane ticket and costs of any activities for any travel
  • Additional food costs - having an au pair this year has made me realize how much it costs to feed an additional person!
  • Additional healthcare and insurance costs - we have insurance, but the kids still cost me about $200 a year in ER visits and co-pays, and who knows what it will cost when they start needing glasses/contacts and dental work and whatever other health concerns come up
  • Clothing and "gear" costs - yes, you can get everything used or get hand-me-downs, but who says they'll all be the same size/season/gender?  And like someone said before, eventually they'll all need their own beds and dressers
  • College expenses - if you plan on paying for any of your children's college expenses, adding another kid could cost you serious money in 18 short years

 

 

I'm sure there's more, but all that to say that if your husband's concern with more kids is that he doesn't want to feel pressured to work for money rather than his passion, then really there's nothing you can do that won't make him miserable that will change his mind.  I hope you can find happiness in your family as is (or that you really do win the lottery!!)

post #22 of 27

When my kids were 1 and 3 and we were both working and just barely surviving the day to day demands there was NO WAY I was ready to even begin considering a third and I was pretty sure I was done. I have since totally changed my mind, and find myself constantly thinking about all aspects of having a third (being pregnant, having toddler on the sidelines with me at soccer practice, postponing my career/ education goals just when my current kids are old enough for me to re-embrace those goals more easily, how we would rearrange our little house to fit another person, how I'd arrange the carseats, what I'd name the kid, having three adult kids home for the holidays, having a 6 year old when our current two are 12 and 14, what I would do differently/ the same, etc.). Rationally, a third makes no sense for us ($, space, $, geography, $), but it is where my heart is (or maybe just biology?) right now. My DH is so not on the same page. The compromise at this point has been for him to delay vasectomy and me to consider another IUD (ug!) so we don't rush deciding. If we do have another I'd love for it to be soon to minimize already large age gap, but not at the expense of talking DH into something he is not ready to jump into 'cause that might totally come back to haunt us when we are maxed out and sleep deprived. At the same time I don't want to delay the choice until it is not longer an option physically... 

 

Bottom line: if I changed my mind, anyone might, but not because anyone else says so :)

 

You may also find helpful threads on the family planning page.

post #23 of 27
Thread Starter 

 

OP here. I am loving all the replies but just for clarification, I am not a SAHM and would not become one if we had more children. (I'm not sure how anyone got that idea given that this is the Working Parent forum and I said nothing about staying home.) I make considerably more money than my husband does and have actually supported him financially at times during our marriage, including when I was a student with a newborn baby (off my savings). I also do considerably more childcare and housework. So this wasn't really an equity question because the two of us already agree that I bear the far heavier load and have for years. (Don't worry, he has other fantastic qualities besides paychecks and housecleaning skills ; ) In fact, I'm willing to be the sole breadwinner in the family, but more kids would still require more time and energy from my husband than sticking with our current 2. And that's what he's having trouble with, even though more kids will actually cost me far more in terms of time and money than him. In fact, one of the bargains we have discussed is him quitting working entirely in return for me getting another child. Honestly, as long as I'm around, the man is comfortably financially set. He has never and never will need to support me financially for a day in his life.

 

And I obviously would not get pregnant against his wishes. I don't see my marriage in any jeopardy, I was just curious what other working moms' experience was of what seems to be a common situation of dads preferring fewer kids than moms prefer.

 

However, since originally creating this post, I am actually beginning to feel less obsessed with having more and appreciating the merits of sticking with 2. 

 

Quote:
Originally Posted by zinemama View Post

OP, I think you need to listen really, really carefully to what your dh is saying.

If you are home with the kids and he is working a job, you are both working, of course. But the pressure on him, as the breadwinner, is a whole different ball of wax than the pressure on you, with the luxury of staying home (and I say this as a sahm). Perhaps it would be different if your dh loved his job and felt fulfilled by it. But he doesn't. He hates working for money. He has a dream to do something different. If you were to have two more kids, what would that condemn him to? Working more for more money. Because, as pp have pointed out, it costs a whole heck of a lot more to raise four kids than two.

Think about that. Think about whether two theoretical kids - when you already have two - are worth in effect forcing your husband to keep doing something he doesn't want to do. How's that going to be for your marriage? I would forsee an awful lot of bitterness on his part and guilt on yours. Sometimes you have to give up something you want for the sake of something else - your marriage, in this case. I think this is one of those times.

My advice: drop the subject altogether. It's possible he will independently decide he'd like another couple of kids. But if I were you, I wouldn't count on it.
 
post #24 of 27

OP - thanks for coming back!  Sorry that sometimes threads take on a life of their own :)  Glad to hear you may be rethinking, but also glad to hear that you are in a different position that some of us thought!  Best of luck to you.

post #25 of 27
Thread Starter 

:)

post #26 of 27
OP, sorry for assuming you were a sahm! To be honest, I didn't even notice which forum this was in, just the subject of your post. Because, as you might infer from my response, I have some experience being in your shoes.
post #27 of 27
Thread Starter 

No worries. Thanks for checking in :) Your thoughts make a lot of sense though.

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