What do you think about stay at home dads? Is that 'too progressive?' Is the mother better suited at staying home/raising children or is it a job the father can properly do, while the mother works?

As a man, would you be willing to stay at home, assumming your wife could earn a similar living?

As a woman, would you want a man to stay at home, while you worked?

I think either parent is just as capable of staying home and being the primary caregiver. As long as all involved are happy, and it suits their lifestyle, then I say, absolutely, dads can do it just as well as mums. :)

I think stay at home dads are totally acceptable, but then again I probably think that cuz my dad was one. My mom works the 9-5 and my dad is a musician so it worked out for my family. Granted it was a little weird that my dad was the only guy in a sea of moms come time to drive for a field trip, but my friends didn't seem to mind in elementary school. In fact mine was considered one of the cooler minivans. hehe.....

I enjoyed having my dad around all the time. I think he played a major part in educating me about the world. He taught me to be an open-minded yet opinionated individual. He is extremely intelligent and worldly and it was great to learn life lessons from him as a kid. As a result I have a really close relationship from my father. My tense relationship with my mother might also be a result of that set up, but it'll work out someday. I wouldn't trade my friendship with my father for anything.

As a young woman looking for a career in my future I don't really see 'stay-at-home-mom' in my path and I don't think I would be very good at staying home all day and taking care of the kids, but who knows what the future will bring. I think parenting responsibilities should be as equal as possible, but maybe that's not always the case because of circumstances. I haven't really thought about that too much yet.

I see no problem with stay at home dads :) I wish my dad would've been around more growing up :(

Blondie, I think our fathers are fairly similar :hmm:

The problem with the title "stay at home dad/mom" is that it seems to imply an inflexible, and overwhelmingly static position. If you are a stay at home parent, it is assumed that this is the only thing worthwhile that you will accomplish, and that you will never trade off with your significant other - to take turns being the stay at home parent.

My father, while taking care of me full-time, developped several rewarding careers to garnish the job of being a stay at home parent. He is a published poet, a web developper, a translater (English-French), and a semi-professional inline speedskater.

Our society has spent significant cultural energy weakening the previously favourable status of the home-parent over the past few years - I doubt very much that many men posting in this thread will say that they would agree to be a stay at home father.

That said, I would gladly agree to be a stay at home father, but only so long as it was assumed that I would not bear the sole burden of filial reponsibility.

I don't support stay at home Dads. I think there is more to work than money. I confess I lose respect for men who don't work and stay at home. I do support stay at home Moms. Kids need their Mommy around.

:|...I should just put "what Miscreant said" in my sig. It'd make things easier.

Originally posted by jojo
Kids need their Mommy around.

I didn't, and I don't think I turned out any better or worse because of it - and I challenge you to prove otherwise ;)


My mom brought home the bacon.

Originally posted by jojo
I think there is more to work than money.
Then why deprive the women of the benefits men reap from work? If it's not about the money, what is it about?
I confess I lose respect for men who don't work and stay at home. I do support stay at home Moms. Kids need their Mommy around.
You lose respect for men who feel that the women they are with can make enough money that they do not need to support the income with a full-time job and can devote themselves to staying home and raising their children? That no makey sense, hombre.

And as for kids "needing their moms," I disagree wholeheartedly. I find that it is best when a balance is present of both maternal and paternal influences, but perfectly balanced children are often produced from homes with either single fathers, divorced parents, and even homes with both parents working full time and a nanny. Kids don't need their mommy, but they are aided by maternal influences as well as paternal ones.

Men are perfectly capable of raising children. Once my girlfriend/future wife gets her career of the ground I might have to stay at home to raise our children. Which I dont mind at all. I think it would be a blast raising a kid. After all, Im a big kid myself. :)

While I'm at home I can still build web pages and computers so I guess it would all work out.

My brother inlaw is essentially a stay at home dad. He's reduced his work load and switched his schedule so that one of the parents is always home with their toddler. My sister has better pay and better benefits, not to mention three months off each year. I don't think it's a bad system. The baby has a HUGE vocabulary compared to other children her age. She's pretty much potty training herself at 19 months.

I think it's a good setup. It saves them paying for a babysitter, and she gets to spend a lot of time with her parents. When they want to go out, my sister and I babysit her instead of paying a neighbor kid to do it.

Originally posted by jojo
I don't support stay at home Dads. I think there is more to work than money. I confess I lose respect for men who don't work and stay at home. I do support stay at home Moms. Kids need their Mommy around.

Kids don't need their mommy they need love and proper nurting. My mom was a stay at home mom, so i had my mommy but she was so freaking self centered that she provided just the basics for what we needed and didn't even want to get out of bed to do anything else for us. Also, if my dad would have been more present in my life i think i would have benefited so much more because he actually thinks for himself and could have taught me many things. He did teach me some things but since he was the worker, and boy did he work, he taught me things like the couple of days a year that he would really spend with me or would feel like dealing with his children. Anyways, my point is that the sex of the parent doesn't matter at all. It's the character of the person raising you.

Originally posted by Manu
What do you think about stay at home dads? Is that 'too progressive?' Is the mother better suited at staying home/raising children or is it a job the father can properly do, while the mother works?

As a man, would you be willing to stay at home, assumming your wife could earn a similar living?

As a woman, would you want a man to stay at home, while you worked?
I don't have a problem with it. I think its great. Problem is that women tend not to earn as much as men. At least none of the women I was married to.

Originally posted by Criminal

I don't have a problem with it. I think its great. Problem is that women tend not to earn as much as men. At least none of the women I was married to.

That's not going to be a problem for me! I'm a theatre major, and the women I'm interested in tend to be business majors, etc. She'll probably wind up making a whole lot more than me.

I am a stay-at-home father. While it's as rewarding as it is stressful, my wife would do a "better" job. Of course any good parent is better than day-care...but women bring a quality that is not in the forefront of a man's behaviour.

I've stayed with my children for 6+ years now. I deal with father's who do that same as I. Of course it's worth it, but far more than a man might imagine is needed to keep your sanity.