Children Care

[Franconicus]

I know that some of the members are parents. How do you do it? How long does the mother or father stay at home to take care about the kid? What is typical in your country?

[English assassin]

Being a parent? You just do it. At one and the same time its quite difficult and not difficult at all.

As for your specific question, there is probably no typical length of time for one parent (ie the mother in practice) to stay at home. A woman has the right to return to her old job after anything up to a year's maternity leave, but the second six months are unpaid (and part of the first six months are not generously paid) so if you are dependent on two wages it would be usual to go back to work after six months.

If not, its horses for courses. Once the youngest child starts school (age 5) would probably be the next "usual" time but it all depends on a lot of variables like childcare and personal finances and attitudes.

[IliaDN]

I know that some of the members are parents. How do you do it? How long does the mother or father stay at home to take care about the kid? What is typical in your country?
I am not anyone's father ( at least I don't know it ), but in my country it is normal to take at least a half-year vacation for a women after the child is born ( normaally one year vacation )
After the ceratain period of time grannies take care of children, while parents are at work.

[doc_bean]

It really depends on the circumstances. Usually the mother takes some time of after childbirth. The most practical time to start working again is when the child is about 3-3.5 years old, since kindergarten starts then. If a woman wants to work before that time (which often happens) they can use daycare centers, or just drop the kids of at the grandparents (this really depends on the grandparents).

[Franconicus]

In Germany you can have a 3 years brake. The employer has to give you a job after this. The break can be taken by father or mother or they can share it. Normally the man makes more money so the woman stays at home.

Many women do not want to stay at home for long. Some friends of my wife started working very early even thogh some of them spend more money in children care then they earned. Strange behavior. My older daughter is 21 months now and my wife already feels the need to justify that she is still at home. Now that we have the second baby this problem is solved, at least for the moment.

I know that staying at home to raise the children is a hard and sometimes boring and frustrating job. But isn't it one of the most important and respectful ones?