I was reading the thread that talked about moms feeling guilty about working and putting their children in daycare. I don't have children, but I hope that my mom will be able to keep my children if I ever have any. But I thought it would be interesting to see how many of our moms stayed home with us. I think that today more moms do work than when we were small.

I thought i did a poll.. but guess not.

My mom stayed home until I was in 5th grade.

My mother always worked. I was kept by my grandmother, my aunt, the neighbors, and starting at age twelve, I kept my 10 year old sister and my 3 year old brother.

There were four kids in my family. My mom didn't work until I was in 6th grade-----but can you imagine the cost of day care for four kids? It was cheaper to stay home. And of course, back in the dark ages, when I was a kid, most moms stayed home.

My mom didn't start working until I was in the third grade. I usually stayed with a friend and didn't have to go to daycare.

While living in NC, my mom didn't work. When my dad transferred to FL. she went to work helping him in the office. Once we returned to NC she stayed home until we all started school and then she went back to work. The time frame from FL to NC was about a year so I only remember her staying home for a short time.


Maria Caldwell

After I thought about working while Morgan was small, I could not believe that I left out one major detail. I was fortunate enough that my mom did keep Morgan until she was two. So she did get a lot of the same attention I got. When my grandmother developed Alzheimer's, I then had to put her in Abernethy CDC. It was earlier than I would have liked too, but it did help prepare her for school where I did not have the time. I guess my quilt is that someone else saw Morgan more during those crucial years than I did.

My mother worked third shift until my brother and I eached middle school. She was always there for us when we were sick, and for school programs, etc. My dad worked during the day. I can remember several times when I was sick and my dad had to take care of me, but he did not do a good job. That was the only draw back from mom working at night. She always made sure that we had everything that we needed for school and was always there for us.

My mom stayed home until I was in 3rd grade and my brohter was in 1st grade. Her schedule allowed her to be home when we got home from school. So, really my brother and I did not stay home by ourselves until I was in middle school.

Renee

I come from a large family of 5 girls and 4 boys. As far as I can remember, my mother stayed home not by choice but out of necessity.

My mom worked for Princess House for nineteen years, this was through my Junior year in High School. Pretty much you are self employeed and can set your own hours while you work out of your home. So she was home with me and my brother, my whole school life, and occasionally she would go out to do a show at night but was only gone for a couple of hours. It was nice to always have her at home.

My mom only stayed home with me through her maternity leave. When she went back to work and I stayed with a friend and her two sons for a while. Then I stayed with my aunt and her 6 kids for a while. Once I started school I stayed with my Grandmother until I got in high school (this was right beside my aunt's house with the 6 kids).

Kellie,
In this respect, my background is similar to Penny's. There were four children in my family, and the days of my childhood qualify for "Once upon a time." At any rate, my mom tried each of these options: stay at home, work part time, or work evenings while Dad was at home. For most of our young years she stayed home, as did many mothers of that generation.

Darla

My mom stayed at home with me and my sister unitl I was in 8th grade. Then she went to work for House of Loyd and sold their merchandise (this is a lot like Princess House). She was able to set her own hours so it was pretty much like she wasn't working except when she went to conduct a party in the evenings.

My mom went back to work when I was only two weeks old, but I was fortunate enough to have my dad's aunt keep me. She was wonderful. She also kept some of her grandchildren and she treated me just like one of them. My mom stopped working when I was in fifth grade and hasn't worked since then.

My mom stayed home with me until I was in kindergarten. I had a hard time leaving her when I first started school. I had to work when my son was a baby. I didn't have a choice. He is so much more independent than I was at his age. I think there are both pros and cons to being a stay-home mom.

My mom was only able to stay home with me for 6 weeks and then it was back to work but I had good babysitters that were close to my family. In the 1970's most mom's had started the "working era" and this was pretty common among my friends and community.

My mom stayed home with her 4 children. When I was in high school, she went back to school and is now working as a lab technician. Looking back, I am so glad she decided to stay home with us.

My mom worked 3rd shift while I was small and through middle school. She started 1st shift when I reached high school. I can't ever remember a time when my mom wasn't working, except when she had to have several surgeries. (she had cancer at an early age) I was practically raised by my aunt who lived with us while she attended high school. I do remember something so vividly though, I NEVER remember my parents asking me about my homework, PTO, or anything relating to school.

My mom stayed at home until I entered kindergarten. She was my playmate and my best friend. She then moved from the business world that she was in before I was born, and then entered the school system when I entered kindergarten.