Question for Moms Who Work Full Time Work Outside the House

Don't have 3 because we can't afford the childcare... Or only one of us working. So, I understand why you're asking this question.

I have two and work full time. We made the choice to stop after two for several reasons. One being that the amount of money I make would not pay for daycare for three LOs even with one in after care. If there were 2 in after school care and one in daycare maybe. The other reason we stopped at two is that between my job and my husband's job juggling two kids was really hard. We found less and less time divided between the two kids.

I work full-time and we could very comfortably afford a third and still clear a lot of my pay (I actually make more than my husband) so it wasn't money that stopped me. Amongst other things, it's the time. I just felt I wouldn't have enough time with all of them. And I'm glad bc I'm finding as they get older, it's actually more complicated. ie: Different activities that are already hard to make as a working mom but it's really important to them that you are there. There's coordinating all these different schedules too and homework to help with. That hasn't entirely kicked in yet for us bc my youngest is in K but it'll start soon. I don't want the minute I get home at 5:00 to be all about homework/errands etc. And if money was tight, it would be really hard to pay for all their activities and then save for college too.

I have 2, and work full time outside the house.
My salary pays for the nanny and my extras/life stuff.
About 1/2 of my paycheck goes to the nanny, the rest goes in my pocket. I'm lucky enough to make very good money in my job.

3 was never a discussion for us. We were always stopping at 2. Given the cost increase for childcare in going from 1-2, going from 2-3 would be affordable for us. We'd be paying about $750/week. (We pay $650/week, now.)

Some of it depends on whether or not you WANT to work, in addition to whether or not it's affordable. For me, I'm just not a SAHM. I'm not fulfilled that way. So I think that as long as it didn't COST us anything to have full time childcare (as long as my salary covers it), I'd keep working, even if I didn't take anything home extra. That's just me.

I work full-time and have 2 kids. There is absolutely no way I'd want a third child while working full time. The childcare costs alone are astronomical with just 2 in after school care. The other thing to think about is, just doing the math, you would have less time with each of your current 2 children if you added a third. Given that you only have so many hours in the week when you're not working, is that fair to your kids? I'm not saying it is or it isn't, but it's just something to think about. For me, I decided it wasn't worth it. 33% less time with each child, plus all costs increasing by 50% (at a minimum - obviously infant care is way more expensive than after school care so costs for the first 5 years would be more like 100% more) just didn't make sense to me.

I have 2. My brother and SIL have 3, with 1 more on the way. We all (all parents in both families) work. My 3 best friends are all working moms with 3 kids each. So yes, I know working parents with more than 2 kids.

I have 1 child in daycare, 1 in aftercare.
My B and SIL have a nanny. They said that with 1 kid, daycare is much less expensive than a nanny; with 2 kids, daycare is just slighly less expensive than a nanny - it's almost break-even actually; but once you get to 3 kids, a nanny is less expensive than daycare for 3. So when you are thinking about what you can afford, make sure you look at all your options.

I know lots of moms that have 3 kids and work outside the home but they either work opposite shifts or have family to help out so they don't have childcare costs.

I work full-time and have 2 kids. We pay for preschool/daycare-its $1250 a month.We have no help, whatsoever, so this makes it hard. Sometimes my parents will babysit on a weekend every month and half or so, but that's all we got. And yes, I do clear money after daycare. I don't know any moms that work full-time and have more than 2 kids. Most people I know have 2 or 1. One has 3 that I know and another has 4 kids, but they both stay home and both have had help from nannies. I have considered 3, but my gut says NO. I am absolutely overwhelemed with 2 and just do no have anymore time to divide. Also, I am more financially secure with 2, I just cannot fathom not being able to do something with my kids because of money. I really do not like having to worry about, do we have enough money? I know it sounds crazy, but my parents always said NO, with anything that had to do with money. I mean I literally went to the movies once in my lifetime with my parents, and that's because it was a 2 for 1 deal. My parents were selfish when I was a youngster, my mom had a third when I was 11, and I was watching a newborn at 11 years old so she could go to the mall without a newborn.....sorry to get off on a tangent here....but I hope you and your hubby can decide on what will be best for the two of you. good luck :)

Personally, I don't know any mom with three working full time either. In fact I don't know many full time working moms! I only have two and have my SIL watch my girls at my home for a little less than what you would pay for home care and we have enough money after childcare. We agreed that we are DONE! FOR US, it would not benefit our family nor the other children if we had more. You have to think about other costs for your children other than childcare...I think parents should save for their children's future and not think just for the now. You could make it work if you wanted, but you have to weigh your options. Everyones situation and INCOME is different :) If you have family who most likely would charge less or nothing, or inexpensive child care it may be possible.

When my older two were little I worked for a while. I pretty much accepted I was working to pay for the preschool. They were both in hybrid preschool that was all day, five days a week.

I only think it makes sense if your kids are getting something from daycare or preschool that they can't get at home.

I only have two kids and don't think we could afford more than that. We finally have them both out of daycare but when we did have them in most of my check when to daycare. It all depends on how much you are willing to cut back on your spending. If I had another one I would have to quit work.

Good luck and God Bless!

I have 2 that require childcare. 2 more that don't.
I have one in school all day and aftercare. I have one in school half a day and daycare.
I do clear a good paycheck, but it's the EXTRA above and beyond necessities that goes to childcare. If I had no childcare I could spend that moeny the way I want.

If you are already cutting it close, think how expensive a newborns childcare is, plus diapers, formula, pediatrician visits and missed work. If you have a 3rd, you may have to be a sahm until the older 2 are in school full time and all you need is aftercare for them and daycare for a toddler.

I'm not a full time working mom now but I was. We were lucky that our hours worked out to where my hubby had the girls in the morning and I had them at night. If we would have had to pay for daycare, we would not have had money left out of my check.

We have 3. Thought we'd only have 2 & then oops. So I work full time, have a wonderful boss & 2 are now in daycare + 1 in after school care. The last 2 are only 15 months apart vs their older brother who is 4 1/2 years older than the 2nd. My husband & my income took care of all of this & then some. But guess what? Economy....my hubbie was laid off from a very stable position. If I didn't have my position with my company, we'd really be in a world of hurt. I'm like MandA M. Not the SAH type. I need the challenges & stress that come along with all of it (home & work). Good luck & you know what? If it happens, you will find a way to make it work. We all do. :-)

I don't have three kids, but the reason is the same problem as you mentioned above. If and when we do decide to have a third, it will only be after the other two are out of daycare or if we have someone to watch them after school.

Can't afford it and we live in a 90K household. I have no idea how some people do it!!

I know you will get responses on here about how you can make all sorts of things work- blah blah blah- but the fact is sometimes you just have to know your limits! If we had a third to care for with daycare or afterschool care, we wouldn't be paying bills somewhere else! We also have CHEAP daycare- but still wouldn't happen!

Good luck! I hope you guys are able to work something out to both get what you want!

I have 3 kids and have worked for 5 years, my youngest is 4. I know more parents with 3 kids that work than don't. You have to plan and budget for it. As they get older, they get cheaper in the daycare world. Right now only one of mine is in daycare part-time. But we had years where all 3 were in full-time care. My sister watched them and did it for a decent price, but not much less than a daycare would have cost. We absolutely clear money after daycare. Now if we had 5 or 6 kids, maybe not...but I know moms like that who work too.

You need to weight the benefits and cost. When I started 5 years ago I only made $30k and barely cleared anything after taxes and childcare, but the raises and promotions I have gotten in the last 5 years are WELL worth it and provide well for my family.

I have also worked full time and raised 2 kiddos who were 5 years apart. We had the kids with a babysitter in our neighborhood. About the same time as the baby started at the babysitter, my son started full day kindergarten, so I never had to pay full time childcare for two. Three kiddos would have been fine for us. My income was sufficient to pay for childcare and provide many extras for our family. If it had been a break-even situation I would have had to seriously think about a few things--how likely is your income level to increase over the years, would you be penalized (having to get re-certified) for taking a break from your job or profession, how old your kiddos are and when the second one would be in school and what type of support system you have from family--any grandparents willing to help with college expenses??) good luck with your decision!

I work FT and have three kids. It is a lot of work but doable. I made a career change so I don't have to work more than 40 hours. I do have a flexible boss so I am in a good position. Luckily we have a neighbor who runs a daycare and that saved us money not to mention it was only for 6 months that we had all three in daycare. Now my daughter is in first grade. Helps a lot. It's hectic and maybe someday I'll get to stay home......Economy please improve...pretty please LOL :)

I have 3 children ages 4-14 and both my husband and I work full time. We are fortunate that my husband, being an IT guy, is able to work 100% from home which meant we did not need childcare and I could have a career.

I am a full-time teacher with three year old twins and a three month old baby. We are fortunate enough that my husband has an evening job and we don't have to pay for childcare. His job is part-time and doesn't pay much, but it is so worth it to know we are raising our children.

I work full time with one child. Never wanted more. I'm not sure why you look at it like your salary is going to childcare but your husband's is supporting the family and is necessary? If he really wants three and the childcare is pricey (which it is), has he considered staying home?

I work full time and have two. I never wanted any more than that. I could afford to have three in care/daycare/aftercare, but of course it would be even more money. There are many other things that we want to do with our kids that are a lot easier and more comfortable with two. I also cannot imagine trying to spread myself between more than two kids!

Not me, but I know a woman who has three (ages 2-8) who makes around $60K per year and whose husband likely makes double that. They did it by getting a live in au pair from Europe every year. I do't think she could have afforded daycare for three, I also know they live a somewhat extravegent lifestyle by some standards, and I think the money she brought home supported that.

I work full time and have 2, we talked about a 3rd but my check covers tuition for both boys and my car payment that is it. We decided that we would like to start traveling in a few years so we are done and super happy with our 2 amazing boys.

I am a fulltime working mom with three kids who are 8, 4, and 2. I have been so fortunate to have my husband's Aunt watch my 2 year old fulltime & my 4 year old partime (she's in preschool) at my house. I also have my mother-in-law pick up my 8 year old from school and keep him until I get off of work and pick him up. I was a SHM for about three years but I did home daycare and I only went back to work a year ago. We are paying our Aunt $640 a month and I am still clearing a decent amount of money. I am very busy especially trying to spend quality time with each child and keeping up with the housework. Overall, I am enjoying working again but I don't think I would be able to without the support of our family.