Mom Corps Flexible Fathers - Contest Entry #1
Posted on Tue, Jun 01, 2010 @ 02:38 PM
When my husband and I were getting ready to have our first child back in 2006, I was absolutely aghast at the idea of putting our little baby in childcare so soon after she was born. I needed to return to work in an office setting (not a lot of flexibility for me at that time). But my husband had a very flexible sales position that allowed him to work remotely pretty much whenever he wanted. So he volunteered to stay home with our daughter after I went back to work.
It was such a relief during the months leading up to our daughter's birth, knowing she would be in the care of her parents for at least the first few months of her life. I had 12 weeks with her (mostly spent in that post-newborn haze, but still ...) When the time came for me to go back to the office, my husband took over like a pro. He did his sales job via phone and email during her naps, and occasionally had to put our daughter in the Pack-n-Play in the next room during certain conference calls. I came home every day to a happy baby and a loving husband/father. I could call home whenever I wanted and get an update on my girl. It was wonderful!
By the time she was about 7 months old, we decided it was time to get a little outside help with childcare. She started with one day a week, then two days, at a wonderful babysitter's home. And at 1 year old, she was going full-time to the sitter, while my husband started a new job with more office expectations.
I'll never forget how comforting it was to have that first year of "daddy day care," enabling me to go back to work without being totally racked with guilt or worry. My husband Jay was (and still is) the best!
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Get all the details on the Mom Corps Flexible Fathers contest here.