If in a family one person stayed at home with the baby and the other worked full time then?

Question

How much housework and childcare would you expect the working person to do?

Answer 1

None, he the husband/boyfriend is bringing in the money for your food etc. You should be looking after the baby, clean the house and cook a meal as well. It is not so difficult. I brought up 3 kids aged 1,2,3 by myself, no servants did the cleaning of the house, the garden, looked after the kids, read to them i did everything and i thought it was just fair as my husband worked long hours to take care of us. I find some mothers very lazy and i would be ashamed to say that i could not manage to look after a tiny baby and clean up as well. I wish you well and this is just my opinion ok:)))

Answer 2

I would expect the person at home to work an equal length day to the person that goes out. So, lets say 9 - 5 for arguments sake. During 9 - 5 the person at home can do housework, shopping and childcare. When the other person comes home in the evening you should share cooking and washing-up and any housework done at the weekend.

Answer 3

Well as a working single mum i would have to say that no matter if it was the man or woman staying at home i would expect the majority of the housework to be done by the stay at home parent as this in reality is their job the same would apply to the childcare,
i would say though that once the other partner is home everything is shared the cooking and cleaning and childcare should be equally shared between the 2.

Answer 4

I suppose in an ideal world it should be 50/50 as being a house 'person' and parent I feel is more than a full time 'job' as it never stops - you can't walk away and close the door on it. So many look down their noses at people who decide to leave work and look after the home and family.This is the situation I was in when I had my first baby (he's 19 now) having worked full time as a nurse up until I was 6 months pregnant. My friends were a bit shocked at my decision to give up work all together but I enjoyed being at home (still do) looking after the kids and house and regarded it as a full-time job in itself. My husband has always taken an active part in looking after the kids (nappy changing, feeding, bathing, getting up in the night etc.). Taking over when he came in from work to let me have a break. I suppose on that side I had/have nothing to moan about. But the housework (apart from occasionally washing up) was and still is my domain. This was a bit annoying when the kids were small but I coped ( you do). Remember it is not the end of the world if the hoovering hasn't been done or the ironing pile resembles Mt Everest. As long as the kids are happy and content that's all that matters.

Answer 5

That happens here, my partner works a full time week and does oncall too, I dont expect him to do any housework through the week or much childcare although he may give baby the last feed when he gets in or read with the 5 yr old, at weekends I do expect a little more although I still dont think he should do everything, at weekends he may help by tidying his room or making a meal for us, I dont really expect him to do washing, ironing or anything like that but thats my choice and I understand why some people would like more help, I think it also depends on the ages of children too, if yours are very young than some help is nice.

Answer 6

This is such a personal question - it would really vary greatly from family to family. I have one friend who is a full-time mother and is expected to do all of the housework and childcare - once in a while, her husband will watch the kids and let her have an hour or two out of the house. I suppose that's an extreme situation. Personally, I expect my husband to help out *some* around the house, but I do feel that since I'm at home full-time, then this is my "job". Housekeeping and childcare is primarily my responsibility - however, he's still expected to take out the trash, care for the lawn, and pick up after himself. He's also great about spending time with our daughter to give me a break when I need it - being a stay-at-home mom certainly isn't the piece of cake that many working parents seem to think that it is!

I think an agreement similar to ours is ideal - where the parent who is at home the most handles as much of the housekeeping as possible, but wherein the working parent isn't opposed to helping as needed either.

Answer 7

I think I'd expect that the stay-at-home person took care of the childcare during the week, including getting up at nights, so that the working partner can have sufficient energy for the job - after all, that brings in the money. Then, from Friday night through to Sunday afternoon, I would share the childcare equally, but Sunday night means that the working partner needs sleep and rest to concentrate on the week ahead.
This probably isn't the answer you're looking for, but if you're going out to work then you need to be on top form - holding down a good job and bringing in money keeps the family solvent!

Answer 8

Firstly, it is essential that the homemaker is given a break from their full time job!!!! The person that works comes home at 5/6 and that's it till the following morning. 40 hours a week is nothing compared to minding a child and running a home!!! Talk to your partner about the issue - set out chores that the working person can do in the evening/at the weekend when they are free. And insist that they spend time playing with their child in the evenings - no point being a single parent now is there, well not if you've got a partner anyway!!! myself and my partner divide things up as evenly as possible and we talk about it. we don't have any children, but we both have full time jobs. i think it's reasonable that if the homemaker puts a dinner on the table for the working person, then the working person should clean up afterwards. In my house the rule is 'you cook, you don't clean'! Also get the working person to maybe do the ironing at the weekend, and take the bins out or something. you need to talk with your partner and discuss what each other hates doing and what you wouldn't mind doing. compromise and speak about the situation without any anger or argument - talk with love and kindness to each other. all you'll be doing is asking each other for help. The homemaker will want some help with their workload and the working person will want to spend more time with their child - everyone should be able to feel like they're winning!!! good luck!

Answer 9

It does depend on how many hours this person works full time it can vary. I wouldn't expect the partner who goes out to work to do many household chores except the rubbish and make dinner once a week but they should spend a couple of hours a night doing the childcare bit, so the at home worker can have a rest. Sometimes it really does depend on how easy the child is to take care of, some babies have regular naps etc others might need constant attention.

Answer 10

The person's #1 job when they stay home is to care for and nurture the children. That is usually a full time job in itself. So then both adults, when at home together, should share the childcare and housework.

Answer 11

I'm not too bothered about my husband not doing housework, but spending time with his daughter is very important. I make him look after her for a couple of hours when he's back from work so I can have some time to myself. He might have been at work all day, but I had a baby on my arm most of the day which is just like full time work. If not more when our baby has a bad day.
I'm sure that's what it's like for most SAHP. I sometimes wish I was the one going to work. But I guess I'd still have to do the housework, being the woman :)