After the first child my wife took five months’ maternity leave before working full-time again. The child was looked after in a nursery. After the second child she was able to stay at home for 12 months before working full-time again for three years. Both children were in a day care centre. After the changes with the kids being 8 and 4 she got a part-time job and worked part-time until early retirement.
That sounds a bit cold, were the Children “Seen but not Heard”. 
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I always worked either for myself or other people…I was lucky with employers I always managed to get jobs where they allowed me to put the kids first by that I mean picking them up from school working from home when they were poorly that sort of thing
I retired aged 55 after selling my business but I got bored and agreed to help cover a sabbatical in the civil service…initially it was supposed to be 6 months but it extended to three years then I retired for good…well I sort of retired but still renovated houses and still do.
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At work, yes I was, but at home I was and still am a completely different person who wears his heart on his sleeve. I’ve always shared my feelings with my blondie and she with me. One hurts, then we both do as team to get the other through whatever the ‘problem’ was; although it seldom comes to that as we’re 100% open with each other coz that’s the way we are and always have been.
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No, not if both are attuned to each other.
So now, in this Woke World we are not able to use terms like My Wife, My Son, My Daughter?
Even when the traditional wedding vow said "I call upon these persons, here present, to witness that I (your full name) do take thee (your partner’s full name) to be my lawful wedded wife/husband.
“My” doesn’t always mean ownership!
You should see how many people live down My Street!
Get a life! (wife)
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Not necessarily. It also expresses a(n unspecified) relationship.
We married back in 1982, had two girls one in 1990, the other 1992, up until the second reached school age the wife stayed home and looked after them, I was doing 4 on4 off shifts so plenty of time to help out, once the youngest started school the wife worked in a supermarket doing weekend evenings/nights stock filling at first with the MIL baby sitting if I wasn’t home , she’s had various jobs since and has contributed to no small part into where we are both taking early retirement at Christmas. ( I’ve been asked to name a price to stay, 46+ yrs of experience and knowledge doesn’t want to be lost ) thats another story.
I had to go back to work as we just wanted to have our own House…
My Sister who lived above us in the converted old house …77a and 77b Wellesley Road, Croydon. was 5 guinea’s each week, she paid 4… We would turn up at the Oddfellows Meeting Place…they had the main front of the building…with the Rent each week at a dead cert time or else… and we just thought,. …this is a nice flat and we have made it a very decent home…but it was not our home…
So that was the start of my working regardless. My Sister was a stay at home Mum as her Husband had gained a well paid job with the Prudential Insurance Company…Tables did turn though when we took on through his advice of a Insurance Policy that we could have got the same elsewhere a lot cheaper…
We did fall out…bigtime over that and more things that occurred.
My sister did divorce him and fell in love again with a Guitar Teacher at the evening school she was attending…Yes she got extra tuition,haha
A lot of luck when you first get together with somebody. It never occurred to me to think anything but good of the future. We just knew we loved each other and I could be in charge of the finances
…tis and is true to this day…
although it is not exactly true just a stand for the under dog in some females…we joke more than fight…
I try to be a free person likewise my husband does…but it is all about love and understanding…give and take…step back and think…look at your mistakes and correct what you can…I have faults he has faults …so don’t expect all to be a bed of roses…I could never imagine my life without him.
He is the same and he crys and shows his emotions and is certainly no whimp for it…
p.s.
We both retired in the Late 90’s so have had lots and lots of time together…
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Why ? no harm came to them.
Spitty is getting Spiteful again…tell him…on yer bike…put back your stabilisers… 
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Yer not allowed to refer to the other half as “The Wife”, she My Wife, well, not literally of course. 
saved by my lunch… 
meet the other half is so annoying though…I am called by my name except I always say my Husband on here
…not something I say in real speech
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Referring to me?
Well, if it sounds cold, it basically was the political system that was cold. Nonetheless, millions of women did exactly the same working full-time throughout their professional career because there was hardly any alternative under the circumstances. The effect seen today is that the majority of women in this part of the country are getting higher (state) pensions (not total income and wealth, though) than their sisters in the western part and sometimes even more than men living in the western part which enables them to lead an independent life on their own money.
Nowadays it is even more important for women not to stay at home long because if there’s a divorce, they cannot rely on their ex to pay maintenance for many years or even for the rest of their working life as husband were obliged to in the past.
We got married in 1971, the first baby came along at the end of 1972, and the second one in 1974. I stayed home with them until the youngest started school. Then, because Mr B’s working hours meant he could pick them up from school each day, I went back to work full-time, dropping them off at school before catching the bus to work.
It worked really well, especially when, after I’d been there for a few months, a term-time only position became available and I jumped at it! I did have to work through the half term breaks, but either the PiL stayed the week to look after the children, or we took them to stay with them for the week. Later, when the eldest was old enough to be left the few hours till has dad came home, I would take the younger one to work with me. Once they were both well into their teens I took a 52 week contract again.
Note: see, I just say ‘Mr B’, thus avoiding the ‘better half, other half, my husband’ issue 
. (Why does no-one ever say ‘the husband’? Think I might start that trend 
)
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I have always worked
I was a Ceramic Modeller when Daniel was born. I was paid by “piece” at the workshop so I could work flexi-time and still earn a decent salary. That worked great until he started school aged 3 (cruel in Wales aren’t we!?!!!) but my parents were local and retired and I couldnt have done it without their willing support.
When Daniel was at school I took 9 months off to study for my PGCE and got my first teaching job immediately. Within a year Aidan had arrived! I took the Statutory 4 months full- pay Maternity Allowance after his arrival. This time around we paid my OH’s sister (who was a full-time mum herself) to do the child minding.
14 months after Aidan, our best unplanned surprise came in the shape of our daughter Rhoslyn! I took the mini-pill and 6 months off that time to spend more time with Aidan too. Then I went back to the full time teaching job with SIL taking on child minding duties again.
Training as a teacher was the best move I made. OH and I struggled financially for that year and I had to be so disciplined with Uni work at night but it was so worth it. Having Teacher hours and holidays meant that we never had to worry about child minding again. My parents loved picking them up from school, or just having them round for an hour or so, as they got older.
I have been blessed I know, lots of other working mums don’t have that kind of support network.
And when I gaze in admiration at the 3 kind, loving, beautiful and well-adjusted humans we brought up I count all my lucky stars, every day x
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I don’t know how to put anything on here, I’ve thought about it before.
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