I recently read this article online: click here 91% of working moms are depressed. Well, in today's work place that's no surprise. Fact is, the work place is simply NOT conducive to mom's. Standards are set so high, you are expected to be at peak productivity 100% of the time, and most places are not willing to do a flexible schedule. Take for instance my job. I get 10 days off in a year.
10 days That simply is not enough. Funny thing is, if I had more time off to spend bonding with my son, when I did spend time at work I would most definitely be more productive- instead of sitting at work, staring at the screen wondering about what David was doing. I should have gone into teaching- teachers are the only profession I know that only have to work (when you add up all their time off) approximately 9 months out of 12. But even now, the requirements that they are putting on teachers is unreal. How do people do it? How can someone manage to do everything? Well, I'll tell you. I do so many things that I don't do any of them well. Nope. My house is always a mess. I'm not doing great at work. The list goes on.
All this to say, that I think there needs to be a culture change in how our (USA) big corporations relate to and treat working mom's. Desperately.
Why do I work? To bring home the bacon, of course. Funny, but true. We are seriously trying to pay down some debt. The main culprits: 1 car loan, my student loans, and 1 2nd mortgage. In hindsight, we were in no position to buy a house when we did. However, I was pregnant and nesting and wanted a home- and Zach did too. If we were to try to get a mortgage right now there would be no way we'd get one. You see, typically mortgages are for 80% of a home's value. You have to put down 20% as a down payment. Well, we had nothing for a down payment. So, we took out a standard, 30-year fixed rate, mortgage for 80% home. Then we took out a loan for our down payment since we had none- also known as a second mortgage for the other 20% of the home. Because 2nd mortgages are more risky for banks they have much higher interest rates. This loan is killing us! And, in today's market, they don't even give these loans out anymore. Lesson learned- don't buy a home until you have a down payment- wait to have kids for several years so that you are able to save for this. Ok, enough financial talk for now.
5 comments:
it amazes me how strong and beautiful your family is! i am proud to be a part of it:)
Hey! I love reading your blog! I have to differ on one point though--about waiting to have kids. Owning a home is not a requirement, many people (like my parents) rent a home and it works great.
God's timing is perfect...I don't think someone should wait several years for kids just to have a downpayment.
Julia- Right. I totally agree. I guess I should specifiy my opinion: either don't buy and have kids (hence rent) or, if you just have to buy, wait until you can save more than we did.
I think we made the same mistake- buying too quickly- lucky for us though, we only have one loan- slightly higher intrest rate at 6.25 percent, but no PMI and no 2nd mortgage.
Amy, Scott and I feel like we bought too quickly as well. I was the same way--had to have a home, and, though I am not working full time, we seriously feel the pressure every week of having absolutely no breathing room in the budget. I read so many blogs now of moms who have multiple kids and are renting while they save up for a down payment. Oh well...I can spend all day thinking, "if only we had done this..."
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