11.03.2008

Well I remembered the camera today when I came to the computer lab and set aside a few minutes for a little blogging....lucky readers! I made pirate costumes for Halloween - I was pretty pleased with how they turned out, although I think that Maiby's was GREAT, if I do say so myself. She wasn't the biggest fan of the hat or bandana, so they were basically picture props. We trick-or-treated at the ward party and then went to Papa Smurf's for free mini pizzas on Halloween. It was pretty fun. I also made a stroller cover that was Maiby's 'ship', but forgot to take a picture of her in it, so I haven't put all the Halloween things away yet until I do. I think the cover was my favorite thing, although being able to strap Maiby in for the trick-or-treating was really really nice. She wasn't so sure about it at first and just gave people funny looks when they tried to give her the treats, but after a while she would hold one in each hand.







On Sunday we had dinner in Lewiston at James' parents house; when Grandma was cooking, Maiby knew it was almost time for her to eat, so she got in the chair even though it wasn't anywhere near the food. She is pretty silly.


One final thing I wanted to say - please tell me if you agree or disagree with my opinion. I was looking at a magazine website the other day for something and they had a quick poll. It was asking whether or not stay-at-home parents should receive a monthly check from the government to cover the costs associated with child care. I voted NO, because that is CRAZY!!!! People should not be paid to spend time with their own children!!! It is not babysitting when the kid is yours, and being a stay-at-home parent is not something that is forced upon you; I realize that it is a financial hardship and especially difficult because there is generally only one income, but that does not mean that other people's tax money should be given to you for spending time with your kids!

2 comments:

Sun said...

First of all...very cute pirates!

Your last question is interesting.
I think you have to ask yourself a couple of questions.

How much do you value the traditional family setup, i.e. dad working, mom stays at home?

I do think this is the ideal family setup. How many times have we been counseled that if it is possible then the mother should stay home and focus on rearing their children? In today's economy it's becoming more and more difficult to make it work financially with only one income and as a result more women with young children are required to enter the work force. I'm definitely a feminist and believe that women should have the choice to either work outside the home or stay home but staying at home is becoming less of a choice and more of a requirement. Would more women be choosing to stay at home if the government made it financially viable for them to do so? I think more women would, especially when their kids are really young.


Is the work done by a stay at home parent equal value to work done outside of home?

I've done both and they're both really difficult. Working outside the home doesn't take away any of the responsibilities that come with being a mother but it did give me a nice mental break and the opportunity to interact with other adults. I think being a full time stay at home mom is more stressful and it's easy for me to feel like I lose my personal identity when every minute of the day is spent thinking about and taking care of the kids. So I think they're fairly equal.

Is it more cost effective for governments to subsidize stay at home parenting as opposed to outside child care?

When women find it necessary to work outside the home there is substantial child care costs which the government may subsidize. I don't have any hard numbers but off the top of my head it seems like it would be less of a burden on the government to pay mothers a small amount to stay home then to pay an outside childcare provider.
And while we're on this topic, is it discrimination against single income families for the government to help pay for childcare for double income families and not pay for the same type of care that one parent of a single income family is providing? Hmmm....I'll have to think about that more.

So my big drawn out answer is that YES I support subsidizing stay at home parents.

tonksfam said...

I completely agree. The only thing I would like to see change is my obligation to put "unemployed" on any form I fill out. I am employed! I may not get a W-2 or 401K, but I work longer hours than women who have a career. I just feel like the "unemployed" status undermines the importance of the work of raising children, but I need no paycheck. The benefits of being with my kids is pay enough :)