Regardless, we have tried to make the best of the time we do have, spending weekends at the lake or water park and trying our darnedest to get in a dinner or two as a family. Braden's Thomas the Tank Engine birthday party went off without a hitch, and we are slowly but surely getting used to our beyond-busy lives.
Brett and I started talking the other night about how things are going and I, admittedly, had a mini-meltdown. I feel like I never see him and I NEVER see Braden. It seems so unfair to me that I only get to see my son for an hour in the morning (if that) and for an hour 3 nights a week before bed. Other than that, we do get Sundays as a family, but they always go too fast. I know that so many people in the world make it work, and that in the long run Braden will never know I was gone so much, but no matter what he knows, I care, and I want to see my kid!
We started discussing our options when it comes to the next 18 months before I'm done with the working parent/student gig, and what solution would keep us sane. In the end, the only decision that will likely work for us is for me to stay at home with Braden during the day and to go to school at night. I'll have four classes left to take as of January, and I can make it work to take all 4 that semester. If I do that, I'll have the summer off, student teach from September to December and be ready to job search in January of 2012. That gives me 8 months at home with my son and time to unwind before embarking on a new career path. We are still working out the kinks, and will definitely have to adjust our lifestyle, but we think it is worth material sacrifices to preserve our mental and emotional stability.
While I feel selfish for choosing to do this while we have a child to support, I know that we can make it work. I know that we definitely spend more money than necessary, and that many families make it work on much less. Sure, we'll be stuck in our house longer, and we may have to go without a vacation next year, but it's worth it to be together. Sometimes stay-cations are just as good as travelling anyway.
I've still got a good 3-4 months of work minimum ahead of me, so our goal is to maintain on Brett's checks alone until then and to put my entire paycheck into savings. If we can do that, we know we'll be able to make it once I'm not working, which will make the whole process much easier to adjust to. Nothing is definite yet, but I'm not gonna lie- I am super excited if we can make it work. I'm not sure that many people could maintain sanity on my schedule right now, and I'd obviously prefer to lighten the load. Not to mention, I could have the opportunity to really bond with Braden before any other babies grace the Meurer household. In 10 years, I think having that time with him will be worth so much more than the money I would have made in a year.
