NO.

I recognize that in some cases it may be necessary for both of you to work outside the home. However, in many cases it is not. Sometimes it seems both husband and wife are supporting a lifestyle which is not big enough for them and a child.

I think there are better things to sacrifice. Perhaps if Beautiful and I both worked outside the home, we too could have cool toys. But the harm inflicted on our children by our absence is not worth the cost. We saw this when we were building our house and the kids were left to tend each other nightly for four hours or so. It was hardest on the youngest ones.

We do not make a ton of money. We just have to live on what I earn. The last time Beautiful worked outside the home was just before our first child was born. My first job out of school earned me $27,000 a year, less than 15 years ago. Nowadays I make a better income, but we’re not rich. For us, the sacrifice of goodies is worth the deep satisfaction of a happy family.

What about the kids? Don’t they suffer without the latest trinkets?

Our kids are at the top of their classes. They are happy, healthy, adventurous sorts who make friends quickly and stand for their beliefs. If you don’t believe me, ask their teachers. Every one of them in school has learned to read at age 4. Our six-year old is starting on Harry Potter #3. Our nine-year-old reads at a grade 13 level. They play the piano, the clarinet, the saxophone. They sled down the driveway at breakneck speeds. They act as voice in family prayer and read their scriptures daily. They ski and hike and toss firewood with Dad, and cook and sweep with Mom, and change their baby brother’s diapers, and beat each other at checkers, and dance with abandon to loud disco music with Dad and the dogs. Do they know the latest music, movies, or TV shows? No.

Do they care? The evidence is against it.