Getting by on one income – the tradeoff for family life | Mar 16th 2008
Sometimes I think about what my life would be like if my husband and I both worked outside the home and made consistent salaries, with full benefits and a steady chunk of income set aside for a 401(k). It’s tempting to daydream about that path, and how much greener the grass could be, when money is tight.
But I’ve been down that road before, when my oldest daughter was a year old. Back then my work weeks were dominated by hectic commuting, tearful good-byes, exhaustion and the ever-present feeling that I was somehow selling my both my child and my colleagues short.
The current arrangement, e.g., me working full-time and my husband extremely part-time – both of us from home, is a much happier one than my previous life as a harried, commuting, basket case.
But the flip side is that we’re constantly struggling to survive and thrive on what amounts to one income. Outwardly we have the illusion of success. We have ipods, cell phones, video games and high speed Internet access. We send our oldest child to private school because of her atrocious experience at public school, and we own more than one computer.
On the flip side we only have one decent car, our refrigerator is rarely full and we rely on credit cards way more often than we should. Some months are so tight that spending an extra $10.00 on a toy or book is a big decision.
It seems absurd when I think about it. We’re caught in a middle class paradox of creature comforts and luxuries on one hand, and impending financial disaster on the other. I don’t think two incomes is the solution right now. My earning potential is too great compared with my husband’s. The trick is finding steady work.
In the meantime, we’re all learning to be happier with less of just about everything. Getting rid of cable (an $80/month bill), shopping for food more frugally (which saves us an estimated $150-$200/month) and keeping the heat down during the day (even though we’re home) are just a few ways we’ve become more efficient as a family.
We live with less because of the decisions we’ve made but we’ve also gained a lot from the lifestyle we’ve chosen. Above all, we have a strong sense of family, and that means a lot more than money.
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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, February 23, 2008 under the title, “Preferred work style takes sacrifice”