my first Q & A
Courtney has inspired this post...Q & A!
She said, "I have a topic to propose to you: how his work schedule affects your job and/or childcare options and/or plans with friends. For work, do you have to avoid travel or working long hours b/c he's out of town so much or his out-of-town times are unknown far in advance? Certainly it's hard for all dual-career families to balance one spouse's travel with another's, but there are aspects of airline pilots schedules that take that to an extreme. Don't even get me started on reserve schedules"
So, let's break it down:
How his work schedule affects your job and/or childcare options and/or plans with friends?
- regarding childcare, the kids go three days a week and we have been doing this from day 1. I have personal reasons for choosing a Day Care Center over an at-home provider, so finding a center that was flexible was necessary. If we need to swap out a day here or there, our center is more than accommodating.
As for plans with friends, well the first words out of my mouth are usually "well, let me look to see what Steve's schedule is." Now, there are some days of the week that Steve usually has off, so I can plan outings with friends based on that. Family knows that Steve's schedule comes out on the 20th, so they know not to even start talking about planning things until the 20th.
For work, do you have to avoid travel or working long hours b/c he's out of town so much or his out-of-town times are unknown far in advance?
I work Monday-Thursday, 8:30a - 3:30p. My work really is vanilla when it comes to scheduling, so those hours are pretty much a given. Now, if I have to stay over a bit, the daycare is open until 6p so I am covered.
There are a handful of times that I have to travel for work, and when I do I have my in-laws "on standby" for those days until Steve gets his schedule that month. If Steve works, grandparents will watch. If Steve is home, then he watches the kids.
And let me just say that I don't know if I could handle reserve anymore! Steve wasn't on reserve too long this last time, and I don't remember much of it. It is always the nasty stuff we remove from our memories. Let's hope we never have to deal with that again!
Thanks for your questions Courtney!
She said, "I have a topic to propose to you: how his work schedule affects your job and/or childcare options and/or plans with friends. For work, do you have to avoid travel or working long hours b/c he's out of town so much or his out-of-town times are unknown far in advance? Certainly it's hard for all dual-career families to balance one spouse's travel with another's, but there are aspects of airline pilots schedules that take that to an extreme. Don't even get me started on reserve schedules"
So, let's break it down:
How his work schedule affects your job and/or childcare options and/or plans with friends?
- regarding childcare, the kids go three days a week and we have been doing this from day 1. I have personal reasons for choosing a Day Care Center over an at-home provider, so finding a center that was flexible was necessary. If we need to swap out a day here or there, our center is more than accommodating.
As for plans with friends, well the first words out of my mouth are usually "well, let me look to see what Steve's schedule is." Now, there are some days of the week that Steve usually has off, so I can plan outings with friends based on that. Family knows that Steve's schedule comes out on the 20th, so they know not to even start talking about planning things until the 20th.
For work, do you have to avoid travel or working long hours b/c he's out of town so much or his out-of-town times are unknown far in advance?
I work Monday-Thursday, 8:30a - 3:30p. My work really is vanilla when it comes to scheduling, so those hours are pretty much a given. Now, if I have to stay over a bit, the daycare is open until 6p so I am covered.
There are a handful of times that I have to travel for work, and when I do I have my in-laws "on standby" for those days until Steve gets his schedule that month. If Steve works, grandparents will watch. If Steve is home, then he watches the kids.
And let me just say that I don't know if I could handle reserve anymore! Steve wasn't on reserve too long this last time, and I don't remember much of it. It is always the nasty stuff we remove from our memories. Let's hope we never have to deal with that again!
Thanks for your questions Courtney!
Wow, I feel so special! This topic has been on my mind recently when my work has given me opportunities (some might call them "demands") to travel. We don't have family local; we do have a great daytime caregiver; and we are probably going to have to figure out the rest soon enough. I have great friends (other moms of twins) but will avoid leaning on them for childcare help unless I have to.
ReplyDeleteThanks!