Father staying home after birth - how long?

John Z

John Z

if you will
Hey there parents. My wife is due in April with our first, and she broached the subject of how much time I'll take off after the birth. She suggested a month, and I made a boo-boo and laughed. :blushing: I was thinking a week, while being more flexible and doing some 4 day work weeks after that or coming home a bit ealier.

I have an office job, and getting the time off won't be a problem. So how long do modern, sensitive fathers take off after their baby arrives? Does the mom enjoy having dad stay home a bit?
 
LovingMother

LovingMother

Brenda you are missed!!!
John Z said:
Hey there parents. My wife is due in April with our first, and she broached the subject of how much time I'll take off after the birth. She suggested a month, and I made a boo-boo and laughed. :blushing: I was thinking a week, while being more flexible and doing some 4 day work weeks after that or coming home a bit ealier.

I have an office job, and getting the time off won't be a problem. So how long do modern, sensitive fathers take off after their baby arrives? Does the mom enjoy having dad stay home a bit?
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wow a month.... :jameo: I would go crazy with hubby home a full month.. :lmao: Ok really... I would say a week or two.. But if you can afford to take a month off well then GO FOR IT!!! :howdy: (Congr)
 
RoseRed

RoseRed

American Beauty
PREMO Member
Check with your company and see what they allow for paternity leave. My husband stayed home for a week, but I also had my Mom and MIL close by to help.
 
C

Club'nBabySeals

Where are my pants?
I'm due in November, and currently my husband is planning to take off two weeks. To be honest, if he were home any longer than that I think I'd be considering where to bury the corpse.
 
Sweet 16

Sweet 16

^^8^^
John Z said:
So how long do modern, sensitive fathers take off after their baby arrives? Does the mom enjoy having dad stay home a bit?
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If she is still feeling the after-effects of childbirth, she will appreciate you doing the cooking and laundry and phone-answering for a little while. After that, you'll be just another mouth to feed as she will have more pressing matters to attend to. If she is nursing, of course you can't help in that department but you can be "on the mid-watch" if she ever gets a chance to sleep. If she bottle-feeds, Hallelujah! Take all the time you want! Honestly though, I don't get it that parents today think the dad needs to stay home for months after the baby is born. It's nice if he can take the time to bond with his baby too, but mom probably won't be as helpless as you -- or she -- thinks she will be. She needs to learn to deal since she most likely will be the one doing the bulk of the diaper-changing, trips to the pediatrician, soccer games, dance classes, etc., etc.

Congrats and good luck on whatever you decide!
 
meangirl

meangirl

Nice lady!
Geek said:
Depending on how labor goes, she might need more than a week to recover.
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Oh come on!

Have we women gone SO far downhill that we need MORE than a week to "recover" from giving birth?! Women used to just drop that baby in the field where they were working...and go on working!
 
M

Mousebaby

Guest
I agree with Geek, it could be a difficult labor and require a C-section therefore she will not feel up to par for at least a couple of weeks after. I had a C-section and NO ONE to help me at all and man I would have killed for the help! If its a regular delivery she will be back to herself in a few days. But she may require you to hang around so she can get some much needed sleep at first. My husband stayed home with me on my 2nd child and 3rd child for 2 weeks. Worked great for us! Hope this helps! Good luck and Congratualtions! :howdy:
 
oldman

oldman

Lobster Land
John Z said:
Hey there parents. My wife is due in April with our first, and she broached the subject of how much time I'll take off after the birth. She suggested a month, and I made a boo-boo and laughed. :blushing: I was thinking a week, while being more flexible and doing some 4 day work weeks after that or coming home a bit ealier.

I have an office job, and getting the time off won't be a problem. So how long do modern, sensitive fathers take off after their baby arrives? Does the mom enjoy having dad stay home a bit?
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John just tell her you'll take a month. Then when you have the opportunity to change a poopy diaper make bad sounds and throw up all over. You'll be back to work within a week and all will be good.
 
vraiblonde

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
I agree with the majority - a week, two weeks tops. Then go back to work and let her get her routine down.

Congrats to all you preggos! :clap:
 
Dougstermd

Dougstermd

ORGASM DONOR
BS Gal said:
Take a week. She'll kill you after that.
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;yeahthat:

my first i stayed home a week but my mil was there so I had to go back. I had planned to take off 6 weeks.

My second we had her over the weekend and I went back to work on tuesday:yay:
 
happyazz

happyazz

Skiing in the clouds
meangirl said:
Oh come on!

Have we women gone SO far downhill that we need MORE than a week to "recover" from giving birth?! Women used to just drop that baby in the field where they were working...and go on working!
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I came home, settled the baby in, took a shower and cleaned the house, did laundry and cooked dinner.

WHAT A BUNCH OF WHIMPS EVERYONE HAS BECOME!! ( NOT INCLUDING THE ONES THAT HAD A "C" SECTION ) MFP
 
B

Bronwyn

Guest
It depends on how the birth goes. If everything is okay, I would say a week is good enough. More imprtant would be how much you help after you go back to work. Take over for a while in the evenings so that she can relax. If I could have wished for anything, I would have wanted my hubby to get up in the middle of the night! :lmao: Even though I was nursing, it would have been nice if he would have got up and brought the baby in to me. Somehow, he always slept on his "good ear." :killingme
 
Geek

Geek

New Member
meangirl said:
Oh come on!

Have we women gone SO far downhill that we need MORE than a week to "recover" from giving birth?! Women used to just drop that baby in the field where they were working...and go on working!
Click to expand...


C-section, complications, etc:shrug: Sometimes you need a while to get over it. If this is their first baby and her hubby can get the time off, I think the more time you get to bond with the baby the better it is for everyone.
 
Ken King

Ken King

A little rusty but not crusty
PREMO Member
The family medical leave act allows up to 12 weeks off following the birth of a child (you can use your vacation, sick leave or leave without pay), nothing says that you have to actually help out. Take the month she wants you to and when she gets tired of you being around - go fishing.
 
S

snuzzy

New Member
meangirl said:
Oh come on!

Have we women gone SO far downhill that we need MORE than a week to "recover" from giving birth?! Women used to just drop that baby in the field where they were working...and go on working!
Click to expand...

Well, not all of us. I had an emergency C-section, stayed one day in the hospital, the next week I was standing in line to vote for Bush #1, over an hour and holding baby, dad had been at work all week as well. Well, I did have my mom to help some that first week and they would have killed each other if he had stayed home :lmao: !
 
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