Several months ago I wrote a post outlining some of my thought process used behind making the decision to stay at home or to work for someone with kids.
After a year and a half of being a single income household, my wife has taken on a part time job.
How we became DIK’s
Acronym’s are cool didn’t you know? Nowadays, there is an acronym for every type of household.
SIK – Single income with kids
SINK – Single income no kids
DINK – Dual income no kids
DIK – Dual income kids
DINKWAD – Dual income no kids with a dog.
I wouldn’t want to be a DIKWAD!
The lists go on.
So why did we become DIK’s? Well with winter coming to an end, we got tired of being SIK. Sorry, lame dad jokes. It’s my duty now.
There were several reasons my wife took a part time job, of which money was not at the top at the list.
1/. My wife is a nurse and actually enjoys most parts of her job. Too long away and she would no longer be qualified to practice. Accepting a job was in part, about keeping her relevant.
2/. The hours per week and days of the week were perfect. She had been looking for 6 months for a job. Turned down from some and she turned down others. That is the great thing about being in a solid financial position. You aren’t pressured into taking a job that you don’t really want. We could accept work we wanted to, not had to.
The days she is working, are days that we have babysitters available so no need for daycare at this stage. Thanks grandparents.
3/. Our daughter has been extremely fortunate to have a full time stay at home mum for the first 16 months of her life. We don’t think working two days a week will take away from this. But we also think at this stage of her development, spending more time with different people will help with her social development.
4/. My wife will love the new challenge. Any stay at home parent will know how tough that job can be. A job though will offer a different kind of challenge that requires more mental stimulation. That is what mum is craving at the moment and two days a week of a different type of challenge will lead to a more balanced life.
5/. Finally, the pay. As I said upfront, this is not the driving reason for accepting a part time job. It will be handy having that extra income and we will try our best not to increase our spending with our new income.
Final Thoughts
Being part time DIK’s will speed up our journey towards financial independence. There’s no doubt about that. But more importantly, it will allow my wife and her qualifications to remain relevant in the workforce.
We are extremely fortunate to have been in a position to be able to afford having one parent at home full time for so long.
The fact that we were in a position to wait for the right job means we get to design our lifestyle the way we wanted, not dictated by someone else’s schedule.
With my wife working now, I’ll have to pick up some more slack around the house to help keep the household running smoothly.
Mum has done such a fantastic job over the last 18 months, and that is one part of this transition that I will miss!
If anyone has any healthy, cheap and easy cooking recipes for me then feel free to send them through!
Thanks for reading.
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