ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (WKBW) — As families look for ways to make ends meet, more and more women are opting to leave the workforce and become stay-at-home mothers.
According to Pew Research Center, the number of stay-at-home moms was at an all-time low of 23% in 1999. Since then, the number has risen.
One of the big reasons for that is childcare.
According to Care.com, the average starting rate for childcare here in Western New York is about $17.60/hour.
If you need childcare 40 hours a week, that quickly adds up to more than $2,200/month.
7 News' Pheben Kassahun spoke with a local mother about the difficult decision to give up her career to be home with her kids.
Jill Cross of Orchard Park welcomed their first child, Jackson, in April of 2022.
At the time, she was a first-time mother who was certain she would become a stay-at-home mom during COVID-19.
"I love being home with them. It does get monotonous day after day, but I would not trade it for the world," said Cross. "It was really hard to make that decision. You feel like you're almost losing a part of yourself, like who you are but there is this new part of you that is born as well with being a mom."
Cross says the decision to leave teaching was difficult, but one that has been met with many rewards.
"To be at home and see every special moment, when they took their first step to the first day of preschool," she said. "Wanting to be a part of their lives every single day, for me and my husband. Having me being the person that raises them 24/7. There were other factors that went into it. My husband travels a lot for work too, but that was the main thing. I wanted to be there for all of the moments."
The couple says the cost of daycare wasn't worth it.
"How much are we going to spend for childcare, how much are we going to spend for food, groceries, but also my husband does work three jobs. That's also why I'm at home too because he's got a crazy work schedule," Cross explained.
Kassahun asked, "You've mentioned a ton of pros. What have been the challenges?"
"Lack of adult conversation," Cross replied. "Sometimes just the monotony of it. It's kind of the same thing every day: you get up, you play with the kids, you feed the kids, you change the kids. You put them to sleep then you do it all over again. I also can't imagine being at home all day long and not spending all day with them."
Cross says she plans on working again once the kids start school.
