The proof is the ever growing percentage of women who have careers (as opposed to just jobs) over the past forty years.
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To the poster below: You DO have that choice – all you have to do is exercise it.
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I worked all through my pregnancy. Once my son turned 13wks, I went back to work because being at home all day was drastically mundane and repetitive and I couldn’t hack the boredom.

True, a newborn requires a lot of attention but my whole day wouldn’t be spent dealing with him. Outside of being attentive to him, much of my day involved cleaning the house, watching tv, and getting dinner started. Out of an 8hr day, my son slept a good 4-5hrs throughout the day. Except for an occasional peeking in on, a sleeping child doesn’t need much. So while my husband was out working all day, with the exception of his 1hr lunch and two 15 minutes breaks, I was at home watching Y&R and cooking shows- until my son awoke from his nap or needed a feeding/changing.

Of course, as my son got older, more would have been required of me and the day wouldn’t have been as repetitive. However, I preferred that my son got to spend time around other children in an environment away from home. I ended up putting him in a nursery at my church- where I felt I could trust the leaders and teachers at the nursery. I worked half days at that point. I’d go to work, pick him up by 2pm, and have some quality time with him before his father got home.

In my opinion, in my life, it is more rewarding to me to have a job- not just any job where I’m simply bringing in a pay check but a job I find enriching and in itself rewarding. As I child, I saw too many women use children as a crutch to not work or have someone take care of them; or even worse, have a whole bunch of children, have her husband (breadwinner) abandon the family or pass away, and become dependent on tax payers by collecting welfare. Being a mother is terrific and I wouldn’t change it for the world. But being a mother is not all there is to being a woman and I always had a bigger picture for myself than feeding babies and changing diapers. But again, that’s my choice.
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Working doesn’t boil down to taking home a paycheck unless that’s all you want to work for. I think you should take pleasure in your career and see it as more than a source of income.
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Finally after many years though I followed my true passions. To live/work/own a permaculture farm. I am very happily married. My husband is by far the main wage earner. I will never again return to the world of working for someone else for a paycheck.

I use to have a fairly prestigious job. I was in charge of all the staff, but the doctor. Everyone came to me for advice, and looked to me for their ques. The patients also looked up to me, since I was second in command during surgeries. I spent more one on one time with patients than the doctor, and they liked me, and looked forward to seeing me.

Despite all the people that liked me, looked to me for advice, and took great comfort from me (patients during surgery), those 8 years don’t hold a candle to what I do now.

Now I am in charge of hearth, home, and farm. My husband and I run the farm jointly…I couldn’t do it without him, nor he without me. The lion’s share of the decisions fall to me however, since I am the one here 24/7.

My time, and my decisions are mine to make or do with as I please. Working within a marriage with a loving suportive spouse is vastly different than going to work for a paycheck and a boss one must answer too.

Life is vastly more interesting, now that I have all the time I want to follow all of my passions.

To me personally, being a stay home wife (with or without children) is vastly more empowering than going to work for a paycheck. However my empowerment does not come from "lording" over my husband. Most of my empowerment comes from being able to continue learning, reading, and studying where my passions lay.

~Garnet
Homesteading/Farming over 20 years
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