I have been watching The Today Show for quite some time and have never watched a story that stirred such passion in me. I am a stay-at-home mom of two precious daughters, 3 and 1. Each day I pour myself out in love as I read countless books, answer endless "why?" questions, plan stimulating activities, prepare wholesome food, and much more. I am certain my sacrifices now will impact society in a much larger way than if I had a career. Because of the choices I am making, my daughters will learn to be difference-makers and to offer life to a hurting world. I do not live in fear of poverty. Yet even if I were living in poverty at the end of my life, I would never regret a single moment I spent with my children.

I do not agree with this author. Staying at home is not for everyone indeed...but if a parent (mother or father) wishes to do so they should not be made to feel they've made a "mistake" or put their financial future in jeopardy. Yes, a family does make financial sacrifices for one parent to stay home and raise children but those sacrifices do not have to be disastrous as this author predicts. I've been a stay at home mom for three years now and each day I am so happy to be able to witness every milestone small or large. I think the bigger issue here is not that women are making a "mistake" by staying at home. Besides soaring daycare costs...some of which just do not justify a parent to work, not to mention the fact that the dependent care credit has not been indexed for these increases in many years, the underlying issue here is that the average American household does not do much saving, for retirement or anything else, at all! It doesn't really matter whether or not a parent chooses to leave the workforce to care for their children. In my case, besides my husband's 401K and his ROTH IRA, three years ago we opened a ROTH IRA in my name and we try to put as much into it each year as we can. Just because a parent chooses to stay at home doesn't mean they can't still save for their retirement as well. It takes many additional financial sacrifices to do this but even just saving the smallest amount of money each month is something. And besides the retirement issue, women who stay at home can take charge of their financial situation by saving money in general (savings account, CD's or mutual funds) accounts as well. I just think it is quite pessimistic of this author to view women who stay at home as being helpless in relying on their husbands to take care of everything...yes, choosing to leave the workforce is a gamble and yes, many marriages end in divorce, but there are many things women can do to ensure they won't end up in poverty if the worse were to happen. It sounds to me like she witnessed a dire situation with her own family (her grandmother) and that experience led her to form the opinions she has today.

I have been watching The Today Show for quite some time and have never watched a story that stirred such passion in me. I am a stay-at-home mom of two precious daughters, 3 and 1. Each day I pour myself out in love as I read countless books, answer endless "why?" questions, plan stimulating activities, prepare wholesome food, and much more. I am certain my sacrifices now will impact society in a much larger way than if I had a career. Because of the choices I am making, my daughters will learn to be difference-makers and to offer life to a hurting world. I do not live in fear of poverty. Yet even if I were living in poverty at the end of my life, I would never regret a single moment I spent with my children.

I think it is really sad that this woman can degrad women who choose to stay at home and raise their own children. I am a stay at home mom for a 4 month old baby boy and could not imagine leaving my child in day care. I worked for a company who is not child friendly and looked down on mothers. My husband and I did the math we figured with the cost of day care and my commuting I could not afford to work. It is really sad that Ms. Bennett has decided to degard women who stay at home and raise their children. I would like to know does Ms. Bennett have any children.

I was dumbfounded with Leslie Bennetts view on being a stay at home mom. I have been a stay at home mom for 17 years and it has been the most rewarding part of my life. I can't imagine how anyone can think that there is a price that you can put on raising children to become adults that can contribute to society. To me there is only one answer and if my husband would die suddenly, or leave me then I am a bright intelligent woman and I would do whatever was neccesary to support me and my children. Butr right now is the time for me to embrace motherhood and everything that comes with it. Hurray for all stay at home moms... and hurrah for those moms who work and still are great moms and wives. We are women, hear us roar!

As an educated stay at home mother of two young children, I not only found Ms. Bennet's comments offensive but unfounded. There seems to be an implication that as a stay at home mother that I have no rights, nor do I make any contribution to my familiy's economic future. While I agree that there are many "what ifs" to face that can devastate a family financially, there was no discussion or affirmation of the countless number of wise decisions that women and men make to ensure their financial future. In the unlikely event that my husband were to pass away, we have a savings as well as life insurance to more than provide for our family. As responsible parents and partners, we have a savings to protect us from financial ruin in the event that my husband would lose his job. Our family comes before money and material things, if we continue to put that first then whatever future situation we face (as a family) can be managed and survived. It is most important that I raise thoughtful, caring, emotionally well balanced children who will choose to serve society instead of themselves and the ulmighty buck. My husband is not my night in shining armor, nor is he my sugar daddy - he is my partner, committed to our family just as I am. His role is to not only provide financial support but to mentor my children, love them, guide them, as well as to love and support me. Ms. Bennet seemed to characterize husbands as something temporal and unnecessary to a family (other than serving a monetary role). A woman choosing to work or to stay at home should be based on her family's individual needs. Sometimes there is no other choice than to work, sometimes mothers have children with special needs that require such great care that they cannot work. The important thing is that woman fight for their families and the best interest of their children, not fight each other about their choice.

I'm a mom of two boys - I work part-time at home - I took a HUGE paycut to do this but I feel as if it's the most important job of my life to stay home and make sure the two human beings I brought into this world have the best chance possible in life. It's hard enough as it is. However, I often think about what if something were to happen to my husband- I don't have a "career" per say. Is that what Life Insurance is for until you can make those decisions in times of tragedy?

Ms. Bennett shows her age. What I don't think Ms. Bennett takes into account is how much our work force has changed in the past few decades; in a way that negatively impacts women. I'm a 27 year-old corporate lawyer in New York and I work 60-80 hour weeks, much like many women today in fields with enough earning potential to support a family. In order for a woman to bring in a substantial enough salary to off-set the insane costs of child care, she, in most cases, cannot merely work part time, or even a 40 hour work week. Ms. Bennett remembers that every night her mother "came home and made an elaborate meal for our family—no TV dinners for us!—along with baking cookies for the next day’s Girl Scout meeting, cleaning the house, washing and ironing our clothes for school, and helping us with our homework..." While this may have been possible for a woman holding down a career and a family in the 50's and even the 70's, the familial sacrifices that women are forced to make today are much greater. They must chose financial independence, albiet an attractive goal, at the cost of not being able to put thier children to bed, to attend Doctors appointments, and to take part in even the fringes of their childrens' lives. Ms. Bennett's delusions that women can have it all, are just that, delusions. Unfortunately today's career world typically does not make it possible for women to climb the corporate ladder and make elaborate dinners for thier families. The choice to stay home, or work is a trade-off, with even more severe consequences on either end. Because it costs much more to support a family today, the financial risks of stay-at-home moms are in fact greater. But with the demands placed upon us by our high powered carreers, the sacrifices we must make with respect to time with our children are greater as well. Coming down on either side of the decision will have pluses and minuses, but to call either choice a "mistake" is simply disconnected from the reality of today's world. While its a sad truth, women cannot always have it all.

I am currently getting ready to quit my career and become a stay at home mommy for my 2 children. I think Ms. Bennet is totally missing the point here. She is bringing personal history to the argument of staying at home vs. working. There is nothing more important than caring for your own children during the early years. Full time Daycare can never match that. Reading the comments posted by other mom's and watching the interview this morning only confirms my decision to stay at home. There is a lifetime to go back to work....only a few years of childhood to make memorable. No doubt about it!!! Counting down days to exiting the corporate world...

I believe the problem is not a "Feminine Mistake," as the Ms. Bennett suggests, but is really a Masculine Mistake. It grieves me to see that women feel they can no longer depend upon their husband and/or partner. The statisics that Ms. Bennett gave regarding male failure, both within and without his control, is very sobbering. As a future father, I would never want to place such large burdens upon my wife and soon to be mother, because of her fear of my potential failures. We all know men are certainly not perfect, but I call upon women to hold their men to higher expectations. The problem is not with feminine dependency, but the weak cultural and personal expectations of male committment in general. The real feminine mistake is the lack of holding men accountable!

I'm glad to see that I wasn't the only one offended by Ms. Bennett. I was very appauled at how dismissive she was of legitimate concerns mothers have about daycare providers. I won't speak against her book with out reading it, but her Today Show interview was very negative and dangerous. Perhaps instead of making it seem silly to stay home with your kids, she should have stated that these are things woman need to be aware of. The truth of the matter is woman do need to be prepared if possible however, one can never be completely prepared for everything life has to offer. She stated that our first obligation to our kids is food and shelter or something like that. Haven't we seen the affects of this attitude. There are so many adults who are screwed up emotionally due to that way of thinking. They had no worries about food or shelter, but not enough time, attention, love, discipline, and guidance from their parents. This whole train of thought had a detrimental affect on fathers and their relationship with their kids. Now we are seeing the wide spread affect it has on both parents. Children aren't pets that we buy toys for feed and play with when we have time. Children need to learn how to survive in this world emotionally and physically. As a parent our only job isn't to just feed and shelter our kids. To simply act like it's so easy to find people you trust to care for your children is reckless. I think we as a society need to get our priorities in check. I agree with the idea of letting each family make the best decision for themselves.

I agree that women need to be aware and prepared for the financial pitfalls that exist in life, but to suggest that we only owe our children financial support is just plain bunk! If that's all that matters lets ship the little darlings off to boarding school. I also want to know where in the US economy are all these worthwhile jobs for every educated man and woman to fill?

It is so sad to me to learn that there are so many woman out there that feel like they can't truly trust the man that they have decided to spend their lives with and have children with. I am a stay at home mom of two boys. My husband has not and would never put his family in a position that if something happened to him we wouldn't be taken care of. I think that making the decision to be a stay at home mom is huge, there are many MATERIAL things that we do with out. When both parents are truly committed to raising a phenominal family, having the mother stay at home with the children can have nothing but fantastic results. Having a negative attitude to those you claim to love and trust will bring nothing but negative things your way.

My husband and I made a choice long before we had children, actually before we even were married. I would be staying at home with our children. Why would anyone want to have children and then let someone else (daycare) raise them? I would like my children to grow up learning the values and morals that I feel are important. No daycare, no matter how wonderful, can love my child as much as I do and care for them as I would. It upsets me that someone would call my loving choice a mistake. We have planned to make this choice work for the best of our family. I have a college degree, and a retirement account that we fund every month. We both have life insurance. We have planned for the unfortunate and unexpected life events. I hope that all stay-at-home mothers do the same. Yes, I do realize that if I go back to the workplace that my salary will be diminished. But would a competitive job and wonderful salary make up for missing my children's lives? I guess that is a question that we should all ask before we have children. By the way, I have 2 little girls and a boy on the way.

Step into my shoes for only a moment-I don't think you will want to be there for much longer. I met my husband when I was 18. We have three children. He worked in corporate America's mid management. We moved, he traveled, we lived. He never wanted his wife to have to work. Not after he lost his corporate job. Not after he lost the next job, a big named position with a friend's firm. Not after he became so sick he couldn't look for work. And I supposed, not after he dropped dead from a heart attack in the middle of the night. I have been through more in the past few years than I ever thought possible. There was no one to turn to for help, and those who offered it, took advantage of me. So here I sit, living on Social Security Survivor's Benefits, have lost our family's home because of legaltities (I was not on the mortgage?) These battles have taken their toll - I have such depression I can not function, everything is in total disarray, I can't rent a place to move my family into let alone even get a Target credit card because of my horrible credit rating. It almost killed me last year- I spent months in the hospital and a nursing home. All because the ideal family turned into a nightmare. I haven't worked in forever but still have kids to raise. The writer is right- women need financial security established early on. There's a good chance there's not going to be a husband there to provide or more important to me, to guide me along the pathway. In fact, I don't see any way clear for us to get through. I have nothing now. And apparently I will have nothing more. All because the man I relied on for my world isn't here anymore.

I am 36 and about to give birth to my 3rd child. I can appreciate the concerns about women being able to care for their families however, I feel the comments made by Ms. Bennett were not fully examined. I have stayed at home and worked part-time from home. Although my part-time income was not enough to support a family (0 - $750 per month), it did keep me involved in the work force and when my husband did lose his job, I was able to get a job paying $65K per year within a month. This is after being out of the full time work force for 5 years. Staying home is not an instant end to a career. I stayed connected to friends in my line of work and was very honest in interviews as to why I had not worked. I believe that employers appreciated my honesty because I told them how demanding it is to be a mom and I am also very aware of the commitment it takes to have a job and the dedication required from the employer. Even had I not gone back to work, we would have been ok. Families should plan accordingly with savings, disability insurance, be aware of the state requirements for unemployment, if need be, pulling out equity from a home, and be sure that both spouses have more than adequate life insurance. As difficult as it may seem, it may even be appropriate to have small life insurance policies for the children in the event that something should happen. The cost of a funeral and time you will be unable to work can add up. A good financial planner should be consulted, and if it is a reputable company there is no charge for these consultations. We do not make a six figure income, but if we can plan and prepare, then I believe with the right information, any stay-at-home mom (or dad) can be adequately prepared for the worst.

I am retired now but I worked for 42 years and am proud of every day. I was married and my husband left me and my two children with no means of support when my youngest was a few years old. I remarried and he died of a sudden heart attack. Through all of this I was able to give my children a home, food, gas, electricity, etc. because I worked. God gave me a brain and the skills to do what my children needed to survive. They are grown now and quite successful. Life isn't always what we dream of or hope for; instead it is a bigger plan that includes personal perservance and love.

I was half-heartedly paying attention to Ms. Bennetts segment this morning, as I was helping my oldest son get ready for a sports clinic, when something she said caught my attention. I have been steaming mad ever since. I have been a Stay-At-Mom for just over 14 years. I now have four beautiful and intelligent children, the youngest is six. I believe that Ms. Bennett has a huge chip on her shoulders and must have written this book as some form of therapy. My husband and I have been married for 15 years. We are best friends and partners committed to raising our family the best way we know how. Fortunately, my husband is extremely successful in his career, which allows me to stay at home. He would be the first person to tell you that he is able to be so successful because he has me at home backing him up and taking care of every aspect of our home life. Let me tell you that being a stay-at-home mom involves very little staying at home when your children move beyond preschool. I believe that Ms. Bennett should be thanking all the stay at home moms that volunteer at her children's school, arrange car pools to sporting events and offer to take care of her children when she cannot. I believe that I have the most important job in the world and every night when I tuck my children in and they hug me, I receive the biggest paycheck I will ever need. No self-respecting woman should purchase Ms.Bennetts book, it is an embarrassment.

Risky? My husband and I have covered our bases to reduce the risk I took when I quit my job to raise our boys, age 1 and 3. We each have great life insurance policies, retirement funds, savings. I wouldn't be caught off guard financially if something happened to him or his job. Its also important to look at the dependency he has on me: if I were to die suddenly, he would be left with the 24/7 care that 2 little boys requires...on top of his full-time job. My mom spent 20 years as a stay at home mom, and her husband left her when she was in her 40's for another woman. 10 years later she died of melanoma. Two days before she died she told me the highlight of her life, the only thing she really remembered, was being home with her 3 daughters when we were little.

When my son was born, I worried about going back to work and putting him in day care 45 hours/week. And if I didn't go back to work, my husband wouldn't be able to support us comfortably on his own. So instead, I got licensed for a home day care so I could stay home and not be financially dependent on my husband. Now, I've got it all - being able to raise my son (and #2 on the way!), have my own business with my own money, AND not have to pay through my nose for day care. Who says you can't have it all?

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