I'm loving the discussions spawned by Full Time Father's anti-housework stance. (Read yesterday's post if this is new to you.) Mike gets his good-natured licks in at me last night, noting that if I would just give up my MP3 player and beer, I'd be on my way to a staff of my own. Mike's underlying point -- that housework isn't integral to childrearing -- is spot on, as is his point that housework need not fall only on the shoulders of the at-home parent. But I think my unease has less to do with the division of labor problem (thing are pretty even 'round here) and more with the finances. We've run the numbers, tracked our budget, and just don't see how eating out and cleaning services make for a good investment. I'd rather put in the 19 minutes a day of cleaning and spend the cash on the 529 plan. Or beer. But Mike's response is well worth a read:

The question remains: one parent sits at a desk making money for the family all day, the other is at playgrounds, ball fields and the library raising the couple's children. It's 7 pm, and now they are both home and both dog-tired. For what reason does society demand that the one who is raising the children must clean that toilet?

Or to put it differently: we don't expect an executive to stop work in the middle of the day to go clean his or her toilet. Why stop child-rearing in the middle of the day to play Tidy-Bowl Person?

Tags: SAHD dad blog housework mom