I am thankful that I have been able to stay home with my baby girl for the last 13months of her life. I still get to be home with her most days since my job is per diem (as needed). Finically it has been a struggle for us and we hadn't planned for me to stay home. I was laid off just before I was returning from maternity leave. I then had a hard time finding a job in my career field  in my state.