What Upton has unearthed is a collection of dilemmas facing the growing family. The list, which she discussed in a recent phone conversation, certainly resonated with me, a professional and mother of two. First, Upton finds couples frequently fretting about the costs of child care, which are onerous enough when there's only one child. With a price tag like that, many parents understandably begin questioning the financial sense of both parents working outside the home. Another common headache is the child-care breakdown, which is twice as complicated when two kids are involved.
Someone has to leave work and pick up the children.
Then there's the evening meal. I can't think of any working parent who wouldn't wince in recognition at Upton's observations. Although Upton is in the business of observation, not problem-solving, I couldn't stop myself from asking her if she had any remedies for the difficulties she observes. Cheaper child care is one obvious answer, she says. Longer leave times would help, as would a new climate in which fathers feel as comfortable as mothers in taking time off for child-rearing.