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Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

Pregnant and DH doesn’t want to make any plans for when the baby is here

116 replies

NeedAdvice8 · 25/01/2024 22:47

I know, I probably should have known better but here’s my dilemma….

Whenever I tried to discuss arrangements for a baby prior to TTC, my DH got mildly upset/irritated and said that I’m not even pregnant yet, so why should we have to discuss childcare / mat leave / finances etc, and - in his words - worry about something that might never be relevant (I wouldn’t call it ‘worrying’, I call it planning). I obviously told him that I would like to have some security and know that I will be able to continue working at some point, and have money available while on mat leave. He then said that I know what kind of man he is and that he’d always support me in everything I want to do, so why should this change when we have the baby. He’s right about this, he’s doing more than his fair share at home and would go out of his way to make sure I have everything I want.

So I reluctantly agreed and put the topic to bed. We’re in our 40s so he’s right that a baby was only a vague possibility.

Well, now I am 6 weeks pregnant and I have approached the topic of sharing our thoughts about childcare again. He got irritated again and said that the baby isn’t here yet, so why do we need to worry about childcare. He wants to wait until baby is born and then work it out. Obviously I pointed out to him that this is not an option, that I’d have to let my work know when I’m 25 weeks for how long I want to be on maternity leave, and in case he doesn’t want to take time off, we’d need to book a nursery or childcare before baby is born (London - long waiting lists) for when I want to go back to work. It ended in a fight, he’s upset and blames me for opening up problems when we should enjoy the pregnancy. He also said - hopefully in anger - that because I work from home, we won’t need childcare anyway and I don’t need to worry about my maternity leave pay (I have none, different story), I can take two weeks holiday after the birth and then continue working while looking after the baby.

I see that this is bad. I’ve learned my lesson. I’m sure that most posts will be LTB, but I’m rather newly married and pregnant. If, God forbid, I lose this pregnancy, I would not try to have a child with him again, and after tonight’s conversation and his unwillingness to hear me out, and being absolutely unreasonable and immature in his views on what it means to look after a baby I’m seriously reconsidering the relationship. But because things are as they are, is there any way to salvage this? Was anyone in a similar situation and it did work out in the end? Although far from ideal, should I just make plans for whatever childcare arrangement suits me and leave him out of it, since he absolutely refuses to plan ahead?
Just to add, he wanted this child more than I did, and he generally doesn’t make plans for the future. He lives from one day to the next, I’m the one in our relationship who makes the plans, but he usually goes along with whatever I decide. I have my own savings and a well enough paid job, I could just about manage without his financial contribution.

OP posts:
LittleLittleRex · 27/01/2024 07:21

My DH is a little like this, but it's more that he'd panic about decisions he's not prepared for. He would respond better if I said, "after the scan I'm going to want to talk about finances, maternity leave and childcare. I can't enjoy the pregnancy if I'm worrying about it." He'd then do some of his own research in advance and it'd be a nice, constructive conversation. If I put something big on him at 10pm, without warning, I'll never get a decision.

One thing you should be firm on is that his finances do not stay the same while you spend your savings on being on maternity. Loads of women on here do that and it's such a power imbalance. He will be paying a lot more into the joint account and if you need to dip into savings, do so equally.

He could be naive and will step up when the time comes, but if he continues to act as if a baby is just something you slip into your normal life, then he needs to be more affected. The worst thing you can do is martyr yourself to keep his life the same, he'll just see it as him coping better.

Nicole1111 · 27/01/2024 07:34

With the way childcare is at the moment you need to be putting your child on wait lists now. I’ve been trying to arrange childcare for sept this year and some places have told me the earliest I can take my little one is sept 2025 and beginning of 2026.
Also would definitely stick with your current employer. A job like that is ideal with a little one.

MayThe4th · 27/01/2024 08:41

This thread is pure MN bingo:

He’s an arsehole; a bastard; tight; is going to be a crap parent; a man; ltb.

Plenty of women come on here with some pretty unrealistic views of what they’re going to do once the baby is born, and the reality is that there is middle ground between going back to work after five minutes and spending the first year of your life being sleep deprived.

Some people do go back to work sooner, people who are self employed for instance or single parents, and it’s worth bearing in mind that in the US for instance the average maternity leave is four weeks.

And similarly other people find it harder and aren’t able to or rightly don’t want to.

The fact is that nobody knows what it’s going to be like to be a parent and I would even go so far as to say that once you have one baby and think you know how it’s going to be, the second baby might have other ideas.

Working from home with a newborn isn’t realistic, but plenty of women have come here with the same notion, it’s more about ignorance than stupidity, and equally there are women who will say that they managed to work for the first six months as their newborn was a good sleeper.

The only thing you should be planning for if you’re trying to a baby is whether you can afford it. Talk about arranging childcare and maternity etc isn’t reality, because the baby isn’t even a reality at that point.

Once you’re pregnant the first hurdle is to get through the first twelve weeks. There’s a reason why people don’t rush out and buy baby clothes and tell all their friends and family before the twelve week scan, and as unpalatable as it is to say it, it’s because one in four pregnancies ends in miscarriage before twelve weeks.

Once you get past that stage you can start being more realistic about plans. If waiting lists for nurseries really are that high, and frankly I find it hard to believe that there are nurseries claiming that they have waiting lists for tiny babies up to the end of 2025 given most of them won’t even have been conceived yet, but if that is the case then I would look at hiring a nanny or au pair instead. You can clearly afford it if you can afford a private birth, and it will give you far more flexibility in terms of what you want to do and when you want to do it. So if you do decide you want to go back to work sooner, you can look to make plans more flexibly , and if instead you decide that you want to stay off longer then you can do that without feeling the pressure of having to arrange things now.

As for money. In an ideal world you would have fully joint finances. But fact is that again there are couples who choose not to do so. If you pay the bills 50/50 at the moment then a discussion is going to need to be had about when your income drops on Matt leave, assuming you don’t get full pay while on maternity leave, but that discussion can wait until you’ve told work and decided when you’re starting your mat leave etc so you can work out how long you have on what money etc.

Talk of ltb and being a single parent is ridiculous and has no place in this scenario, but mn is a place where women thrive on advising others to leave their relationships.**

MMmomDD · 27/01/2024 10:48

OP - try to relax and your pregnancy. At 6weeks it’s so so early, and you need to wait till 12weeka to know it’s all OK.
(Or have an earlier scan to check for heartbeat)

But generally - i think it’s an overreaction on your side to question your relationship based on this one conversation. Sounds like you are very anxious and trying to feel in control of your life by making plans.
And - sounds like he is not an advanced planner, which i can relate to. And - i think in his place i’d feel like you are questioning my commitment if you really needed reassurances that we are in it together. Of course - if one spouse is pregnant/on maternity - the other picks up the slack.

You can not put a name of an unborn baby onto nursery lists in London. There are many different childcare options and arrangements. You will sort it out, like everybody does. It will be OK.
As to how parenting would go - no one really knows til you are there.
But on the new job - i’d not be changing from the familiar and flexible one at this point.

Good luck!!!!

Nonplusultra · 27/01/2024 12:08

What are your financial arrangements now? I think rather than thinking about “when the baby…” scenarios it’s more helpful to organise your finances in terms of retirement and legacy (your bloke would have a nervous breakdown with me)

Personally I think keeping separate finances as a married couple is not advisable. It’s an illusion because in the eyes of the law the assets are joint and where those divisions are drawn becomes clear in divorce.

If you think how you will cope in old age, the obvious thing is pensions. How much are you contributing? (And consider how to prioritise pensions in different periods of life (contributing more in good times, and how to maintain some level of contribution during periods of leave/illness/unemployment)

Think about disasters - in the event of death the surviving spouse is better off if bank accounts and bills are in both names and there is a will instead of going through probate. Even though the entitlement is the same one way is much easier and doesn’t leave the surviving partner stuck with frozen accounts for a while.

Having a clear idea of how much income you are generating, a single rough figure for your costs (housing, utilities, groceries, transport, clothing, necessities) and what the excess is. Then make decisions about how that should be used - what % in savings ( for emergencies, for old age) and what % for life satisfaction (holidays, fun, hobbies, frivolous)

One method is to set up your bank account to feed into other bank accounts. Wages paid into account A, dd (immediately after payday) bills, mortgage, etc. dd to savings accounts, and then put a budgeted amount into B aGroceries (and other stuff) account, C a variable costs (tax, insurance, health) account, and D&E pocket money into an account for each of you.

Obviously this assumes both people are fair and trustworthy.

But using this model, and the principle that in an equal partnership both are entitled to equal access to the money and to rest, maternity leave could mean there is less money in Pot A - more needed in pot B (nappies and baby clothes), higher utility bills, so D&G both have to be cut back.

And when mum goes back to work, Pot A has more money coming in, but also now a whopping childcare bill coming out, grocery costs same, utility bills might drop slightly. D&G might still be low.

Compare that to a very common split costs situation (so depressingly common on MN) where each pay half in bills. She has salary loss, so supplements with savings, and cuts fun spending and then shoulders the childcare costs when returning to work. Meanwhile he is building wealth with savings, pension, and likely increased earnings if he is promoted, and can afford gym membership or an expensive cycling hobby and rugby weekends away with his mates.

If you set up your joint finances wisely at the start you can weather all sorts of problems along the road.

If you take the immediate issues of the baby out of the discussion, would he be willing to talk about how to structure your joint finances, where the money is currently going, and what long term savings and investments are in place. Talking about the right now might feel more tangible than the what ifs.

Captainobvious35 · 27/01/2024 13:23

I haven’t read the whole thread sorry, but reading between the lines I wonder if he is worried about losing the baby (that you say he wanted more than you) and is trying to protect you both from jumping ahead and getting carried away. A sort of infuriating and stubborn self-preservation.

LizHoney · 27/01/2024 17:43

853ax · 25/01/2024 23:39

Figure out in your own head how much time you want to take off, save money for your maternity leave. Leve him to fill the gap for bills in joint account.
Have a look around for nurserys book a place if you like it.
Sounds to me he doesn't want to plan things so you might as well do it yourself and he can go along with it.
Can't have baby or child in house while working. In a way might be better get out of house for work to separate work and home life. But guess that just because no wfh when I had babies and I liked getting into office for adult company.

This covers it. Plan yourself, present it as a fair accompli when the time comes - you tried to consult him, he didn't play ball. You can't force him to plan. He can't force you not to.

Defo do some couples' counselling. This issue will be by no means the hardest thing that will crop up. He needs support to be learn to be less of a prick.

TheBerry · 27/01/2024 19:18

He thinks you can just work while looking after the baby 😭😭😭

Of course you need to make plans for childcare, at least once you’re past 12 weeks and more out of the danger zone, and he’s mental to think you don’t need to prepare.

He’s in for such a rude awakening once the baby is here and he experiences the realities of parenthood.

MumDaisy1980 · 27/01/2024 22:35

Gift him a book ‘Pregnancy for Men’

ask him don’t talk to you until he finish the book

in the meantime make your own plan. Don’t waste your time worrying about him. You have the little one to take care, and when it’s born, it’s YOU take all the credit to be a wonderful mum.

take Care of yourself , go for a pregnancy massage as a treat when you feeling down. Refresh yourself and continue to make plan.

when he is ready, involve him and become a stronger team to welcome your baby!

many congratulations !

seasaltbarbie · 29/01/2024 08:10

Sorry am I missing something here? Why don’t you have maternity leave? And where you going to take a baby at 2 weeks old? The baby needs you not to be put into childcare. Nursery’s where I am won’t take a baby until 9 months old. I’m just wondering where you plan to put a 2 week old baby, and if your hours are so flexible then I would say you would be able to work and look after baby too, although your being very unrealistic thinking that you’ll be ok working after 2 weeks. The whole thing sounds like madness to me and it really should have been planned better.

Codlingmoths · 29/01/2024 08:14

I wouldn’t not mention it. I’d mention the hell out of it. ‘I cannot wfh without childcare. You are welcome to wfh and look after our baby. I won’t be. We will book a childcare, so I’m visiting 3 next week.’ And, ‘ You will be doing pick up each evening. What? You don’t think you can? You can’t leave work to collect your child at the end of the day but you think I can do my job all day while actively looking after them? ‘

PermanentTemporary · 29/01/2024 08:26

This may be both sexist and brutal, but I don't care. I wouldn't trust any man to wfh and look after a baby safely until I'd seen him do it for a long period. I'm afraid my lovely dh, good dad though he was, would not have been safe for that.

Manthide · 29/01/2024 11:25

Codlingmoths · 29/01/2024 08:14

I wouldn’t not mention it. I’d mention the hell out of it. ‘I cannot wfh without childcare. You are welcome to wfh and look after our baby. I won’t be. We will book a childcare, so I’m visiting 3 next week.’ And, ‘ You will be doing pick up each evening. What? You don’t think you can? You can’t leave work to collect your child at the end of the day but you think I can do my job all day while actively looking after them? ‘

She's in her 40s and 6 weeks pregnant I wouldn't do anything until after the 12 week scan.

NeedAdvice8 · 29/01/2024 11:57

For the minority who didn’t seem to read my opening post properly:
No, I don’t think I can WFH with a baby and would not even in my wildest dreams consider it, my DH said this, not I. Although I don’t have maternity pay (freelance contract - pros are flexible hours, cons are no sick pay or maternity pay), I will take 6 months off and pay for this from my savings, whether or not DH will agree/support. The thread wasn’t about whether I can work with a baby or how soon I can go back to work, but about DH not wanting to discuss these things.

OP posts:
Zephyry · 29/01/2024 12:03

Aside from the craziness in his suggestion about working whilst looking after a baby, the main thing that rung alarm for me was you saying he can be really sweet but is incapable of having a conversation about something. I would think really carefully about having a child with him, as communication is key in a relationship with children! He could otherwise be a nightmare partner for you and really unfair on his dc to live with a father that can't discuss, resolve and compromise. I have lived experience of this, with a father I think is undiagnosed on the spectrum and add in a temper and it's been a really difficult life/set of relationships

Willwetalk · 26/03/2024 15:54

Thisisnottheend · 25/01/2024 23:15

I’d also just leave it for now and focus on your health and keeping relaxed! The first scan where he gets to see some evidence of the baby may start to make it more real for him. Women forget that for men it’s really theoretical at this point ,as the woman is the one having all the pregnancy symptoms. I presume you may have married someone who is opposite personality to you? You are both late in life to be newly married and having a first child so you are probably in a better financial situation than many people, you do both have time to get adjusted to this new reality.

This

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