Looking at the economy these days, just thinking about taking a break from my job gives me the heebie-jeebies. Although if I ever do consider it, it wouldn’t be without tons of savings because I hate being dependent on someone.
Alas, not everyone feels the same way—for instance, the original poster (OP), who is on a 12-month hiatus. Her partner even gives her £150 to spend every week. However, she’s not really happy with this amount and even called the fellow stingy, but when she vented online, here’s how folks gave her a reality check!
More info: Mumsnet
With inflation eating up the world, some people spend wisely, but some still love to splurge
Image credits: lazy_bear / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The poster is on a 12-month break from work, so she's happy that she can look after their toddler rather than send him to nursery
Image credits: Tupaas
Image credits: ansiia / Freepik (not the actual photo)
Every week, her partner gives her £150 to spend on herself and the toddler, which pays for fun play and lunches out, among other things
Image credits: Tupaas
Image credits: evtyshok / Freepik (not the actual photo)
However, she thinks that her partner is being stingy as he's a high earner who gets a little over £100K annually
Image credits: Tupaas
The poster wants to ask him for £50 more, as it's tough spending the whole day with a toddler, but feels he won't like it
In today’s story, netizens served as good Samaritans, teaching a valuable lesson to OP after she vented online. The thing is, she is on a career break for 12 months, so she decided to look after her son, rather than send him to nursery. Since she is not earning, her partner provides £150 per week for her to spend on herself and their toddler.
She generally spends it on soft play, lunches out, and toys, among other things. Also, her partner is the one covering the mortgage and bills at the moment, but he’s also happy that their son is not in the nursery since she is there to take care of him. However, dear readers, she thinks that since he also agreed to her taking a break, the money he is giving is not fair.
In fact, OP feels that he should add £50 more and even called him “stingy,” since everything is so expensive these days. She tells us that her partner is a high earner with a little over £100K per year, but he might not like it if she asks him for more money. This is what is bothering her so much because she feels exhausted when she’s with a toddler for the whole day.
When she voiced her frustration online, little did she know that she would start a heated debate among netizens. Most of them were shocked that she thinks £150 is not enough for a week for herself and a toddler, considering it’s “fun money” and not something she has to use as a fee or something every day.
Image credits: TriangleProd / Freepik (not the actual photo)
The thing is, the average salary in the UK is £1,950 per month, and folks said that she is getting £650 per month for luxurious spending. Some folks also said that they don’t even earn that much, and she was living in a bubble for splurging so much on things that she could avoid. They felt that eating out and buying coffee every day seemed quite unnecessary.
Some advised that she could take home-cooked food with her sometimes, instead of whining about the “lack of money.” Some also suggested that she needed to budget her money properly and only spend when it’s necessary. The average cost of living in the UK is $2,390, and netizens pointed out that her partner was covering it for the whole family.
Besides, he was also paying the mortgage and giving her a weekly allowance, so they felt she shouldn’t burden him by asking for more money. However, there were also a few people who agreed with OP that £150 was rather a little considering she was looking after the toddler full-time.
The average cost of childcare in the UK is over £220, and these people argued that he should indeed pay her at least £50 more. They also claimed that she might be doing all the housework if he is working, so she deserves more money. However, the poster didn’t really mention anything about housework, so we can’t say for sure.
Which side of this debate would you support? We would love to hear your thoughts, so leave them in the comments below!
Netizens were divided, as many felt that £150 per week was a lot of money, but a few argued that childcare requires more money
