Stay at home dad/poker player..... is it possible?

[mooks]

I appreciate all the responses. I've been a winning player over the last year, and I feel confident that it will continue into the future. I just sometimes throw around the idea with my gf, that if we were to get married, perhaps I could stay at home with the kids, and she could continue to work..... something that she wants to do.

She often questions though: will i remember to change their diapers, feed them, hold them when they're crying... etc.

When I play I usually go into my own little world where I can't hear anyone around me, even her, which drives her nuts when she's trying to talk to me.

thanks again

mooks

[bkholdem]

I didn't read the responses but that is part of my plan. My fiance is Brazilian so if we move to Brazil I won't even have to make that much cash to be making a decent living down there. In fact I don't plan on having kids in the near future so I basically plan on being a stay at home husband lol.

[Uglyowl]

All men don't listen at times (our heads would explode)... doesn't mean we are bad fathers [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[mack23]

Gotta chime in here... I spent the first 3 months of this year as an online poker player. I have a 2 year old. My wife was working full time and my play was earning as much as her job. I was only playing 20-25 hours per week because:

1) I watched my son half the week, the other half he went to day care. I played ZERO poker during the times he was home with me and awake. (1.5 hours per day played during his nap)

2) Damn it's tough to grind out hours of poker every day.

The bottom line is this: Why would anyone play poker when they are home WITH their kids? If you are staying home to save on child care, than parenting is your job when you are home during those times, not poker. (assuming the wife is out there working) Kids come first. If you are playing for income, treat it like a job and only do it when the kids are at school, daycare, or asleep for the night. If you try to do both jobs at the same time, your play will suffer due to children's extensive needs during the day and the children will suffer due to a parent not giving them the interaction they need. Do yourself and them a favor and don't play while you are with them. That's all I got.

-Mack

[Uglyowl]

[ QUOTE ]
Gotta chime in here... I spent the first 3 months of this year as an online poker player. I have a 2 year old. My wife was working full time and my play was earning as much as her job. I was only playing 20-25 hours per week because:

1) I watched my son half the week, the other half he went to day care. I played ZERO poker during the times he was home with me and awake. (1.5 hours per day played during his nap)

2) Damn it's tough to grind out hours of poker every day.

The bottom line is this: Why would anyone play poker when they are home WITH their kids? If you are staying home to save on child care, than parenting is your job when you are home during those times, not poker. (assuming the wife is out there working) Kids come first. If you are playing for income, treat it like a job and only do it when the kids are at school, daycare, or asleep for the night. If you try to do both jobs at the same time, your play will suffer due to children's extensive needs during the day and the children will suffer due to a parent not giving them the interaction they need. Do yourself and them a favor and don't play while you are with them. That's all I got.

-Mack

[/ QUOTE ]

POTD in my opinion. Great advice, besides poker is better at night and weekends

[MicroBob]

[ QUOTE ]
I just sometimes throw around the idea with my gf, that if we were to get married, perhaps I could stay at home with the kids, and she could continue to work..... something that she wants to do.

[/ QUOTE ]


ditto.


[ QUOTE ]
. My fiance is Brazilian so if we move to Brazil I won't even have to make that much cash to be making a decent living down there.

[/ QUOTE ]


my gf is from peru. but she has no inclination to move back. still... if we decide to travel i have an easily transportable job,

[Jim Kuhn]

[ QUOTE ]

Gotta chime in here... I spent the first 3 months of this year as an online poker player. I have a 2 year old. My wife was working full time and my play was earning as much as her job. I was only playing 20-25 hours per week because:

1) I watched my son half the week, the other half he went to day care. I played ZERO poker during the times he was home with me and awake. (1.5 hours per day played during his nap)

2) Damn it's tough to grind out hours of poker every day.

The bottom line is this: Why would anyone play poker when they are home WITH their kids? If you are staying home to save on child care, than parenting is your job when you are home during those times, not poker. (assuming the wife is out there working) Kids come first. If you are playing for income, treat it like a job and only do it when the kids are at school, daycare, or asleep for the night. If you try to do both jobs at the same time, your play will suffer due to children's extensive needs during the day and the children will suffer due to a parent not giving them the interaction they need. Do yourself and them a favor and don't play while you are with them. That's all I got.

-Mack


[/ QUOTE ]

Great post! But........ at what level of income should we be willing to quit our jobs and spend all of our time with the kids? I have often thought of that. What level of earnings should we forego spending time with the kids to play poker? These are difficult decisions for us to make.

Thank you,

Jim Kuhn
Catfish4u
[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]

[oreogod]

[ QUOTE ]

I know another 2+2'er whom I have communicated with via PM who has 4 kids including a new-born.
Once got a PM from him at 4am while he was playing and his baby was sleeping in his lap...thus making it a little difficult for him to type but he says that his lap is one of the only places his kid sleeps.


[/ QUOTE ]

I hope hes good at controlling tilt. Suck to football your kid into the ground like u just made the worlds greatest touch down while in a rage of tilt. I mean, how do u explain u just made a hunchback out of your kid over a game of cards?

[stripsqueez]

i play full time and i am the primary care giver for my 2 kids - she who must be obeyed is a career girl

it works for me but my kids are now 5 and 8 and i know why parents say they hate school holidays - i also spent a year at home with my 8 year old when she was 2 - nearly killed me

looking after kids is a beast of a job to do well - makes poker look very easy to me

stripsqueez - chickenhawk

[Troy92]

I am in a similar situation with a 9 and 6 year-old. The school year was crazy enough with running them around from one activity to another. I had been dreading the onset of summer vacation. I was even considering looking for a "real job" for the summer.

The first week we went out of town. I was able to get in a couple rounds of golf on top of some family activities. But with the new laptop, I still found some time to get in some hands and make some cash.

Today is the first day of the summer where it is just me and the kids. I found some time to get in a couple hundred hands this morning and will get some more hands in when the kids watch a movie tonight and after I put them to bed. The rest of the schedule has been breakfast, swimming, lunch, swimming, dinner swimming. This summer thing may not be so bad after all.

I always respected the job my wife had when she was able to stay at home with the kids. Over the last seven months I have found out how challenging it really is. However, it is also the most rewarding job.