When our first child was born, the math was pretty obvious and my wife kept working. When our second child was born and our preschool/daycare costs went from $

When our first child was born, the math was pretty obvious and my wife kept working. When our second child was born and our preschool/daycare costs went from $1250/mo to $2650/mo, it was not nearly so clear. Ultimately, she kept working because we determined the opportunity cost of taking years off (and missing those 401K contributions) would far outweigh the outlay for childcare, but we did think long and hard at that point. Childcare was consuming >50% of her take home.