The family business

My husband wears a lot of different titles: He is the love of my life, a dynamic dad for our son and my best friend. I also like to think of him as my business partner.

If you were to take a step back and look at our family as a business (romantic, I know), you would see that we have an excellent partnership. I don't like doing yard work; he mows the lawn. I do the majority of the meal planning and cooking; he stays out of the kitchen. We handle our own laundry. We have very similar ideas on parenting.

In short, business is good. Which is good for our family.

And maybe it makes sense to think of your family as a business: Several new studies, like this one, mention that both women and men are looking for more equal relationships - ones in which parenting, chores and work are split 50/50. The problem, according to most studies, is that equality options are not available to most people. Women find themselves "mommy tracked" and still handling the majority of the household chores. Men still feel pressured to be the breadwinners. (Side note: I wonder how in-depth the questions on those surveys are: Do they cover actual chores like cleaning the bathroom? Or are they more abstract questions?)

But parenting is one area where men and women should form a solid partnership. Pennsylvania researchers have found that co-parenting training actually helps children be better equipped for school. Parents who go through the training report to feel better support from their spouse and act like more of a team in front of their children. And children pick up on that partnership spirit and show better adaptability when they get to school.

Do you ever think of your family as a business? Share with me in the comments.