Hey Mustachians, I need your opinions!
I found the blog this week and started devouring it; I'm happy to report I've been living a mostly Mustachian life to this point. I worked all through University, paid my tuition and costs myself, paid off my student loans before graduation, paid cash for our wedding, honeymoon, car and subsequent mini van, and saved for a down payment on a house. I left work at age 25 when my first child was born. 6 years later, I now have 3 kids and stay at home with them. My husband has been in the Canadian Army for the last 9 years and has supported our family on his single (yet humble) income. I am very money conscious and pay off credit cards in full each month and have no debt except mortgage. I eat out once a month, buy healthy food, buy used, sell my used goods, and live frugally.
Unfortunately, the part I've failed miserably at is retirement savings. We do not have RRSPs, our RRSP and 10k emergency savings were completely eliminated during a very rough 2 year financial hardship period, and our only retirement contributions are through my husband's pension adjustment that is automatically taken off by the army. My husband will not be in the army 25 years so it will be paid out to us when he resigns and he will not receive a pension. So, my question to you is this: Should I go back to work instead of being a Stay at Home Mom, and pour all earnings into a retirement plan so we can both retire early, or at the very least, comfortably? My going back to work is the only way for us to save extra because our income and budget is already tight, but it would require me to spend half my salary on childcare & travel. My field of work is not high paying either, so it would be a lot of effort for minimal reward.
Thank you kindly for your time, I am open to questions & advice.