Is it easier for mums to go out to work or stay at home?

Andrea Mara tries to figure out: which is easier, going out to work or being a stay-at-home mother? Other mothers weigh in

IF you have children, which is easier — work or home? Before I had kids, I remember one dad in the office used to say work was a break — easy compared to home. It made no sense to me at the time; we worked in a busy IFSC bank. But a few years later, with three children of my own, I knew exactly what he meant. And yes, for me too, work was indeed a break.

I used to start early, meaning my husband dealt with the kids each morning while I scarpered to the office, and I can still remember the blissful feeling as I sat at my desk and opened my email, sipping coffee and savouring silence. Then on Fridays, my parental leave day, I spent my time scraping Weetabix off high-chairs and refereeing fights over toys, wondering if I wouldn’t be better off at work.