I work in health care, so these opportunities are there for me. Also, my profession has been scalable, so that I can work more or less as needed for my sanity. My specialty doesn’t penalize those who flex their work schedules and hours as much as some might; this was not an accidental choice for me, since I began this line of work after I had children.

The evenings my husband has with our children get me out of the equation, force them to find their own equilibrium, and encourage an individual relationship between each of our children and my husband. Also, I almost entirely avoid the scenario I truly hate: Get home at 5:30, rush dinner, rush homework, rush to bed. Chores/more work/husband time later — maybe.

Whether the evening hours are spent networking or finishing up paperwork, I think more dual-earner couples could benefit from giving the other partner a pass for one “free” late night a week.