[timjahn]

>> These are important and formative weeks during your child and family's development. A couple of my friends just had a baby, and I can see how much they cherish every moment they spend with him.

This cannot be overstated. The first few moments/hours/days/weeks/months of your child's life (especially your first) are insanely awesome/frightening/joyous/exciting/sleep-depriving/stressful/fun/inspiring/just-freaking-cool.

It's not an experience I would want to miss for any reason. I'll probably never understand people who go back to work after a week or two.

[dagw]

I was 'lucky' enough to find myself unemployed when my daughter was born and ended up putting off getting a new job for the first three month. It was amazing. If I get another kid I'm definitely staying home for at least the first 8 weeks, and one way or the other my employer and I will have to come to some sort of agreement.