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I think it's more common in general to have kids close in age. I don't think that work status makes much of a difference.

I'm not sure about SAHM vs WOHM, but I noticed the opposite when I moved! Where we are originally from, most people tend to have their children relatively close in age (usually between a year and 3 years apart, tops). Where we live now though, many people wait quite a while before their next one. I would say the average is about 5 years apart! I've heard a lot of people say, "I could never imagine having two in day care!" Or "why would anyone want two children in car seats or diapers at the same time? They're so much work at that age!" I guess I assumed it was a cultural thing? Hard to say for sure!

@Daniellemybelle: Interesting! Although, I will say, our move was from a city to the country, but only across our state! It wasn't even that far away. We live in the north east.

ETA: We almost need a poll on this thread like, "What is a typical age gap for children in your area?" As soon as possible, 1-2 years, 3-4 years, 5+ years. It's fascinating!

@Anya: Double payments is a good point, but a lot of places in our old area offered big discounts for LOs who had a sibling in that day care. Like they would get half off the price of the cheaper one for sending both LOs. Price depended on age usually. That could contribute too.

@daniellemybelle: California! People have kids close together everywhere I think (only been in CA 5 years, grew up somewhere else) but I would call 18m very close together as opposed to 2+ years, I guess? That would be an interesting poll. It probably varies by age too.

I know a lot of people who have had kids within 2-2.5 years apart regardless of work status, but I think that's because people tend to start later here in NYC and so there is less time to wait.

I don’t know if it’s generally true, but I think it makes sense. Our daycare gives NO discount for siblings, so financially it’s easier to swing kids several years apart. Ditto to accumulating PTO time to use for paid maternity leave. Even if you’re covered by FMLA, not a lot of families can afford to go down to 1 income for 12 weeks every other year, so you need to be at work banking up your time. When you work, you also might have considerations like gaining seniority and/or rank, which are going to be harder if you are out on extended leave each year/1.5 years.

Nope. I know lots of working moms who are expecting before we are!

Although daycare costs are tough, I WOH and wanted mine close together to get the "baby phase" of my life over with all at once. My work wants me to travel, and it's easier to take a long break from that and then ramp back up instead of going back and forth, for example. Most of my friends/colleagues do the 2ish year age gap.

I think maybe you are on to something! Most of my woh friends either are 1 and done or have 2 more than 2 years apart. I decided to sah after lo1 and because of that we were ok with having them close together. They are 20 months apart. Most of my friends sah now and the majority of them have kids just 2 years apart or less. I can think of exceptions, like one working mom whose second and third are 14 months apart!

@daniellemybelle: among my group of mom friends, who are mostly sahm, almost everyone I know is pregnant or trying! But almost everyone will have at least a 2-2.5 year gap. I think @hilsy85: had a good point about age- most of the moms I know were at least 30 when they had their first so they don't want to wait too long anyway.

I do know a few working moms who have said that they are intentionally spacing them out more for daycare costs.

Oh yes, where I live (southern state) SAHMs have kids much closer in age than WOHMs. I think it has to do with several factors: daycare costs (we get no discount for two), acquiring leave, reputation at work while building a career (it sucks that that has to be a reason!), and generally remembering how tough it was to be a good employee on no sleep. My SAHM friends are lapping me!

Almost everyone I know has a 2-3 year age gap, regardless of work status.

I'm a mostly SAHM and half my sahm friends have a 22ish month age gap and the other half are 3 year gaps. I think maternal age and ideal number of kids play bigger roles than anything for most of my mom friends.

Where I live it's a little different. Women seem to have kids closer in age because they get a one year mat leave. I know a number of ladies who end up taking off 3 years to have 2 kids (they are still guaranteed their jobs).

I am a WOHM, though I'm on a one year mat leave though it feels like I'm a SAHM right now.
My first two are not quite two years apart and my third will be almost 13 months behind my second.
I'll be taking next year off but am intent on gong back to work in 2017.
I haven't noticed much difference in spacing with my SAHM friends vs. WOHMs. We all started on our early thirties so she determined spacing more than anything.

Most people I know have kids between 18 months and 2 years apart unless they only want one and I know mostly WOHM moms. I'd say it's regional moreso than WAH/SAH