This man calculated what his wife's stay-at-home salary should be.

A US father of one has written a beautiful essay about his wife and the sacrifices she makes to stay at home and look after their two year old son.

Steven Nelms and his wife Glorianna live in Texas with their two-year-old son Ezra. Steven goes off to work every day while Glorianna stays at home to look after Ezra. 

In a post recently published on the website We Are Glory, Steven went into detail about the amount his wife does every day for his family and calculated just how much she theoretically deserved to be paid for her work.

The post has since been shared thousands of times.

He wrote:

“My wife stays home and takes care of our son every single day. She changes his diapers, feeds him, plays with him, puts him down for his nap, and comforts him when he’s upset. And that’s just the bare minimum. A child can typically get that attention at a day-care. But on top of that, he is her only focus…”

“Obviously, this is part of being a parent. You take care of your child and you raise your child. But let’s face it. In our day and age… there is a company ready and willing to do just about anything. So while, yes, my wife is my son’s mother and it is a natural result of being a parent to love and care for your own child, there is also a very quantifiable dollar amount that can be attributed to the services rendered.

“I am in no way trying to simplify, objectify, or devalue the priceless love of a mother for her child. But let’s be real. Pay day feels good for a reason. Because you’re seeing your hard work appreciated in a tangible way that lets you “treat yo self”. And this is exactly why I can’t afford my wife being a Stay-At-Home Mom.”

Steven calculated the annual costs of childcare for two-year-old son Ezra as well as cooking, cleaning, errand running and accountancy.

He estimated that his wife Glorianna should be paid around $73,960 USD a year (which is around $97,000 AUD).

He sounds a little like he may have short changed her because as we all know, stay-at-home mums don’t have leave or sick days. But, we appreciate the sentiment nonetheless.

He writes, “I would have to make over $100k to even begin to be able to cover my living expenses as well as employ my wife as a Stay-At-Home Mom!”

“In short, I can’t afford for my wife to stay at home. And I’ve tragically failed to show my wife the appreciation that she deserves.”

Steven continues, “I am in no way trying to simplify, objectify, or devalue the priceless love of a mother for her child.”

“But let’s be real. Payday feels good for a reason. Because you’re seeing your hard work appreciated in a tangible way that lets you “treat yo self””.

Amen.

You can read Steven’s full essay here.