Short back story: I'm not really a traditional kind of guy but I've, somehow, ended up in a very traditional kind of marriage. After our 3nd child, my wife wanted to quit her job and stay home with the kids and home school them. It was tough going but we pulled it off. (She is great at home schooling and our oldest is going to Harvard next year. I don't want this to become a homeschooling thread. I don't think it's good for everyone, it just worked well for us.) This was long ago and we're now much older. The problem I'm having is that I feel pretty isolated from and, honestly, pretty unappreciated by my family after all this time. They all have great relationships with each other and I'm gone all the time. When I am home, I'm fried. All they see of me is some tired, quiet guy that they don't know that well. After years of working my ass off and being been lucky, I make good money ($150K/year). None of them, including my wife, seem to understand that I've spent my life working with people I hate, doing shit I hate all day, every day so that they can have an awesome life. I'm just some stranger who wants the remote at the end of the day and the money just shows up like magic. My personal lifestyle hasn't changed since I was in my 20's. All the money goes to them.
I don't want to complain. From a global perspective, my life is pretty great but this situation doesn't feel so great... and it feels worse every year. Is situation tenable or "normal"? Am I unreasonable to hope for something else or is this just what life is? Any honest input is appreciated.