It's not bad or good, it's just called life. I love that! So many people forget the reality that I think about more often in the last few years than I have ever before in my life:

"There are no solutions, only trade offs." - Thomas Sowell

As you mentioned, your parents wanted a better life for you so you were forced to fend for yourself and help your little brother.

There are certainly pros to a stay at home parent and those who choose this should be commended (if they can afford to do so). There are also cons to having parents around all of the time as well, though. Helicopter parenting is a real issue now. People are growing up coddled and expecting everything to be given to them, etc. Not being able to venture out and let your imagination/curiosity go free vs being restrained by a parent breathing down your neck. There are easily dozens more examples just like this.

My mom was a stay at home mother and I think I turned out pretty good considering the trade offs. Had she worked, though, my older siblings likely would have taken care of me more than she did and this may or may not have led me to being worse off.

I have multiple siblings with a diverse dichotomy of these options as well - brother and his wife who both work and put their kids in private care/public schools, brother who home schools and takes care of things at home while his wife works, a brother who works whose wife stays home and a sister who stays home while her husband works.

There is no simple answer to life. Each of my nieces and nephews grow up in a different environment and dichotomy. None are "better off" or "worse off" than others because there are no solutions, truly. Every choice requires NOT choosing something else.

No one ever said parenting was easy, right? :)