Any advice for a mother of two going back to work...

panama389

tomorrow?  I used to work 8a, - 4pm but I changed my schedule to 9-5 just so that I have a bit more time to get ready in the mornings and help H get the kids ready to be dropped off to daycare. But any advice for the evenings when I get home? or just in general?

Valerie120408

Get ready at night as much as possible so you don't feel rushed in the mornings - pick clothes to wear for the next day for you and your kids (if they are older, they can pick their own too), get bottles/food ready for daycare, make your lunch, etc. You'll get into a rhythm over time and it will get easier. When I come home, I feed DS, play with him for a bit, and do bedtime routine. After he's in bed, I do dishes, laundry if needed, and get bags ready for the next day. Then I relax for a bit and try to go to bed by 11pm. I don't cook much but if you do, I would start dinner right after coming home and make extra so that you have left overs for another day - hopefully DH and you can share taking care of the kids and cooking/cleaning in the evenings, which would make things easier. Oh, and I make baby food after DS goes to bed. GL

MrsAmers

I'm starting my 4th week back at work with two kids.  It is definitely a harder balance than going back to work with one and I have an easy baby!

My DH does drop off and pick up at daycare, and it took the three of them about a week to find a good rhythm.  Our toddler daughter was a little difficult, having to share daddy and her school with her new brother, but that phase seems to have passed now.

I do as much as I can the night before, but it is still really hard because DS doesn't have a predictable bedtime yet - it's getting better, but it can still fall somewhere between 9 and 10:30.  And he's cluster feeding a lot in the evenings (I BF), so there are long periods when I can't hand him off to DH because he just wants to nurse.

Some nights I stay up late to get dishes and laundry done, but then I'm miserably tired the next day.  Some nights I go to bed after doing the bare minimum and I'm miserable cooking dinner the next night because the kitchen is messy.  So I still haven't found the right balance yet.

Cut yourself some slack for the next few weeks.  Don't put pressure on yourself to make amazing meals, or keep the house spotless, or to stay caught on dishes and laundry.  It's going to take a couple of months to find the rhythm that works for you and your new family.

Good luck!

DallasHorn

How old are your kids?  When I went back to work with just 1, what was SO much easier was not having to worry about dinner - DH and I often did "fend for yourself" that first year.  However, when returning to work after #2, DD was 3, so we had to think about providing a healthy/well-rounded dinner for her.  SO, I encourage you to do meal planning on the weekend and purchase groceries accordingly.  This way you don't have to scramble in the evenings. I also encourage you to learn to love your crock pot and pressure cooker.  Another thing - cook once, get 2 meals - so always make enough to get 2 dinners from each time you cook.

Agree with prepping things at night, makes thing much better!

kertybird

The best advice I could ever give is a take a shower at night!  My hair is dry so I just have to straighten it and throw on my make-up in the morning!  Also, I am the queen of easy dinners...DH works nights so I am on my own four night s a week.  I rotate through bean and cheese burritos, grilled cheese, quesadillas, easy mac!  Don't feel guilty that you don't have the time to cook fancy meals...save them for the weekend.