Intro and a question

gatsbygirl

Hello, I just wanted to introduce myself and get a little advice. I'm a soon-to-be SAHM, sort of. A little background: I have a 3-year-old DD and a 6-week-old DS. I'm currently on maternity leave but due to restart work on Aug. 27. My husband is a teacher and so has been home with me and the kids since June 1. He goes back to work on Aug. 16.

I've decided not to return to work full-time. Instead, my boss has agreed to allow me to go part-time and work from home,which is great. The only problem is, I have absolutely no clue how I'm going to manage looking after a preschooler and an infant on my own all day. I'm also exclusively breastfeeding, so that adds to the complication.

I'm a writer, so I'll be required to work 20hr/week writing 6 articles every week. I'm just wondering how all of you managed your time. Do you have strict schedules? How do you fit in time with your older children while also breastfeeding so often (DS eats every 3 hours) plus time to get stuff around the house done? As my mat leaves winds down, I'm getting more and more stressed about all this. I'd appreciate your advice, especially from any moms who are also working from home.

Thanks!

The_Jen626

If I were in your position, I would hire a mother's helper or nanny to come in and watch the kids for the time that you need to work.  There is no way that I would be able to squeeze in 20 hours of work around a 3 year old and a newborn's schedule.

Good luck to you!

gatsbygirl

Thanks for your suggestions. Unfortunately, hiring someone to come in and help is out of the question. The whole reason why I'm staying home now is because we can't afford to pay a babysitter to take care of both kids. It took 1/4 of my income when I was working FT and would take 1/2 or more with two kids. If I'm only going to get 1/2 my salary, whether it's by paying a sitter or going PT, I'd rather take care of my kids myself. I guess I'll just have to figure it out as I going along.

ariel06

I would probably plan on spending one of the weekend days to work for a big chunk of time and most of the rest after your DH is home.  You may be able to get a little bit done if you can manage to get both kids napping at the same time, but I wouldn't count on this for long.  My DS1 dropped nap around 3.5.  He does quiet time now, but needs to be checked frequently. 

 

Squirrel29

I know you said you'd rather not hire a sitter but I really think you should reconsider.  I tried working 15 hours a week without child care when my first DS was a baby and while it was technically doable the stress of it was too much and I was miserable.  I cannot image trying to do it with two.  Maybe even if you just had help one day a week so you could devote one whole day to week and then fit in the rest of your time in small chunks each day.

 Other than getting help, my advice is to find a time each day to devote two solid hours to work - rather that be early morning before everyone is up or at night when your DH is home - so that you aren't trying to squeeze in a few minutes here and there all day long.

Best of luck to you!

Que*Syrah

Can you put your 3 year old in preschool? Even just 2 days a week it should be significantly cheaper than Daycare.

gatsbygirl

Que_Syrah:

Can you put your 3 year old in preschool? Even just 2 days a week it should be significantly cheaper than Daycare.

Yes, she will be going to preschool 2 days a week from 8:30 - 11:30 a.m., so that will give me a couple of hours. I will need to breastfeed once during that time though. I'm actually less worried about getting time to do my work since I can write in the evenings and on weekends. I'm more worried about figuring out how to juggle DD's and DS's schedules (her meals, his breastfeeds, naps, baths, etc.)

Thanks for your suggestions everyone. I think I might speak to my mom about keeping DD for one day a week to keep me sane.