Working From Home Moms

Jen74561

Hi There, I am a first time mom and will be going back to work for a new company working from home next month. Our baby girl was born in December and will be 3 months when I start back to work. The company that I will be working for is very flexible if my LO is home with me some, hours that I will work, etc as long as I am getting my job done. I have enrolled our LO in daycare because I know that I would not be able to be productive with her here all day and it would not be fair to her or to my job. My question is any suggestions or ideas on how to work from home and juggling both mommy and career? This is new to me so I am open to any ideas! Do you have your LO's home with you? I would like to think I could have her home with me a couple afternoons a week. How do you stay on task? Are you doing errands and household chores while you are home during the week as well?

Thanks for any of your ideas and advice!

cltk12

I wfh on Fridays and sometimes another day a week too. DH works from all the time.  Ds goes to dc FT. When I went back to work, I thought for sure, I'd pick ds up early on Fridays or other days, but I haven't been because I use that time with ds at dc to do laundry, neaten up, grocery shop, etc. when he's home, I don't get much done so I let him play at dc, get my stuff done and then when he's home, I can focus on him. 

stepper1725

I work from home one day a week. We have a nanny come watch DD during the day that I work from home (she's in a daycare center the other days).

I would never be able to get any productive work done if I were trying to watch DD at the same time. But, I do like having DD at home while I work from home. It's nice to be able to pop out of the office for a bit to see her. Is that an option for you on the afternoons you'd like to have your LO at home? Depending on how flexible your job is, you might not need care on these afternoons. But for me & my job, I'm basically staring at a computer screen all day. I don't think it's a great thing for my DD to be completely ignored while I work. I'd rather put in my 8 hours, and then spend quality time with her, kwim?

When I work from home, I will do laundry & sometimes wipe down the kitchen or bathroom, but that's only during the times I'm waiting for a computer program to finish running. I use any of that type of 'downtime' to get a few things done. But for the most part, I'm working just as I would be at the office. The time saved not having to commute & get ready for work (3 hours a day total) is used for running errands.

Good luck! You'll figure out what works best for you & your family

snicksnack

I work from home as needed it has been averaging about twice a month or so.  A family member watches my kids at home but most of the time when I work from home I take them to her house.  DD is three and up until recently it was hard for her to understand that I was working.  When it was just her and she was little she took a long afternoon nap and I could work with her there during that time if I did not have any meetings planned or was on deadline incase she woke up.  Tomorrow I will be working from home because she has a doctor's appointment at 2:30.  I will get up early and start working before they wake up I will get about two hours worth of work done, I will make everyone breakfast and the sitter will arrive around 10.  From 10-2 I will work non-stop other than to nurse DS unless he is hungry during a meeting I have.  I am only planning to work 6 hours tomorrow.  Most days when I work from home they are not here and the advantage is I can have clothes washing while I am at the house, I prep dinner the night before and can have it in he oven things like that.  The disadvantage is I can't seem to turn off because I am at home so I find myself making dinner around six with the laptop on the counter and taking calls not good.  

Erinmmo

 I work from home and after I had my daughter- I was able to work from home and watch her up until 6 months- then I had to get help.

I think its doable depending on your job responsibilites until they are that age.  That is when she started to get mobile and needed more attention. And I just could not juggle it anymore-but I wanted to save the money and for me I wasnt ready to have someone else watch her.  But like I said I dont know what you do or how demanding your job is- for me I could swing it.

 

LeahCK

I worked from home for 7 months and enrolled DS in full time daycare but then hired a full time nanny instead to take advantage of having him home with me but being able to focus on work. I enjoyed taking a break here and there to go hug, bf, play with, smile with him for only a few minutes in between conference calls, deliverables, etc. 

I hope that helps. I am not one who can effectively work to the standard I would expect watching my DS.  

sadie+w

I WAH one day per week. My nanny watches LO that day. I cannot get anything done without someone else watching LO. It is nice, though, to be at home together. If I am missing him, I'll pop upstairs for a bit to see him. Or, if he's having a rough time, I can take a break to feed him.

Is it am option for you to have a nanny instead of taking your LO to dc?

hoping4sticky

I went from FT corporate world to PT with 2 day at home when I went back from my 1st maternity leave and I recently moved and went to PT and FT work from home. My best advice for your career while WFH is to focus on work. Treat WFH like you are at the office. Coworkers are going to think that you are at home watching TV or playing with your kid. So you need to be on top of your game. Now, of course there are benefits that you get to enjoy - I empty the dishwasher while I heat up my lunch, toss a load of laundry in on a break, fold laundry on a conference call, work out at lunch etc. Also when my first was little, I did everything to minimize any minute I could in daycare. Now that my kids are older and I see the benefits of daycare I usually take 15 - 30 minutes at the end of my day to prep dinner and clean up, which makes a huge difference in the quality of time that I can spend with my kids.

I understand wanting to have your LO home with you, and you may be able to get away with it for a few more months, but honestly to me it just isn't worth it. You will either be short changing your work or your LO. I would rather get work done at work, be able to set it aside and the time I do have with my kids actually give them my full attention.