WWYD

fyrefairie · April 2012

I'm going back parttime...which is better than fulltime but still killing me. Would you work 5 half days (and never be away from LO for more than5ish hours) or work2-3 full days and be home all day more often?

WildcatPrincess · April 2012

I work 2 days (well, 1 now DS is here) and it was a great balance for me. I got most of the week home with DD, but still got some time away using my sciencey brain and socializing with my coworkers. My boss and I considered doing a 4 hours, 5 days a week schedule and I think it would have been more annoying to have to leave more often, even if it was shorter periods of time. I'm sorry you have to go back when you don't want to, hopefully things will go smoothly for you all.

anna7602 · April 2012

Depends on your job responsibilities. Since DD was born, I've found it easier to bang out everything I had to do in a full day rather than having pockets of time here and there. Especially when I was commuting into an office, I preferred to be in for a whole day than to only go in for 2-3 hours. I would have still had to pump if away from DD as a baby for 5 hours and the logistics would have been hard if I'd only been at the office for a short period of time.

terri_doula2010 · April 2012

I agree with pp that 2 full days sounds like it would be the better deal.

pixieprincss · April 2012

I work FT, but with flexible hours 3 days a week and fixed hours another 3 (only 1 day off per week). The freedom to go to moms' groups and play dates is pretty nice for those 3 days. If you were away 5 hours per day, could you still do SAHM kinds of things with others? Also, factor in the time commuting and being asked to stay late (if that comes into play). I think that 5 days has the chance to take up more time than fewer days. That said, it is hard to miss a whole day with LO! That is what my Tuesdays are like and I have my parents bring him mid-day so I can see him, LOL!

KateLouise · April 2012

Do you have the kind of job where it could be easy to end up staying longer than you intended? A client calls? A boss wants a meeting? and before you know it a 5 hour day has turned into 6 and then 7?

I would rather work the full days and then I'm free to do what I want the rest of the week.

3003girl · April 2012

depends.

I went back part time - and started out 2 full days in the office. Honestly, for me, it sucked. LO reverse cycled because she wouldn't take a bottle and we were breastfeeding. I would come home and she would be attached to my boob all night long - and literally for a full 2-3 hours right when I came home, then nursing all night long because she hadn't eaten all day. Then, right when she was getting back on a normal schedule I had to go back in. I had a really hard time doing it but did it for a few months, then renegotiated my schedule.

I went from that to working from home every day for 2 hours and going in the office 2-3x a week for 3-4 hours at a time. There were a few days where I had to work full days, and DH brought LO in for lunch time so that I could nurse her. (DH was a SAHD)

I would much rather only be away from my LO for short chunks when they are tiny, but now that she is almost 2 I would rather do the 2 full days and get it over with. Luckily, I found another job (better) and work from home full time now.

kcisthebombdotcom · April 2012

I used to work part time days (15-20 hours a week) and I liked doing 5 short days. I had some flexibility in scheduling because I had family to help so I'd work around when activities I wanted to do with the kids were. Work was more of a break instead of dreading being away from my kids for 8 hours. Workwise, it was easier because other employees/managers needed my assistance a lot (I worked in HR) so they were able to catch me on any weekday and I found working less days made me fall behind easier.

I guess it really depends on what your role would be. It might be easier if you're doing more independent work to get it all out of the way on 2 days instead of focusing half your day on work/half your day on baby. If other coworkers rely on you, it might be easier for you to do 4-5 days a week.

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