Work from home & Childcare

Re: Work from home & Childcare

• FemShep member

  September 2012

  I don't think it's reasonable to expect to successfully work from home on the days when you don't have childcare for your DD. I'd cut back your hours or get additional childcare help. 

  

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• jf198400 member

  September 2012

  You will not be able to work when your child is awake unless you have someone else to watch her.  I would think you could maybe get 2-3 hrs of work in, depending on her nap schedule.  So obviously if you need to work more hours than that, you will need help.

  
  
  
  
  

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• ColesMommy0606

  September 2012

  I should add, I only work 15-20 hours a week. My mom comes 1-2 days a week and then one day a week DH is home with both LOs while I work in the AM. I am thinking I could either ask my mom to come 2-3 days a week when DD gets more mobile. 

  

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• ColesMommy0606

  September 2012

  hocus:

  I WAH and have 50 hours of childcare. I generally find that part time childcare is a requirement and full time childcare is an investment in your quality of life. 

  With 3 days of care (so 24 hours) plus some help from your mom you can probably keep going if you have the sort of job that allows you schedual all your meetings on preschool days. I think that days you don't have help with be very unproductive so you should be expecting to make up those hours at other times. My 13 months old is on the schedual below. There are 3-4 hours of down time, so you'd need to find another 4-5 or so hours to get all your work done if you're goal is a 40 hour work week. Now you could get up at 5:30 am and/or work late or have your spouse do a lot of the stuff after dinner but you might not like those sorts of trade offs.

  7:30 awake

  8:00 ish breakfast

  12:00 ish lunch and bath

  1:00 nap

  4:00 up from nap (it is actually anywhere from 3:30 to 4:30, but 4 is the average)

  5:00 ish dinner

  6:30 DH/me my toddler have dinner and we give a the baby snack

  8:30 bedtime.

   

  I work PT (15-20 hr per week). DS goes to daycare M/T/Th 8:30-5 and DH watches both LOs Wed from 7am - 2 pm. I have help on Tues and Thurs all day (my mom). Monday my MIL sometimes helps in the AM if she is available. I was thinking once DD is 1 we would start putting her in daycare 2-3 days a week.  

  

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• ColesMommy0606

  September 2012

  LibraryChica:

  My crystal ball says .... maybe. Since you work relatively few/flexible hours, you may be able to do it. But is it worth the stress of trying to squeeze in work during naps? Being unable to predict my work schedule would drive me nuts. I say ask your mom to come another day or hire a mothers' helper, for peace of mind if nothing else.

  At nearly 9 months my DD still naps 3 times a day, usually for 3.5/4 hours total, but I get the impression from friends that she is unusually sleepy and even she has days where she is awake and fussy most of the day. I could never get work done then! My friend's 14-month-old  takes one, 2-hour nap. 

  A mother's helper is a great idea! That would be ideal to fill in the gap for me. When my mom is here she does everything except feed DD since she is EBF. I just feed her on my boppy while I work on the computer.  

  

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• Unknown

  September 2012

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• 1026pumpkin member

  September 2012

  I think given your situation, it could possibly work.  I work from home, but have to be on telecons, answer phone calls, and respond to emails in a timely manner- I can't do it with DS at home, so he goes to FT DC.  As your daughter gets closer to 1 and gets more mobile, it's going to be impossible to get work done while watching her, but if you can get in the hours you need during nap, on the days your mom helps, and after DH comes home, then go for it!

  The mother's helper idea is a great one, too!

  ;

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• PunkyBooster member

  September 2012

  Like everyone else, says, it's good to have childcare lined up at least part time.

  We had a nanny for over a year and a half. In hindsight, I could have only had her for half the time I worked, but I didn't realize how slow things would get over the past year. 

   

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• ColesMommy0606

  September 2012

  Thank you all for the tips and advice. I think we'll take it day by day and when it gets to the point where I can no longer do my work efficiently and effectively then I will either ask my mom to come 3 days a week or hire a mother's help/nanny until she turns 1. Once she turns 1 the plan has always been to put her in daycare 3 days a week, same as DS.

  

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• Cest la Vie member

  September 2012

  I work from home full time with a 14 month old little boy and we make it work So I'll be your personal cheerleader on this one!

  I was on maternity leave for 4 months, then started back up to 40 hours a week from home. My Dad comes Mon and Tuesday to help out with him and then the rest of the week I am on my own. You can do it, you just have to be super organized to get your hours in. For instance- I usually get up at 6am and get work done before my guys gets up around 8am and then get about four hours of work done while he is napping  (he takes 2, two hour naps a day)- right there is six hours of work. He can also play independently while I'm in the same room if I need to get some stuff done periodically throughout the day- as they get older, they get more mobile, but have the ability to play independently- my son loves his trucks and cars. He is in no way neglected either- We take a walk every morning, read, do flashcards, even run errands during the week and it works just fine. In fact, I just got promoted:) The best thing I can recommend is getting up before your little one and get a head start on the day and just get into a good routine. Also- I've found I'm more efficient because I HAVE to be. I think I get more done in five hours than most people get done in eight. If you can get organized, it will help you avoid the stress- it's not something everyone can manage or wants to do, but I've always been a busy-body anyway - best of luck to you!!

  

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• northhillsbride member

  September 2012

  As long as you can meet your client's needs based around your DD's schedule, and the fact she will become more mobile and needy, then you can probably get away with it until she is 1.

  That said, it's your business. Only you know what works for your clients. (I freelance write and could make what you do work, outside of some daytime phone interviews which, still, i could make work.)

  If you had a job with a company and it required 'normal" business hours, I would agree with the others who said that you need care for your child. that's not fair for either your company or youc hild, to split your attention and time like that.

  Good luck!

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• ColesMommy0606

  September 2012

  northhillsbride:

  As long as you can meet your client's needs based around your DD's schedule, and the fact she will become more mobile and needy, then you can probably get away with it until she is 1.

  That said, it's your business. Only you know what works for your clients. (I freelance write and could make what you do work, outside of some daytime phone interviews which, still, i could make work.)

  If you had a job with a company and it required 'normal" business hours, I would agree with the others who said that you need care for your child. that's not fair for either your company or youc hild, to split your attention and time like that.

  Good luck!

  Thank you! I also work for a storytelling/publishing company. All of the freelancers make their own hours, many of us have children and work around their schedules. I do bookkeeping so I don't have to schedule calls with clients like the editors do. If my boss wants to chat with me he emails, chats me, or calls my cell. It's working right now and I hope that it'll work until DD is 1 because we are trying to save money and I hate pumping! As mentioned previously my mom (who is a nanny for another family) watches DD Tues/Thurs from 8-4 (DS is at daycare). Wed DH watches both LOs from 9-2. Monday I work around DD's nap schedule and get in whatever hours I can. I check emails at night after the kids go to bed and that helps my mornings. Thank you everyone for the advice and encouragement!

  

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