Work from Home? Or go back...

arteduc8 · August 2016

Hi Ladies! I'm a teacher and since my LO was born at the start of the summer, I've been lucky to be able to be at home with her all summer on break and my maternity leave officially starts now. I will be home with her for the next 12 weeks. I'm really struggling with having to go back even then. My job is crazy stressful and just being back for half days the past couple of days getting my maternity leave sub up to speed was exhausting. I just can't imagine going to work all day with that level of stress and exhaustion and then having anything left for my baby when I pick her up at the end of the day. I'm desperately wishing I could stay home with her indefinitely. The thing is we need my income, too. I think we could get by with my income being less than it is currently, so I'm wondering if there are work from home options out there that would let me work flexible part time hours from home. Anyone have any insight into this or already do this? I have a teaching degree and a masters in instructional tech and I'm artistic (have an etsy shop selling my photography) and can do design work. Anyone else in this boat? I've mentioned it to DH but we haven't discussed it at a serious level. I feel like if I had realistic options we could consider it.

kaitielynnrichardson · August 2016

I am not in your boat, but I have a banking background -- some banks have an instructional design position in their HR department.. It's part of the learning & training team. Those people always worked from home, and very rarely had to go to the office for team meetings or presentations.. might be something to look into

good luck!

egirl1025 · August 2016

I also am not in your boat, but my work does offer the ability to work from home, however the hours of operation are very set, meaning that I need to be available during these times. I could not maintain that schedule and keep up with my little one. He is definitely full-time work all by himself. I recommend finding a position that is flexible on the hours you need to be available or something where you can work at your own pace. I think @AmberLiz99 works from home or did prior.

Lizbeth86 · August 2016

I'm not in your boat and will have to go back to work in corporate America because I have no skills outside of it : (
But I have also tried to imagine some way to do what you're thinking of, and it seems like you need to almost be either a small business or an independent consultant. On the teaching side how about curriculum development, teacher training, or tutoring? I'm not sure on the design side but other suggestions seemed good?
I will say that my teacher friends say exactly what you fear, it's exhausting to deal with other people's kids all day and then have something left for your own. My mom did it (but we were older when she went back) and I think she had an amazing ability to tune things out and let go (she had 7 kids!)

AmberLiz99 · August 2016

Check out Leapforce.com they hire at home search engine evaluators. The pay is crummy (only 13.50/hour) but you set your own schedule completely. I've worked for them for 5 years, and it's not hard to bring in some extra money each month.

yoshi1230 · August 2016

I have known some teachers who make good income tutoring from their home.

lm45678 · August 2016

What about tutoring a few hours a day once your husband gets home from work? No benefits but it's cash so no need to claim it either. My girlfriend is a HS teacher and makes $50/hour tutoring!

arteduc8 · August 2016

Thanks for the ideas ladies! I talked to DH and it tonight and we're going to crunch the numbers to see what we'd need me to make to get by. It might be a pipe dream, but we'll see!

purplefan1 · August 2016

From my brief experience so far working from home with my daughter it has been TOUGH! I've been back at my work from home job since she was about 3 days old and even though I only work 1-2ish hours a day on it, she definitely makes it difficult. It's like she knows when I am eating, sleeping, pooping, or working and those are the times when she needs to be held IMMEDIATELY! Typing one handed is not as easy as I would want it to be. Typically I end up having to wait until my husband comes home and can help with her before I can even get done what I need to get done. And even then she will start crying and want to be fed. I've ended up breastfeeding so many times now at the computer while I try to get work done. It is definitely tough so I would recommend getting a really flexible job that you can truly do whenever you want. I've ended up having to sacrifice some precious sleep time when she finally goes down for the night and I know I have a solid couple of hours to get my stuff done.

Have you thought about looking at those online K-12 schools as a possible opportunity to keep teaching? Not sure what types of credentials you have to have in order to do it but it may be an option. Or possibly a junior college teaching online classes? Those have some pretty good flexibility since you just need to post discussions and such and check back to review what the students have written, plus grading and reading and such.

Working from home definitely has its perks. But I have also enjoyed going back to work in the evenings and leaving my husband home with her. Im able to focus on my job completely for a few hours and I know she is in good care. I do hate that she won't take a bottle very well but have been impressed with how much my husband is working with her on her sucking abilities and the progress he has gotten in helping her take a bottle. And their bond is amazing because of the time they have together.

rmmorris · August 2016

I was also teaching before my LO came along. I'm staying at home now for the exact same reasons you described. I felt like I wouldn't be able to do either job (mom or teacher) well if I tried to do both. Something you might consider doing is making products for teachers pay teachers-- especially given that you are artistic. I also agree that tutoring would be a great option.

Work from Home? Or go back...

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