On those tough days...

This week has been a hard week.  I have been really busy with work, and another round of sickness is making its way through our house.  It has been hard to stay focused on the important things.  Some days it feels like I am in "survival mode" just to make it through the day.  It is on those days that I try to remember why it (this crazy busy life of work and family and a house) is all worth it.  Here are my thoughts...

I take care of my family because...

...it brings me joy.  You know, that deep-down, inexplainable feeling of "rightness"?  That's how I feel when I take care of my family.  Even when it's hard to take care of them and I feel pulled in 90 million directions at once, I do my best to have a servant attitude.  I try to remember that they are God's children too, and I have the privilege of taking care of them for just a short time.  This helps me to stay focused on why it is important for me to do what I can to make their day just a little brighter.  Truly, every time I think about my husband or my son (or anyone for that matter) being God's child, it changes my whole perspective on how I treat them.  Try it...

I take care of my work because...

...it is good to share my talents and learn new things.  I like giving student's feedback on their work and praising them for the amazing thinkers that they are capable of being.  Plus, I am a list person, and I get satisfaction from clearing out my email inbox, grading pile, and to do list for the day.  Some days, my list seems to be a repeat of the day before, but that's okay.  I know it will all get done eventually.  I just might not sleep very much until it does...  :)  Sometimes I get frustrated when things don't seem to operate efficiently, and I get annoyed that I have to do "extra" work because of it.  I won't bore you with an example, but I'm sure anyone who has ever worked anywhere has experienced this feeling.  Unless you are some kind of amazingly patient person.  Then you have no idea what I'm talking about.  Teach me your ways!  Anyway, I digress...when I feel frustrated about things like that, I remember that it is a challenge to learn something new and/or find a better way of doing it.  At one of my first jobs, I was taught the value of being a "well-rounded" employee.  I learned that knowing how to do a lot of different things was a sort of job security.  It makes you more valuable than someone who is less willing to learn new tasks or methods.  So, even when I have to spend an extra two hours entering dates into a gradebook that should have been entered right the first time, I know it is making me a better person. (Oops, my example snuck in...)  I might be getting to practice being more patient, or learning a new angle of my job, or just being able to feel satisfaction from a job well done.  Ultimately, I'm not doing it for the accolades from my supervisor, I'm doing it because God expects me to do.  He expects me to work for him, and he is one boss I don't want to let down.


So, there you have it.  That's what keeps me motivated on the tough days.  What keeps you going?

"How do you do it?"

When I tell people that I work full time from home with a toddler, people often say things like

"Really? That is so cool!"

"Wow...how do you do it?"

"Oh my gosh.  I would go insane."

"So, do you actually get any work done?"


When I first became a Work At-Home Mom (WAHM), I felt a little bit like someone stuck in two worlds at the same time.  I was technically a working mom, and technically a stay at home mom, but I wasn't really either.  To be honest, it was a little lonely at first.  At the time, I only knew one other person who worked at home with her baby, and she lived *literally* a thousand miles away.  I couldn't cheer to my coworkers about how I succeeded in attending a live phone conference AND managed to get my baby to sleep AT THE SAME TIME.  They wouldn't get it.  And I couldn't tell my six-month old about the really annoying email I had just read.  He didn't care.

Even though I was lost in lonely-ville, I was thrilled at the opportunities working from home afforded me.  I was so excited that I COULD live in both of these worlds simultaneously.  I have always enjoyed working, and our financial goals meant that quitting altogether was not an option.  I wanted more time with my son, and I needed to work.  VOILA!  Working from home has been an amazing solution.

So, back to my original purpose for this post...

As I said, people are often asking me how I do it all.  Well, I don't.  I don't do it all.  That is impossible.  But I do quite a bit.

I like lists, so I made a list of the top 5 ways I manage to be a work at home mom:

1. I get up early.  Most days, I try to be working by 6am.  Considering I don't really have to "get ready" and my commute consists of walking to the basement, I wake up about 5 minutes before I start work.  Starting early allows me to get a couple hours of work done before Max wakes up and the day begins.

2. I prioritize my housework.  Generally, I save all household chores and tasks for when Max is awake.  I empty the dishwasher while he eats breakfast.  We fold and put away laundry together.  We vacuum together.  Sometimes I fantasize about full time stay at home moms getting to do these things during nap times.  (Honestly, I don't even know if that's when stay at home moms do stuff like that.  Seriously, I just fantasize...)  But I also think it is good for Max to take part in some of those tasks.  (Oh, I should also mention that part of prioritizing my housework has been to lower my standards.  Seriously.  Vacuuming once a week?  Maybe.  Once a month?  More likely.  Sparkling bathrooms?  Um, I don't plan on eating in there, so how clean does it really need to be?)

3. I prioritize my work work.  I take advantage of those early morning hours and naptime to focus on work projects that require my undivided attention.  While Max is awake, I check emails often and grade assignments (I'm an online teacher) that can be done quickly.

4. I find things to do that get us out of the house, but only for a little bit.  A couple days a week, I try to get us out of the house.  Max and I both do much better when we have a chance to leave the house sometimes and see other people.  Plus, it gives me a reason to brush my hair.  ;)  I don't want to spend much money, which would necessitate working even more, so we do a lot of budget-friendly things.  For example, we go to storytime at the library once a week.  It is totally free, and it gets us out of the house for an hour.

5. I set boundries.  I do not work on weekends.  Period.  I rarely even turn on the computer between 5pm on Friday and early Monday morning.  Unless I have a meeting scheduled, I try not to work between dinner and bedtime.  During the day, when Max seems especially needy, I walk away from the computer and just sit on the floor to read a story.  Those times are important to me and my family.

Well, there's a good start!  I'd like to explore more about this as my blog gets rolling. But Max is tugging at my chair, and I think we need to stack some blocks together.

ttyl