WAHM - When do you work?

[AvalonDaughter]

I used to work full-time outside the home and am now trying to work from home to start my own business and I am doing some teaching at colleges.
I have a class coming up and cannot seem to find the time to work to get prepared for it.
I am really beginning to freak out. I feel like my family responsibilites and this constantly dirty home is taking over my life and I can't find the time to work.

What do you all do. When do you find the time? Do you set aside a particular time each day?

Thanks for your help! Help to keep me from going into this

[Indigomama]

I work at home part time... work out of the home part time too.

I work the same hours every week.... it was the only way I could get dh to recognize how much and when I needed his help.

My ds is 2 1/2 so it can be hard to be somewhere in the house and not have him come find you. I think the biggest thing is to prioritize..... for me it's first ds and dh, then work, my sanity, then housework and I fit them in that order. Unfortunatley that means house work usually isn't fit in I normally work 8 -10 pm Sunday through Thursday and a couple of hours every weekend.... sometimes during ds's nap time or after he goes to bed.

And remember: no matter what you'll never have enough time
Good Luck!

[Colorful~Mama]

well

as i've worked from home 3 years i've found i've gotten better at budgeting my time the longer i've been doing it.

my daughter is almost three and i babysit a 15 month old 4 days a week. i'm also 7 months pregnant now so i had to move things around a bit this last few months.

i work early in the morning when its still cool out since alot of my work is outside (i'm a dyer/tiedyer and i work in our covered carport so i dont' ruin our carpet). WHen zoey and I wake in the morning she sometimes will come outside with me and play with sidewalk chalk for about half hour/45 minutes while i mix dye or dye some items. If I have alot of orders I'll also work during the babys nap (zoey will sit and watch me or "help" me). If I am rinsing tiedye i can do that in the kitchen, washing/folding is in the laundry room which doubles as our playroom. when i package orders Zoey and Ashley color at the kitchen table. I also sometimes work at night when dh is home to play with zoey.

1. i never put in more then 3 hours a day on work. Maximum.
2. i always make my bed and do the dishes in the sink before i start my wahm job
3. kids come first. i stop what i'm doing a million times if i'm working while they're playing
4. when the new baby comes i'll readjust the schedule again till i get it right

its hard, but you can do it. right now i'm working on some auctions and advertisements in another window as i type this up while zoey plays with her big sister (lucky me i have a teen daughter who loves to help when i work)....

[Ragana]

Our situation is reversed in that I work at home full-time while my DH is a stay-at-home dad. However, in the past year or so he has been trying to work on his writing. What he does is work while our daughter is in part-time pre-school (9:00-11:30 Mon. Tue., Wed.) and for a few hours after she goes to bed (which is between 8:00-9:00 pm usually - no naps). He finds that working in a cafe is more productive for him during the day than working at home, where he is always reminded of other things that he could be doing. He also takes a class Thursday nights, so that means my daughter and I have our weekly "pajama party" that night.

Other things I can think of:

Hiring a babysitter for an afternoon a week or something like that, or even arranging a babysitting trade with a friend or colleague.

Hiring cleaning help if the house really bothers you - a student at one of the colleges where you teach could probably use the extra money.

(and I would look into whether these can be taken as deductions at all for your new business - I think childcare can)

[carminex]

I work at home as a graphic designer. If I have a big project I need a sitter. DD usually goes to play w/ another child and their nanny watches them. I usually work from 8-11:30 and pick her up and bring her home to nap. I work some more while she naps and when she wakes up I focus on her. The house does not get cleaned pr the laundry done during my work days. It is impossible! I have tried to work at night but find I am just too exhausted. I wish I didn't need to work as much as I do but this is a good compromise.

[AvalonDaughter]

Thank you this was so helpful. I think I was expecting too much more than 3 hours a day!

It sounds like 3 hours is about all that is realistic. As for the time I will have to work that out.

Thanks to you all.

[BowNessMonster]

I just started a nanny-swap a few eeks ago with another mom down the block. We met at the community ctr playgroup, and when I mentioned that I needed dd to 'be somewhere else, like, 3 days a week - and NOT a daycare" she said she wanted to take care of a child 3 days a week. we got togteher to see how the girls got along, and in the course of our afternoon, I doiscovered that she was going to put HER dd in daycare the other 3 days a week so she could work.

I was like ?!?! ...'why don't I take your dd every second day, then I won't have to pay YOU and you won't have to put her in daycare" ?

So, three days aweek now I have a full work day; plus evenings to do emails etc. The other 3 days, I spend hours toolin' around in the park or at the beach; going to the library or aquarium, picnicking, etc with the girls

Because My WAHM schedule is so flexible, and Jen's work schedule is flexible, we can change plans on each other at the drop of a hat. It is GREAT. I am so fortunate! We approximate an 8-hour trade but often she calls and says her dd is off with her dad and I don't need to take her. I also often call her and tell her "gramma and grampa are taking Raven, so don't worry about it today" etc..

Before, it was like I was always putting dd off so I could squeeze in ten mins of work; making mistakes cuz I couldn't focus, getting resentful of dd's needs and also not getting ANY housework done.

Now, on my work days; I drop dd off and come home, have a coffee and do some emails; then I go into the sewing room while dh puts on some LOUD, forbidden tunes and I just GO. I can also do sewing supply shopping, PO runs, etc and not have to drag dd along and bore her to death; I KNOW she's out having a blast with Jen and Bijou. She comes home at about 5-ish and then we have dinner, do a bath, play or read awhile then off to bed with dd.

I am still working out my rhythm, like getting it all done, but it's really turning out well.