How To Balance Working At Home And Raising Your Kids

Most work at home moms start home based businesses because they want to be home with their little ones. And I was no different: I left a great corporate job to be around my two children.

But then, you put a lot of work in your business, and it works! Yes, you are getting orders, and making some money, but the flip side is that you don’t have as much time for your little ones. How do you then balance your time? Do you still put your children first? Or do you go for the “just a minute honey!” line and hope they can’t tell time?

It happened to me: one day, during my first Christmas season in business, I was busy with an order for 150 gift baskets. It was hard work, and stress was running high. The deadline was approaching, and I had no time to stop to even straighten the room.

There were boxes with product everywhere, there were empty boxes, and there was gourmet food everywhere: a true disaster area! And just then, my 4 year old daughter (now 11) came to me with her big brown eyes in tears: “Mommy, I am bored and I am lonely… Can we play a little?” What could I do? I was alone at home with her, and if I stopped to play, there was no way I could finish my order in time.

So, I thought quickly, on my feet, of how I could play with her and work at the same time. And I came up with the idea of building her an office right next to mine out of used/damages boxes. She was ecstatic! And SHE did all the work! I told her where to go and get the boxes, and made room for her by me desk. She built a desk, improvised a chair, and even had items to sell in her store.

With that in place, I was able to continue my work uninterrupted most of the time. She loved watching and copying me: when I picked up the phone to talk to a customer, she picked up her imaginary phone. When I needed to make a basket, she made one of her own. When I calculated the price for my baskets, she picked up a pencil and calculated her own prices.

In time, her office evolved: the old, damaged boxes were replaced with actual wooden drawers. Inventory I wasn’t able to sell became her store’s inventory. She even got an adding machine, and a couch. Now, her office is her favorite spot to play. And it’s not just an office anymore: it’s an entire building with different shops. She has a restaurant, a bath and body store, a book store, and a toy store.

The store has helped her in many ways:

– she learned about maintaining and ordering inventory

– she learned about phone etiquette

– she learned addition and subtraction

– she learned organization skills

– she learned to be creative (little bits and pieces of ribbon, irregular baskets, empty containers have become great assets to her business)

Could YOU be using your business to teach your kids business basics while having fun? I am sure you could. Just take some time and think how your situation can be used to plant some business seeds in your child.
 

btaliat

VIP Contributor
It is somehow difficult to balance work with caring for the family truly especially if you are working from home. Though I am not married but I do have a girlfriend that we are aiming at walking down the aisle with, we do argue on how to manage her with different online gigs I have.
 

Abigael

Valued Contributor
Wow, that is such a great way to balance work and taking care of kids. Indeed allowing them to work with you impacts them with very good skills while they also have fun spending time with their mom. That is some very good advice that stay at home mums should take.
 

kayode10

VIP Contributor
It can be very difficult to work and attend to the kids at home at the same time. The reason is that the kids are fond of creating distraction while you are busy working. I think the best thing is to is to create a work schedule when the kids will not be around maybe when they go to the school so you have more free time to do your work.
 

Chibson

VIP Contributor
It is quite possible to balance working at home and taking care of your kids. But it is also very important that you get someone that will help you to do most of the work because it can be very stressful. If you're working at home then you can sit at a place for hours without even trying to get up especially if you are into freelancing.
 

kayode10

VIP Contributor
You need an efficient time management in order for you to balance between working at home and raising kids. You have to find sometimes when you can schedule your work duration when the kids cannot disturb you. You can decide to work when the kids I've gone to the school. you can also create a mini workstation for yourself that will not be accessible for the kids.
 

Jonaville

Active member
Seriously, let us take out time to appreciate our parents especially mothers who work remotely from home and still be able to eke out the time to take care of us kids when we wear growin up, it has not been an easy job to do. Up till now I still don't understand how she was able to manage.
 

blessingc

Active member
A good and responsible parent should have time for his/her kids no matter the tightness of their schedule.

There's time for everything, there's time for work, there should be time for your family and children less they become the problem of the society.

Create a time schedule, as a man or father if you are so, busy during the week to be there for your kids, you should have time for them on weekends. As a mother you should always be there for your kids and not employ helps and leave them to helps, less they train your kids for you the way they want. We hear all of stories in our society, about abuses from maids and helps every blessed day. Sexual abuse, witchcraft initiations are caused by irresponsibility of parents.

No one should bring a child into the world when he's not ready to take responsibility of that child. A mother should not go for a job or career that will take her away from her kids. Having a job that doesn't keep you out 24/7 is the best.

Having a job as a mother that keeps you out in the mornings after taking your kids to school, and brings you back home at the late hours of afternoon or early evening is the best. So you can take care of your kids the way you want the to be and prepare meals for you family.
 
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