I’ve had quite a few of you ask me what a typical day in the life of a work-at-home mom looks like. So today, I’m going to break it down for you.
It’s not glamorous.
It’s not relaxing.
It’s not easy.
It’s not always fun.
But it does have some perks. And we’ll get to those later. But let’s jump right into a typical day of a work-at-home mom!
6:30-7:30 a.m: Kids wake up and demand breakfast. Like if they don’t get it that minute they will melt away. We have a rule that they can’t leave their rooms until 7 so if they wake up before that, they can watch their iPads. And then at 7, those get taken away and they can start their day.
On my end, I usually check my emails and flag the ones that need responses. I don’t have time to respond to them so I will go back and do that later. Next I finish writing my post for that day (sometimes I’m last minute, truth). I publish my post and then share it across my social media channels.
8:00-9:00a.m: Get the kids ready for the day. Luckily they’re at an age where they can dress themselves, brush their teeth, and get their shoes on. Of course I have to intervene when pants are inside out or they don’t want to brush their teeth for no other reason than they don’t feel like it.
While they’re getting ready, I get ready for the gym.
9:00-10:00 a.m: We leave to take N to school around 9:15 and then I head straight to the gym right after. They have childcare at the gym so P gets some socialization and I get to work off some stress!
10:00-11:30 a.m: This is my workout time. I do cardio for 30-35 minutes on the elliptical and then do strength training. Usually I do arms then legs every other day. If I’m working out with my friend she breaks it down into things like back, butt, shoulders, etc. I just know simple workouts haha so sometimes I like to switch it up and work out with her.
11:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m: Head home to change and for a post-workout snack. However I’ve decided that I’m going to start sitting at the gym until I need to go get N because they have couches and wifi and I can get stuff done instead of wasting time driving home. We’ll see how that works out!
12:30-1:30 p.m: Get N from school and head home to eat lunch. I’m usually shoving food down my throat while simultaneously responding to emails.
1:30:3:00 p.m: I try to reinforce this time as quiet time but that doesn’t usually go over well. N has been in school for three hours so he wants to run around and play. So I tell them they can sit and watch a movie or they can play nicely. That doesn’t last very long though…
This is the time where I try to get a lot of my work done. Answering emails, taking photos, editing photos, writing posts, scheduling posts, making edits when necessary, applying for new campaigns and projects, etc. However this is usually interrupted by sibling fights, need for food, dogs that need let out, etc. So pretty much I get about 30 minutes of actual work done in this time.
3:00-5:00 p.m: Sometimes this is swapped with quiet time. But I’ll help them build Legos, take them to the playground, let them ride their bikes outside, etc. I try and answer emails on my phone, catch up on social media (responding, liking, commenting, etc).
5:00-6:00 p.m: My husband gets home somewhere in between here. This is the tag off. I start making dinner while he plays with the kids.
6:00-7:30 p.m: We eat dinner, have dessert, and watch a movie or play a board game as a family. If we’re watching a movie, I’m checking emails and working on other things.
7:30 p.m: Bedtime for the kiddos. N sleeps in his own bed but needs us to rub his back while he falls asleep. I know, bad habit. But I don’t care. He won’t be asking us to do this when he’s a teenager. P sleeps with us, another bad habit, so she asks for the same thing in our bed.
8:00-10:00 p.m: You guessed it, time to work. I usually work from my laptop unless I need to edit photos. At least that way I can be in the same room as my husband. We usually watch a show on Netflix or whatever show it is that we’re into on TV. I answer emails, write posts, plan out social media shares, etc.
10:00-10:30 p.m: Bedtime for me. I try and stay up to get things done but by this time, I’m just too tired. I usually lay in bed for a bit while I post an Instagram pic and catch up on some stuff. I know, I should put the phone away so I can actually fall asleep. Which takes me FOREVER to do. But as you can see, I work when I can. And this is when I can.
There are SO many perks about working from home. I get to be with my kids, I make my own schedule, and I can work from anywhere. It’s kind of like college when your professors give you all of the chapters that you need to read and tell you to do it at your own pace. And then you save it all for the night before the exam because you’ve been procrastinating.
That’s my life. I try and get everything done ahead of time but it always seems like I’m playing catch-up. Part of me would love to go to an office and not have to take work home with me. But then I wouldn’t get to be working from my pajamas right now, would I?
The guilt. Also a constant struggle. I think I say “5 more minutes, guys” 100 times a day. I’m trying to finish a post or finish an email. And when I do stop to play, I’m stressed thinking about how much work I’m going to need to do once I find the time to do it.
Weekends are for family time but there are times that I need to work too. I usually try to do this first thing in the morning so I can get it out of the way and then spend the day with them. And then Sunday nights are usually spent getting ready for the week. I swear, the work never ends!
But I make it work. What choice do I have, right? There’s not enough hours in the day and sometimes things don’t get done. But my kids are happy. I’m happy. And I love what I do.
Do you work from home? What’s a typical day look like for you?
