Today is my freedom day. As of today I have one child in school all day, another child in daycare three days a week and 18 hours to myself every week. For a work-at-home mom, this is pure, unbridled luxury. Just imagine it – 18! Hours! No! Interruptions!
I have been eagerly anticipating this day for quite some time. I love my children, and I really love the flexibility that working from home brings me, but the truth is that kids and work don’t go together all that well. When you’re trying to take care of your kids and work at the same time, someone is always getting short-changed. In fact, I would take that one step further and say that everyone is getting short-changed – your clients, your kids and most of all yourself. It’s just not possible to complete a task that requires real concentration and attend to your children at the same time.
For the longest time I have been compensating for my lack of consistent childcare by staying up late at night. It’s far from ideal. When I stay up late at night working I don’t get any downtime, I don’t get enough sleep and I’m kind of unpleasant to be around. I had few other options, though, especially since I’m not willing to park my kids in front of the TV for four or five or seven hours a day. So I put my head down and pulled through. It’s what parents do, right? We accomplish whatever we can in, around and in spite of our families, and we understand that compromises will need to be made.
Now my freedom day has arrived, and things are about to change. I am about to have much more space to work in. It’s not a lot of space, exactly, but it’s more than I’ve had since I last worked outside of the home more than three years ago. I feel almost giddy, and I have a near-irresistible urge to fill up the space with stuff. I want to take a class, go for coffee with friends and business contacts, re-organize the play room and work in my garden. I want to sew and knit and bake and can. All of this time is calling out to me.
I am fighting my urge to fill my new-found space. I know that 18 hours a week to work in is really not all that much. I also know that, all too often, I will lose work time to sick kids and professional development days and holidays. This time is precious, and I need to guard against squandering it. I also need to guard against over-committing myself in my excitement. So, as I celebrate my freedom day, my plans are very limited. I don’t know yet how much I will actually accomplish. I don’t know yet exactly what I will do with it. But I can tell you that the possibilities are terribly exciting to me.
Just imagine it. 18 hours. My freedom day is here!
Do you have time to yourself while your kids are at school or in childcare? How do you use it? Does it go faster than you expected, or are you able to cram a lot in? I’d love to hear all about it!
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Twitter: AlyMcF
says:
I’ve been getting about 35 hours a week during the school year. With all the time I had last year, I felt guilty by the end of the year that I didn’t have more to show for it. (I need to start patting myself on the back for what I DO accomplish, not beating myself up over what I don’t.)
I remember the shock and sadness of visiting certain places I used to go with my daughter, and feeling out of sorts that she was not there with me, my little buddy.
But overall, the free time was a godsend. I wrote over 60 short stories and found a small community of people to emotionally support me and my writing. I took hula hooping class. I got things organized around the house. I started learning Japanese. I participated in NaNoWriMo. I learned how to colorize manga in Photoshop. I got to go out and meet with adults during the day and have child-free lunches. I volunteered at my daughter’s school a lot and took over as volunteer webmaster for a local puppet organization.
I’m not sure what I’ll be doing this year, but getting at least one of my novels published in some way or another is on my list, as well as making hula hoops to sell and donating knitted goods to the school auction.
I’m sure you’ll find a good way to use your time. Sometimes just sitting with your feet up and watching YouTube videos is just what the Dr ordered. Or maybe you’ll write a cookbook?
Twitter: jenarbo
says:
Kale starts preschool this week and I’ll get 12.5 hours a week of time to myself. I’m a little worried because previously we had a part time babysitter and while it was less hours a week (4) it was one big block. I worry that the time I will take to walk Kale up to preschool and back will cut into the work time I get and that I won’t be as efficient as before. But, it’s better for him and it’s less expensive so it’s a reasonable tradeoff.
Jen’s last post … Shoes
Today is mine, too! Usually it’s Mondays but because of Labor Day we switched it. I got some work done, took a long walk to meet a friend for brunch, and am now back home to do lots of laundry and hopefully a good house cleaning. And then more work. If I can fit it all in!
Steph
Enjoy that time! Starting later this week I will have 7.5 hours a week to myself when my oldest is in SK and my youngest is in preschool. I am tempted to just sit and stare at the walls.
Capital Mom’s last post … Monday Moments: Costume
Twitter: pomomama
says:
LOL and thanks for the plug
and don’t go mad like me, filling every spare moment with W.O.R.K. – i’m now having to learn how to do nothing for the sake of my sanity, life balance and personal comfort
yeah roght – i’m packing that one in amongst going back to school, volunteer work and running a small business/being an artist
good luck! see you for coffee sometime?
pomomama’s last post … Vincent
Twitter: AmberStrocel
says:
I’ll meet you for coffee ANYTIME.
Twitter: MarilynBelsham
says:
Well, I still don’t have childcare so I’m still working late and still unpleasant to be around. But I am looking forward to having 4 hours each week to myself once Em starts preschool.
Marilyn @ A Lot of Loves’s last post … An Epoch Moment
Twitter: RachaelNevins
says:
I get 21? 24? hours on my own each week. But I still work at night, too. I’m struggling to create a regular rhythm for myself for the time I’m on my own at home — one that includes guilt-free (ha! ha!) time for meditation and *my* writing.
Rachael’s last post … {Almost} Wordless Wednesday: Hello Again!
Dharma starts school tomorrow. She will be at school over 30 hours a week. Up until now I worked in the 15 hours she’s been at nursery plus evenings and lots on weekends. Like you I had to pull back to not start planning every single second of the day with work.
I will let you know how that goes…
Mel’s last post … Are you pinteresting?