Being self employed comes with a host of benefits, I need never miss a sports day, school play or PTA meeting, I can make appointments when places aren't busy and I'm pretty much free to go anywhere I want whenever!
But...... I find myself very disorganised and temptation is strong to grab a rare opportunity for a cuppa with my bestie, or have a play date with one of the mums.
This Summer we have loads of days out and mini breaks planned with a weekly play date, swim safe lessons, bike rides and some theme parks too, our planner is rather full.
What I'm most looking forward to as well are days at the allotment where the kids love picking berries (although I think they eat more than they pick) and just play in the mud. But some days the allotment feels like jut another thing on the list, and with plans of courses and trips and lessons and fun then housework is low on the list.
So it comes that sometimes the balls get dropped and summer holidays are a hard time to balance work and family it's also a busy time for assignments and work opportunities so here's how I find my balance....
We try to have two tidy up times, one before lunch and one before bed. That way the debris of toys and craft and shoes and coats doesn't build up too much. Plus if we don't do this the sitting room looks a bit like it's been shook upside down by 7pm see...
I ABSOLUTELY HAVE TO empty and reload the dishwasher and washing machine at breakfast time or else mount washmore grows immensely and the benches aren't clear enough to cope with lunch.
These simple steps mean I don't have to ignore the kids to do housework
My work however happens after 8 when the kids are dreaming, I schedule tweets and facebook posts write and edit blog posts and answer emails all whilst trying to catch up on the husbands day.
It's not perfect and it by no means leads to a show home house but it's the best work life balance we have right now and I'm prepared to work later in order to spend time with my babies because soon enough they are going to want to spend summer holidays with their pals not us!
How do you find the balance?
Collaborative post
Posted with Blogsy by The Monkeyfooted Mummy 
Such a good idea to have a tidy up find before lunch! I try to do it before dinner but inevitably end up sorting some things once the kids are asleep. It sounds like despite all the challenges you've managed to find a good balence x
ReplyDeleteThe lunch time tidy up is a follow on from nursery and school and it really is a sanity saver. I need to find more determination to be less distracted though.
DeleteI'm trying to find the balance too. Between play times with Agent M, spending time with Agent D, housework, scheduling clients in and blogging, its hard to juggle it all. Glad you've found your routine. I'm still working on mine lol xxx
ReplyDeleteIt's not perfect, for example I ended up working until 1am last night which is waaaay past my bedtime
DeleteYou'll get there I find lists help ;-)
It's so hard during the Summer hols isn't it - I can do a little on social media/answer emails on the go however like you, most of my work is now happening in the evening which means that time with hubby has been compromised :-(
ReplyDeleteI am still making it up as I go along - working for myself, and trying to fit a full-time job into part-time hours (plus the blog) means I work more evenings and weekends than I'd like, and am on my phone more when I'm with my daughter than I'd like. But the flexibility and being able to do the job I love is unbeatable.
ReplyDelete